Gorgor Unit Commander Mahdi Iman said the operations were carried out in the two villages of El-Haji and El-Dhigtar, located in Galcad town.

Iman told the Somali National News Agency that the aim of the early Tuesday operation was to flush out remaining al-Shabab terrorists who have been terrorizing residents in the Galgaduud region.

During the operation, the troops successfully located and removed improvised explosive devices that had been planted along the road by terrorists, Iman said.

Terror incidents have been witnessed in Galcad town which is one of the towns where the Somali security forces liberated from al-Shabab terrorists in early 2023.

Iman said security forces will intensify operations in the area to flush out al-Shabab militants who have been attacking the locals and collecting illegal levies from the residents in the area.

The latest onslaught comes as the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) said on June 29 it had completed the first phase of troop withdrawal from Somalia.

The ATMIS was expected to withdraw 2,000 troops by the end of June and another 3,000 by September in compliance with the UN Security Council Resolutions 2628 and 2670, which mandate the ATMIS to also hand over security responsibilities in agreed areas to Somali security forces.