Mogadishu, January 3 (QNA) - Somali Defense Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi announced the killing of two senior commanders in the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab militant group, in a military operation in Jilib, Lower Juba region, in southern Somalia.

During a press conference today, the Defense Minister added that the two Al-Shabaab commanders had carried out a series of attacks, most notably the attack on the Jali Siad Military College and the bombing of the Zobe intersection in 2017, in addition to other bombings that killed many civilians, as well as attacks in neighboring countries.

Fiqi explained that the Somali armed forces have surrounded 500 Al-Shabaab fighters in an area near Gubad Godane and have called on them to surrender. He indicated that they will be eliminated in the coming days if they do not surrender to the Somali forces.

The Somali Defense Minister indicated that more than 20 militants were killed and about 30 others from the Al-Shabaab movement, including prominent leaders, were wounded last night in a joint military operation by the army and international partners in the Buli Fuli area of ​​Bay region in the southwest of the country. (QNA)