Mogadishu, April 04 (QNA) - Somali authorities said on Saturday that nine Al Shabaab militants, linked to Al Qaeda, were killed in two military operations in southern Somalia.

Somali National News Agency (SONNA) reported that the first operation targeted a militant site in the Kunya Barrow area of the Lower Shabelle region, killing six fighters.

It added that a second operation in the Togarey area of the same region left three militants dead, after they were found hiding in forested areas.

For more than a decade, Somali government forces have been battling the group, which has carried out numerous attacks that killed hundreds of civilians and security personnel and frequently targeted government facilities and hotels in the capital, Mogadishu. (QNA)