In Baidoa, a city located in southwestern Somalia, at least four civilians were killed and a further ninety-eight were reported injured following intense clashes between government forces and armed militias. This outbreak of violence, which lasted for several hours, began early on Monday morning, according to hospital officials.

The casualties were confirmed by Dr Abdikafi Omar Mohamud, head of the emergencies department at Bay Regional Hospital. He indicated that the injured included twenty-eight women and an elderly man, who were reportedly struck by stray bullets. With only forty beds available, the hospital has set up an emergency tent to manage the influx of patients due to the conflict.

Calm was restored by Tuesday, allowing security forces to patrol the main streets while assessing damage to buildings and vehicles affected by the fighting. Residents, however, emerged from their homes with caution amidst the aftermath of the clashes.

Details of the Clashes

The violence erupted shortly after 5 am on Monday, initiated by two explosions near a military base located to the east of Baidoa. Heavy fighting soon followed around another military installation in Bonkay, situated to the south of the city, as armed groups engaged in direct exchanges of fire with government troops.

Samira Gaid, a regional security analyst at Balqiis Insights, stated that fighters loyal to former South West state President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen had managed to push government troops out of certain areas of Baidoa for approximately six hours. They were ultimately driven back from the city.

In addition, it was reported that members of the extremist group al-Shabab conducted separate attacks on two Somali military positions on the outskirts of Baidoa during the unrest, raising suspicions of collaboration between them and Laftagareen’s loyalists.

Government Response and Context

The federal government of Somalia claimed that the attackers included militias aligned with Laftagareen as well as al-Shabab fighters. They reported that nearly thirty attackers were killed, with several others captured; however, South West state authorities provided a higher casualty figure, estimating that about fifty attackers had died. The discrepancies in these reports remain unverified.

On Tuesday, South West Internal Security Minister Isak Mohamed Korsaar stated that government troops had recovered bodies of al-Shabab fighters and detained additional attackers. Korsaar remarked that the militias involved were not acting independently, reinforcing claims of coordination between Laftagareen’s forces and the extremist group.

The outbreak of fighting followed months of political tension regarding the leadership and electoral process in South West state. In March, the federal government rejected Laftagareen’s disputed re-election, which subsequently led to federal troops taking control of Baidoa on March 30. It was then that Laftagareen announced his resignation after governing since 2018.

Analysts suggested that the clashes underscore how underlying political disputes can create opportunities for extremist groups to exploit the situation, leading to increased civilian suffering amidst the violence.

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