Somalia: Heavy Fighting Erupts in Baidoa as Rival Forces Trade Claims

Residents reported hearing a series of powerful explosions across Baidoa, with thick plumes of smoke visible over parts of the city. Initial reports indicated that several locations, including a power facility and a base used by federal government forces, were struck during the clashes. Ugaas Hassan, the information minister for the Laftagareen-aligned faction, confirmed that its forces had launched an attack, describing the assault as involving several successive waves. The fighting also saw the reported use of an explosive-laden drone by opposition forces. If confirmed, the deployment would mark a notable development in the ongoing confrontation in Baidoa. Local sources said dozens of people were killed or wounded, although the exact number of casualties could not immediately be independently verified. The Somali federal government offered a sharply different account of the fighting. In a statement shared by Nasro Bashir Ali, the government said Somali Armed Forces had repelled an attack involving Al-Shabaab fighters and militias allied with Laftagareen. According to the government statement, the attackers suffered heavy casualties and were forced to retreat, while federal forces remained in control of Baidoa. It also claimed that fighters had left behind dead and wounded combatants as they withdrew. The Laftagareen-aligned forces, meanwhile, presented their own account of the confrontation and claimed success in the fighting. The competing statements could not immediately be independently reconciled, and the full extent of casualties and damage remained unclear. The latest clashes add to tensions surrounding control of Baidoa, a strategically important city in Somalia's Southwest State, amid an ongoing political and security dispute between federal authorities and forces loyal to Laftagareen.- Horn Observer -