Fresh Fighting Breaks Out Near Baidoa as Somalia Troops Clash With Militias

Renewed fighting erupted early Thursday on the outskirts of Baidoa, a key city in southwestern Somalia, as government troops clashed with local militias. Witnesses reported heavy gunfire in residential areas, prompting many civilians to flee their homes as stray bullets struck neighborhoods.

The Somali Defense Ministry said its forces were responding to an attack by fighters loyal to former South West state President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, alongside members of the al-Qaida-linked extremist group al-Shabab. The violence marks the latest escalation in a bitter political and security dispute between the federal government and Laftagareen over control of the South West state.

Federal forces had taken control of Baidoa on March 30, after which Laftagareen resigned. He had governed the state since 2018. The clashes subsided by early afternoon, though no official casualty figures were released. Government troops patrolled the streets as ambulances ferried the injured to hospitals, and residents emerged to assess damage and clear bloodied clothing from the pavement.

Dr. Abdikafi Omar Mohamud, head of the emergency department at Bay Regional Hospital in Baidoa, said his staff had received 24 wounded individuals and one civilian who had died. A local resident, Abdullahi Haji, told reporters he left home immediately upon hearing gunfire and stray bullets landing in his area.

Baidoa, located about 245 kilometers (150 miles) northwest of Mogadishu, serves as a major humanitarian hub hosting more than half a million people displaced by conflict and drought. Last month, fighting in and around the city killed at least four civilians and wounded 98 others.