At least 19 killed in Somalia in attack by al-Shabaab insurgents
Fighters from the Islamist insurgent group al-Shabaab have killed at least 19 civilians in a night-time attack in central Somalia, clan chiefs and local officials said on Saturday.
The attack comes two weeks after al-Shabaab, which has waged a long insurgency against the Somali state, besieged a hotel in the capital Mogadishu for 30 hours, leaving 21 people dead and 117 injured.
The sources said the group intercepted at least eight vehicles travelling between the towns of Beledweyne and Maxaa overnight from Friday to Saturday, setting fire to the vehicles and killing the passengers near Afar Irdood village.
“The terrorists massacred innocent civilians who were travelling … last night. We don’t have the exact number of victims, but 19 dead bodies have been collected,” local clan elder ...