Tuesday July 8, 2025
Mogadishu (HOL) — Al-Shabaab militants captured the crossroads town of Moqokori overnight Monday, their first hold on the Hiiraan district in three years, residents and security officials said Tuesday.
Somali National Army units and allied Ma’awisley militia massed on the southern edge of the settlement early Tuesday and said a counteroffensive was imminent once reinforcements from Beledweyne and Buuloburde arrive.
Phones and internet in Moqokori and surrounding villages went dark during the assault, making independent casualty reports impossible. Villagers who fled north described heavy small-arms fire and at least two explosions before insurgents fanned out through the market quarter.
Moqokori controls a road junction linking Hiiraan to the Middle Shabelle and Galgaduud regions, a route vital for moving troops and supplies toward Beledweyne and Jowhar. Losing it threatens a supply corridor the government has used throughout a two-year offensive backed by U.S. airstrikes to pry Al-Shabaab from central Somalia.
Hiiraan lawmakers faulted what they called slow federal support, saying repeated weekend requests for air cover and armour were unanswered. The Defence Ministry did not immediately respond.
Although government forces retook dozens of towns during the wider campaign, Al-Shabaab still commands swaths of countryside and frequently stages night-time raids to contest reclaimed areas.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
