The attackers rammed a suicide car bomb into the base's gates and burst inside. Fighting was going on between Kenyan troops stationed at the base and the militants, according to a Somali army officer. The base is located in the town of El-Adde close to the Kenyan border.
BREAKING: #KDF military base in El-Adde town in #Somalia's Gedo region under heavy #AlShabaab attack now — Residents. #Kenya
— Live From Mogadishu (@Daudoo) 15 января 2016
Al-Shabaab's spokesman told Reuters that the militants had allegedly took over the base.
Breaking: Tens of #Kenya troops feared dead after #AlShabaab fighters raided & "seized" #KDF military base in El-Adde town. #Somalia #KOT
— Jamal Hadji Nur (@Harar24Editor) 15 января 2016
BREAKING: Al-Shabab attack on El-Adde was expected for the past 2 days; residents and officials reportedly left town hours earlier, sources.
— Harun Maruf (@HarunMaruf) 15 января 2016
Al-Shabaab seeks to overthrow the Somali government and impose a strict version of Islam in the country. It has claimed responsibility for numerous attacks in Somalia and at the border towns of Kenya. Somalia has been mired in a conflict since 1991 when a civil war broke out.
