Mogadishu: At least 25 Al Shabaab militants were killed by government troops in Hiran region of Somalia, military officials said.
Senior military officer Mohamed Omar told Xinhua on Wednesday that government troops along with Ethiopian forces conducted operations against the militant group in the past 48 hours in the region.
"During this military operation, we killed 25 Al-Shabaab fighters. Most of them died in Luq jelow village in Hiran," he said.
The officer said they would continue the operation until they liberate all villages under Al Shabaab control.
Al Shabaab said it inflicted heavy casualties on joint forces, a charge denied by the officials.
"There was a fierce battle between the two parties and the situation remains tense," a Luq jelow resident said.
