The Galgala campaign was a military campaign autonomous

Puntland Puntland is an autonomous state that considers itself to be part of Somalia, despite not accepting the legitimacy of Somalia's current governing administration. It was formed in 1998, and was a federal member state of Somalia from its fou ...

region of

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

, that took place periodically from 8 August until 1 October 2014. It was aimed at re-gaining control of the Galgala hills,

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br>Somaliland 'Loots' Air Cargo After Plane Makes Emergency Landing
30 December 2010 which had fallen in hands of

al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...

-linked al-Shabaab commander Sheikh Mohamed Said Atom and his militia.

Background

Mohamed Said known as Atom has been involved in smuggling arms from Puntland to al-Shabaab fighters in Southern Somalia and has been implicated in incidents of

piracy Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...

, kidnapping, and terrorism.

Campaign

The campaign started on 8 August, in response to an al-Shabaab attack on 26 July which left 2 Puntland soldiers dead. In response to the crackdown, al-Shabaab launched several bombings, targeting civilian centers such as the city of

Bosaso Bosaso (, ), historically known as Bender Qassim is a city in the northeastern Bari province ('' gobol'') of Somalia. It is the seat of the Bosaso District. Located on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden, the municipality serves as the region ...

. The campaign ended when Puntland forces seized the villages of Dhagah Barur, Dhagahdheer, and Dindigle on 17 October. Dindigle was al-Shabaab's last stronghold in the region. In 2010, 150 of Atom’s men were reported to have defected and joined the Puntland Intelligence Agency. Military sources reported that Atom "‘fled before the Galgala war started’ and left his comrades to face Puntland troops alone." It was believed that Atom had fled to

Burao Burao, also spelt Bur'o or Bur'ao (; , , ), is the capital of the Togdheer region and the second largest city in Somaliland. Burao was the site of the Somaliland Declaration of Independence, declaration of an independent Somaliland on 18 May 19 ...

, Somaliland’s second largest city. Burao police chief Abdirahman Fohle conducted raids to look for al-Shabaab linked militants. He denied reports that Atom was hiding in the area, but affirmed that he would arrest "him or anyone else who is a threat to regional security." On 17 March 2014, the commander of the Puntland Security Forces in Galgala Colonel Jama Said Warsame "Afguduud" was assassinated in the afternoon in a bomb attack at the outskirts of Bosaso. Afguduud together with three of his security guards were rushed to the nearest hospital, however he succumbed to the critical injuries sustained from the attack and died in the hospital. According to Al-Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Dheere the attack was result of a long planned assault. On 7 June 2014, the Ministry of Information announced that Atom had agreed to defect from Al-Shabaab. According to the Federal government ministry, Atom accused Ahmed Godane, the leader of Al-Shabaab of having a foreign agenda. "I would like to declare that as of today I have decided to resolve my religious and political issues through peaceful means and understanding," Atom said, according to the government. On 1 October 2014, Puntland forces recaptured the last stronghold of Al-Shabaab in Galgala. According to Abdiweli Hirsi Abdille, the information minister of Puntland, troops had captured the Galgala region in an early morning offensive. The offensive lasted 2 hours, forcing insurgents to retreat.

Aftermath

On 3 October 2014, the Puntland government released a statement accusing Al-Shabaab of having destroyed agricultural communities in Galgala and nearby settlements including historic farms resulting in Internally Displaced People.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Galgala Campaign 2014 in Puntland Somali Civil War (2009–present) Conflicts in 2014 August 2014 in Africa September 2014 in Africa October 2014 in Africa Campaigns of the Somali Civil War Battles involving Puntland Battles involving al-Shabaab (militant group) Counterterrorism in Puntland