Somalia’s government loses all major Bay towns but Baidoa to Laftagaren
What happened
60-second readSomalia’s federal government has lost all major towns in the Bay region except Baidoa to forces of former Southwest leader Abdiasis Laftagaren.
What else the report says
- What happens nextThe federal president has extended his term, and regional states and the opposition are at odds with him over delayed elections and his refusal to engage them in talks on the deadlock over the upcoming elections, including the timetable, how they will be held and everything else.
- Who is affectedLaftagaren said on Thursday that Turkish F-16 fighter jets have continued pounding areas near Baidoa and other parts of Southwest State since March, killing many civilians and destroying property.
- Laftagaren’s forces seized Burhakabo, Dinsor, Berdale and Awdinle towns on Thursday and Friday, days after taking the town of Qansah-dhere, leaving Baidoa as the only town in the region still under the federal government.
- Laftagaren, who regards himself as the legitimate regional president and still maintains his cabinet and other regional officials, praised his forces for their success on the ground.
Reported by Somali Guardian
- Still unclear
- What will be the federal government's response to the loss of these towns?
More from this report
Key points
- Laftagaren’s forces seized Burhakabo, Dinsor, Berdale, and Awdinle towns on Thursday and Friday.
- Laftagaren stated that Turkish F-16 fighter jets have continued pounding areas near Baidoa since March.
- There are reports of negotiations to hand over Baidoa to Laftagaren’s forces, but there is no independent confirmation.
Original report with a saved translation · English
English · Machine translated · Not human reviewed
Original source text
MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s federal government has lost all major towns in Bay region except Baidoa to forces of former Southwest leader Abdiasis Laftagaren, in a speedy counter-offensive that has unexpectedly reversed the gains it made in an offensive in March, when it toppled him as regional president.
Laftagaren’s forces seized Burhakabo, Dinsor, Berdale and Awdinle towns on Thursday and Friday, days after taking the town of Qansah-dhere, leaving Baidoa as the only town in the region still under the federal government.
Laftagaren, who regards himself as the legitimate regional president and still maintains his cabinet and other regional officials, praised his forces for their success on the ground.
Although he left Somalia after being toppled in March and made his home in Kenya, his Darwish forces launched guerrilla warfare against the federal forces that captured most of the region, carrying out dozens of attacks across Bay region.
Many other towns in Southwest State, including Baidoa itself and Wajid, are feared to fall in the coming days and weeks. Reports say there are negotiations to hand over Baidoa to Laftagaren’s forces, but there is no independent confirmation.
Laftagaren said on Thursday that Turkish F-16 fighter jets have continued pounding areas near Baidoa and other parts of Southwest State since March, killing many civilians and destroying property.
The regional government that the federal government installed in Baidoa under Adan Madobe, after toppling Laftagaren with Turkish air support, appears to be taking a heavy beating and falling gradually under the lightning-speed blows of the former regional administration’s forces.
Somalia’s crisis is getting out of control. The federal president has extended his term, and regional states and the opposition are at odds with him over delayed elections and his refusal to engage them in talks on the deadlock over the upcoming elections, including the timetable, how they will be held and everything else.
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Context and open questions
Reader briefing
Article context
What happened
- Somalia’s federal government has lost all major towns in the Bay region except Baidoa to forces of former Southwest leader Abdiasis Laftagaren.
Key claims
- Somalia’s federal government has lost all major towns in the Bay region except Baidoa to forces of former Southwest leader Abdiasis Laftagaren.
- Laftagaren’s forces seized Burhakabo, Dinsor, Berdale, and Awdinle towns on Thursday and Friday.
- Laftagaren stated that Turkish F-16 fighter jets have continued pounding areas near Baidoa since March.
- There are reports of negotiations to hand over Baidoa to Laftagaren’s forces, but there is no independent confirmation.
Source limitations
- The article does not include responses from the federal government or other parties involved.
- Claims regarding the negotiations for Baidoa are not independently verified.
- The article relies on statements from Laftagaren without independent confirmation.
Reader takeaway
The federal government in Somalia is facing significant territorial losses in the Bay region.
What remains unclear
- What will be the federal government's response to the loss of these towns?
- How will the situation in Baidoa develop in the coming days?
- What impact will this have on the upcoming elections in Somalia?
Why it matters
The article does not provide enough independently verified detail to assess the specific significance of this event beyond what is reported.
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Follow the channel →Why this story appears
This is a single source report from Warkasta’s monitored network. The source link remains available so you can read the publisher’s original context.
- Source count
- 1
- Sources used
- Somali Guardian
- Language mix
- English
- Translation status
- Shown in its original language
- AI synthesis
- No AI synthesis is used for this story panel
Signals used: somalia · politics · politics · laftagaren · major
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