Mogadishu(Mogadishu24)-Al-Shabaab militants on Wednesday claimed that they have killed 58 Galmudug State forces and injured 70 others in a fierce battle at Gaadey area near Wisil town in Mudug region, Central Somalia.

The incident happened after Al-Shabaab militants attacked the State’s forces, leading to heavy fighting between the two groups.

However, the government forces dismissed Al-Shabaab’s claims and reported that the forces have inflicted heavy casualties on Al-Shabaab fighters, seized their weapons, and destroyed their hideouts.

Minister of Interior of the Federal Government of Somalia, Ahmed Moallim Fiqi said that SNA and regional forces inflicted heavy casualties on Al-Shabaab during today’ confrontation, but he did not mention exact number of casualties.

The Al-Shabaab announcement came hours after the federal government of Somalia announced that 1,650 Al-Shabaab fighters, including leaders, were killed in the last two months in Galmudug and Hirshabelle regions, according to a statement published by the government media.

“The government has carried out direct ground and airstrikes in the past two months in the regions of Galmudug and Hirshabelle, which have severely defeated the Al-Shabaab militants, killing 1,650 militants and injuring 550 others,” the statement reads.

The war between the Somali Government and the Al-Shabaab group has intensified since the re-election of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in May 2022.

For the past two months, Al-Shabaab has resorted to planned attacks on Somali National Army (SNA) bases and civilian targets, killing dozens of SNA soldiers and civilians.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared a “total war” against Al-Shabaab last year. Since then, government forces, together with the local community and international partners, have liberated more than 80 locations from the Al-Shabaab terrorist group.