Saturday December 10, 2022
An aerial shot of the recently-liberated Adan Yabal district. CREDIT/ Maslax PhotographyMogadishu (HOL) - The Somali government believes that Al Shabaab massacred its own wounded fighters as they fled from the Adan Yabal district amidst the government advance.
Earlier this week, Somali security forces
discovered mass graves in recently-liberated Adan Yabal after government forces backed by local clan militia forces forced Al Shabab militants to withdraw from the town on Monday.
An investigation into the mass graves revealed that the bodies belonged to former Al Shabaab fighters. Almost all of them had secondary injuries that would have made it nearly impossible for them to escape without assistance.
In a press statement released on Friday, Somalia condemned the mass murder as unIslamic and immoral".
"The federal government of Somalia condemns the recent human rights abuses committed by Khawarij in the Adan Yabal district. These acts are outside Islam, humanity and Somali culture."
The Somali military said it dispatched doctors to Adan Yabal once the district was secure to provide medical assistance to wounded fighters on both sides. However, they were alarmed to find pits filled with bodies, and the smell of rotten flesh consumed the area.
Once the region was safe, the Somali military claimed it sent physicians to Adan Yabal to treat injured combatants from both sides. The doctors were shocked, however, to see trenches filled with bodies and the stench of decaying flesh pervading the region.
Somalia's government reiterated that the amnesty program for Al Shabaab fighters is still open and urged young fighters to ditch the militant group and reintegrate into society through rehabilitation.
The statement comes as the President of Hirshabelle, Yusuf Dabageed, and Hiiraan State Governor, Ali Jeyte, visited the district to meet with locals and soldiers to discuss administrative plans.