DHUSAMAREB — A high-ranking Al-Shabaab commander, Abdirahman Talxo Shuuke, surrendered to Galmudug regional forces on Tuesday amid ongoing security operations in central Somalia.
The defection occurred during patrols by the Galayr unit, a specialized division of the Galmudug Dervish forces tasked with providing security for the regional presidency. The unit has recently carried out operations in the Labadulle and Ceelahelay areas of the Galgaduud region.
Surrender of Weapons
Security officials confirmed Shuuke’s leadership role within the militant network, identifying him as the commander of an Al-Shabaab unit operating in Galgaduud. The defector arrived from the Ceelgaras district, handing over his AK-47 rifle and ammunition to security commanders upon his surrender.
Fighters “Increasingly Dispersed”
In his debriefing with interrogators, Shuuke provided an assessment of the current situation within the terror group. He revealed that militant fighters are “increasingly dispersed” and experiencing severe internal fragmentation.
Shuuke attributed this collapse to sustained pressure from the Somali National Army (SNA) and local forces, noting that coordinated ground assaults and aerial strikes have dismantled defensive capabilities across the country.
The surrender comes as the Federal Government of Somalia intensifies its campaign against Islamist militants, seeking to weaken their operational capacity and stabilize recovered areas in the central regions.
