AN arms store owned by the Somali insurgents al shabaab in Jilib district, central region in South Somalia has been burnt to ashes.
The Somali state media reported on Wednesday that “a large storage house situated behind the Gurey Mosque, the main bastion for Al-Shabaab’s arsenal, was engulfed in flames”
Jilib has been the headquarters of al shabaab for more than seven years. The fire resulted into destruction of the largest weapons cache held by the terrorist group in the region.
The cause of the fire was still not known on Wednesday, the Somali media reported.
However, speculation is rife that the incident could be the handiwork of the Somali intelligence agency.
According to the Somali press reports, a prominent figure within the Al-Shabaab faction, Abdullahi Jeri, known as the custodian of the group’s weaponry, was reportedly taken into custody.
This incident underscores the escalating tension within the group’s ranks, which has resulted in multiple instances of self-inflicted damage to their own weapon depots in the past.
The frequent internal conflicts and power struggles within Al-Shabaab have led to similar mishaps in recent times, particularly in southern and central Somalia, destabilising the group’s operations and severely denting their capacity for militant activities.
