At least 15 people have been killed in clashes between Somalia's military and the Islamist terrorist group al-Shabaab.
Heavily armed al-Shabaab fighters attacked army bases overnight in the town of Afgoye in southern Somalia's Lower Shabelle region, 30 kilometres south of Mogadishu.
"We have lost a number of our soldiers, and several others were injured," a senior military commander, Ahmed Yare, said.
The al-Qaeda-linked militants briefly seized Afgoye's police station and a military base, but were soon pushed back by army and peacekeeping reinforcements, Lower Shabelle governor Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur Sidii told local media.
"Our troops received reinforcements from the African Union and other Somali troops in the area and repelled the militants," Sidii said.
"The people of the town were sleeping when a heavy battle erupted," Afgoye resident Siraaji Yusuf said. "It was fierce fighting, and I saw three Somali military vehicles destroyed near the police station."
Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack on the pro-insurgent website Somalimemo, claiming it killed more than 20 Somali soldiers and police officers.
