2017 Golweyn ambush

Last updated
Golweyn ambush
Part of the War in Somalia

Map of Somalia, showing places significant for the ambush and its aftermath (clickable map)
Date30 July 2017
Location
Golweyn, Lower Shebelle, Somalia
Result Al-Shabaab victory
Territorial
changes		 AMISOM retreats from Leego, which is then captured by al-Shabaab [1]
Belligerents
AQMI Flag asymmetric.svg Al-Shabaab

AMISOM

Flag of Somalia.svg Federal Government of Somalia [2]
Commanders and leaders
Unknown Flag of Uganda.svg Unidentified commanders  † [3]
Units involved
Unknown

Flag of Uganda.svg Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF)

Flag of Somalia.svg Somali Armed Forces (SNAF) [4]
Casualties and losses
8 killed (local report) [5]
Heavy (Ugandan gov. claim) [5] 		Ugandan:
12 killed, 7 wounded (Ugandan gov. claim) [3]
23 killed (Somali gov. claim) [1]
39+ killed (al-Shabaab claim) [3]
Somali: 1 killed [2]

The Golweyn ambush by al-Shabaab militants against an AMISOM convoy took place on 30 July 2017. Resulting in the death of several Ugandan soldiers, the attack seriously disrupted the control of pro-government forces over the Lower Shebelle region in Somalia, eventually leading to the fall of the strategically significant town of Leego to al-Shabaab. [1]

Contents

Background

The area where the ambush occurred had been secured by the Uganda People's Defence Force since the Battle of Leego in 2015. Pictured are Ugandan soldiers during Operation Indian Ocean. 2014 08 31 Buulomareer-2 (14905611398).jpg
The area where the ambush occurred had been secured by the Uganda People's Defence Force since the Battle of Leego in 2015. Pictured are Ugandan soldiers during Operation Indian Ocean.

Much of Lower Shebelle, including Golweyn, was conquered from al-Shabaab by AMISOM and the Somali Armed Forces (SNAF) during Operation Indian Ocean in 2014, and had been secured by the Ugandan military since the deadly insurgent attack on the Burundian garrison of Leego in 2015. [1] In 2016, however, offensive operations against al-Shabaab were reduced, allowing the militant group to rebuild its strength. [6]

Despite al-Shabaab's growing power, mounting casualties among AMISOM peacekeepers and their already long presence in the war-torn country has led to plans to reduce ANISOM's presence in Somalia. Security responsibilities are supposed to be transferred to the Somali government's military. According to Lower Shebelle's deputy governor Ali Nur Mohamed, however, the SNAF units in his region have been weakened by factionalization, infighting and desertation. Because of that, they are not able to independently hold territory against insurgents, meaning that the presence of ANISOM troops in government-controlled areas of Lower Shebelle is crucial. [7]

Ambush

On early 30 July 2017, [2] a military convoy consisting of parts of the UPDF's 7th Battalion of the 22nd battlegroup as well as some SNAF soldiers, [4] left Shalanbod. [7] The convoy, which was of company-strength, was either supposed to conduct a regular patrol on the Mogadishu-Barawa Main Supply Route, or transport supplies to the AMISOM/SNAF bases in Lower Shebelle. [4] [1] [3] As the UPDF/SNAF forces entered the village of Golweyn, [1] near Bulo Marer, an improvised explosive device on the road hit the convoy, whereupon heavily armed al-Shabaab fighters launched their assault. [5] [7] A fierce firefight ensued that lasted for about one hour, [5] [2] after which the militants retreated, reportedly taking the bodies of some dead Ugandan soldiers with them. [8]

Although the exact Ugandan casualties are disputed, with the Ugandan military downplaying [5] [3] and al-Shabaab exaggerating them, [8] they were heavier than those of the attackers. According to the Somali government, around 23 Ugandans were killed and numerous wounded, [2] while al-Shabaab managed to take supplies and weaponry from the convoy. [8]

Aftermath: The fall of Leego

The most important effect of the ambush was to show that the important supply route between Mogadishu and Barawa was insecure and threatened by al-Shabaab. As result, AMISOM felt it had to deploy additional troops along the route in order to resecure it. The force chosen for this purpose was the Ugandan garrison of Leego, a strategically important town and major ANISOM military base. As the international peacekeeping forces were already suffering from manpower shortages, however, the Ugandans could not be replaced by other forces in time. [1] When the UPDF soldiers consequently moved from Leego to Golweyn on 4 July, the former was left completely defenseless. Somali government officials protested this, saying that they had not been consulted and that without the ANISOM garrison Leego would soon fall to the insurgents; this promptly happened, as al-Shabaab immediately occupied Leego unopposed after the Ugandans had retreated. [1] [9]

This was a heavy blow to ANISOM and the Somali government, as Leego had controlled another important supply route from Mogadishu to the regions of Bay and Bakool; thousands of pro-government soldiers in these areas were thus effectively cut off and could only be supplied or reinforced by air. [1] On 6 July, the ANISOM high command reportedly assured Lower Shebelle's government that the Ethiopian military would soon send new troops in order to reconquer Leego. [1] [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uganda People's Defence Force</span> Armed forces of Uganda

The Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF), previously known as the National Resistance Army, is the armed forces of Uganda. From 2007 to 2011, the International Institute for Strategic Studies estimated the UPDF had a total strength of 40,000–45,000, consisting of land forces and an air wing. Recruitment to the forces is done annually.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Shabelle</span> Region in Somalia

Lower Shabelle is an administrative region (gobol) in southern Somalia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African Union Mission to Somalia</span> Peacekeeping mission

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Somali civil war (2009–present)</span> Present phase of the Somali Civil War, concentrated in southern Somalia

The Somali civil war (2009–present) is the ongoing phase of the Somali civil war which is concentrated in southern and central Somalia. It began in late January 2009 with the present conflict mainly between the forces of the Federal Government of Somalia assisted by African Union peacekeeping troops and al-Shabaab militants who pledged alliegence to al-Qaeda during 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mogadishu (2009)</span> Battle of the Somali Civil War

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Bulo Marer is a town in the southwestern Lower Shebelle region of Somalia. It was a base of Al-Shabaab, and was the site of an ill-fated 2013 military operation during which French commandos attempted to free a French hostage that was being held by the insurgent group. The town was taken by Somali government forces assisted by AMISOM troops after a battle on August 30, 2014. It was the site of the 2024 African Union base attack in Bulo Marer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mogadishu (2010–2011)</span>

The Battle of Mogadishu (2010–11) began on 23 August 2010 when al-Shabaab insurgents began attacking government and African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) positions in the Somali capital of Mogadishu. Al-Shabaab began its offensive after its spokesman said the group was declaring a "massive war" on troops sent by AMISOM, describing its 6,000 peacekeepers as "invaders". In December 2010 the number of AMISOM troops was increased to 8,000 and later to 9,000. The battle's name usually includes the years, when referenced, in order to distinguish it amongst the nine major Battles of Mogadishu during the decades long Somali Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2011 timeline of the Somali Civil War</span>

This is a 2011 timeline of events in the Somali Civil War (2009–present).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 timeline of the Somali Civil War</span>

This is a 2012 timeline of events in the Somali Civil War (2009–present).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 timeline of the Somali Civil War</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Indian Ocean</span> 2014–2015 Somali–AMISOM–US mission against al-Shabaab

Operation Indian Ocean was a joint military operation between the Somali military, AMISOM and the United States military against the Al-Shabaab militant group aimed at eliminating the remaining insurgent-held areas in southern Somalia. It officially began in August 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 timeline of the Somali Civil War</span>

This is a 2015 timeline of events in the Somali Civil War (2009–present).

Lego, is a town located in Bay, Somalia. It is situated 100 kilometres northwest of the capital Mogadishu and approximately 20 km west of Yaqbiriweyne and 54 km east of Burhakaba.

This article contains a timeline of events for the Somali jihadist group al-Shabaab.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 timeline of the Somali Civil War</span>

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On 1 April 2018, Al-Shabaab fighters attacked an AMISOM base in Bulo Marer in the Lower Shebelle region of Somalia.

Events in the year 2021 in Somalia.

On August 10, 2021, a patrol of Ugandan soldiers that formed part of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) were ambushed and attacked in a farmland about 2½ kilometers from Golweyn by Al-Shabaab Islamic militants while on a routine patrol to secure the main supply route along the Beldamin-Golweyn Forward Operating Base in the Lower Shabelle.
This attack was followed by an exchange of gunfire between AMISOM forces and Al-Shabaab militants, that lasted several hours. "During the counterattack, 7 terrorists were killed while others sustained injuries and an assortment of weapons was recovered," AMISOM said in a tweet. Also one Ugandan soldier died. But afterwards, reports were received that the 7 deceased were not members of Al-Shabaab but civilians and that they had been killed by AMISOM forces, upon which the tweet was deleted. Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur, the Governor of Lower Shabelle confirmed after talking to local residents, that five farmers and two others whose vehicle broke down on the side of the road, were killed by the AMISOM soldiers after the ambush by al-Shabaab. District Commissioner Nur Osman Rage, detailed that after their encounter with Al-Shabaab, AMISOM forces "diverted to a nearby farm, picked an elderly farmer and four of his workers, blindfolded them and paraded them on the tarmac road. They then stopped two trucks on transit in the area, picked the two drivers, blindfolded them and together with the other five, took them to a point where an IED was planted, forced the civilians to sit on the device and detonated it on the seven victims who were blindfolded, instantly killing them.” The incident was allegedly witnessed firsthand by Somali security officers, local elders and many others in the area.

Events in the year 2023 in Somalia.

The battle of Buulo Mareer took place on 26 May 2023, when Al-Shabaab fighters stormed an African Union military camp manned by Ugandan forces in the town of Bulo Marer, Lower Shabelle, Somalia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Harun Maruf (4 August 2017). "Al-Shabab Militants Retake Strategic Town in Western Somalia". Voice of America . Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "African Union troops killed in al-Shabab ambush". Al Jazeera . 30 July 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "UPDF confirms 12 dead in Somalia ambush". The Independent . 31 July 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "12 UPDF soldiers killed in Somalia". Daily Monitor. 31 July 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "At least 11 soldiers killed in Al-Shabaab attack in Lower Shabelle-official". Goobjoog News. 31 July 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  6. ↑ Bill Roggio (5 August 2017). "US killed Shabaab commander in recent strike". Long War Journal . Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  7. 1 2 3 Harun Maruf (30 July 2017). "Al-Shabab Ambush Kills 18 AU Troops in Somalia". Voice of America . Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 Thomas Joscelyn (31 July 2017). "Shabaab ambushes AMISOM forces in southern Somalia". Long War Journal . Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  9. ↑ "AMISOM soldiers expected to leave Leego Base – Lower Shabelle". Goobjoog News. 4 August 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  10. ↑ "Governor of Lego: Retreat caused by lack of sufficient military personnel". Goobjoog News. 6 August 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.

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