Somalia’s al-Shabab militants have conceded defeat in their last major stronghold in the south of the country after Kenyan army troops seized control of the strategic port city of Kismayo, Press TV reports.

Local sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Press TV on Saturday that al-Shabab members have vacated the city, situated 528 kilometers (328 miles) southwest of the war-ravaged capital Mogadishu.

“Small cars carried munitions and other pieces of equipment, including office furniture and radio equipment, to Jamame village,” Imsael Aden, a local resident, said.

He added, “Al-Shabab militant fighters on board several battle wagons also left Kismayo and headed towards Jilib and Bu’ale villages.”

Al-Shabab wrote on its Twitter account that its fighters pulled out of Kismayo late on Friday under the cover of darkness.


The loss of Kismayo, which provided al-Shabab with lucrative revenues via control of its Indian Ocean port, could prove a final nail in the coffin for the militant group.

Al-Shabab once controlled most of southern Somalia and also the capital, Mogadishu.

Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.

The weak Western-backed transitional government in Mogadishu has been battling al-Shabab fighters for the past five years and is propped up by thousands of African Union forces from Uganda, Burundi, and Djibouti.
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Press TV