Somali extremists kill dozens in attack on base

JOHANNESBURG — Dozens of soldiers were killed early Thursday in a dawn attack by the Somali extremist group, al-Shabab, on a military base in the Somali region of Puntland.

Al-Shabab — allied with Islamic State rival al-Qaida — said it was responsible for the attack and claimed to have killed 61 soldiers. The precise casualty figure was not known, but The Associated Press cited a military official as saying up to 70 were killed.

It was al-Shabab’s largest attack during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, a period seen by militants as a key time for attacks.

Extremists have carried out a series of Ramadan attacks in London, Paris and Tehran, as well as Kabul, Afghanistan; Baghdad; Mogadishu, Somalia; and Melbourne, Australia. The deadliest attack was an explosion in a neighborhood in Kabul where many Western embassies are located, which killed 150 people and injured hundreds.

Somalia has been mired in civil war for decades, but elected a new president in February, in an election that many hope will usher in a more stable and peaceful period. Nonetheless, al-Shabab continues to carry out almost-daily attacks targeting soldiers, police and government officials — but also often killing civilians.

Suicide attacks on hotels and cafes and drive-by shootings are common in the capital, Mogadishu, often targeting government workers.

The attack on the Af-Urur military base in the Galgala mountains killed the base commander and his deputy in Puntland, a semiautonomous region that has its own 3,000-strong military force. Under a deal between the Somali and Puntland governments, the force is to be integrated into the Westernbacked national army.

In a tactic repeated frequently on other military bases, the al-Shabab suicide bomber or bombers attacked first, before fighters overrun the facility, killing dozens. Al-Shabab has often used the same tactic in attacking Mogadishu hotels, with a suicide bomber in a car loaded with explosives spearheading the attack, before armed fighters swarm in, taking control of the building, killing civilians.

The AP reported that civilians in the area, including women and children, were beheaded during the attack.