Forces launch assault on al-qaida in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Kenyan military forces launched an overnight attack on Kismayo, seen as the last main stronghold of the alQaida-linked Somali militia Al Shabab. The troops landed on the beach and took control of parts of the southern Somali port city, according to Kenyan military spokesmen.

Military spokesman Cyrus Oguna said Kenyan forces entered the city at 2 a.m. More than 10,000 people have fled in recent days, the United Nations refugee agency said.

The Kenyan forces were part of the 17,000-strong U.N.backed African Union force in Somalia, AMISOM, fighting alongside Somali army forces and the pro-government Ras Kamboni militia, that have advanced on Kismayo in recent days. Al Shabab fled the capital, Mogadishu, in August 2011 but has launched devastating suicide attacks and has assassinated politicians and journalists in the city.

Mr. Oguna said Kenyan troops faced little resistance, but Al Shabab’s news office denied that Kenyan forces had taken control and claimed that the town was still in the hands of its fighters.

“Kismayo remains firmly in the hands of the mujahideen,” the militia’s news office said on Twitter. Speaking of the Kenya Defense Forces, the office said, “Cowards attempt to attack Kismayo from the sea, but the courageous mujahideen thwart their attempt.”

Fighting for control of the city continued, witnesses said. “Tensions are really high in Kismayo. Most of the people are staying indoors at home, while airstrikes and bombardments can be heard,” businessman Abdullahi Farah Moalim said in a phone interview. “We heard that Kenyan soldiers captured a small area of Kismayo near the coast and a small airstrip. You can hear sporadic gunfire in all parts of Kismayo, but Al Shabab forces are still active inside and around the city,” he said.

If Al Shabab is driven from the port city, it risks being choked financially. Kismayo is its major source of revenue through taxes on trade.

The seaborne attack came after Kenyan vessels shelled Kismayo and launched an airborne attack on the airport Thursday.

The attack came days after another Islamist militia, Hizbul Islam, abandoned Al Shabab. Al Shabab has bitterly attacked the recent election of a new parliament and president, but the Hizbul Islam militia supports the development.

Even if Al Shabab loses control of the city, it will still control a large swath of south-central Somalia. Nonetheless, the U.N. special envoy for Somalia, Augustine Mahiga, said Friday that Somalia has its best chance for peace in 22 years, as AMISOM and Somali forces gained territory.

“The pacification of the country by AMISOM and the Somali forces is going apace, and the political process following the election of the president by parliament is coming to a head with the possible naming of a prime minister any time this week and the formation of a council of ministers pretty soon,” Mr. Mahiga told the BBC.