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U.S. special operations troops and Puntland Counter-Terrorism Forces carried out a pre-dawn assault on ISIS-Somalia hideouts in the Baalade Valley. More than 100 American operators arrived by MH-60 helicopters with MQ-9 Reapers overhead, striking cave positions held by about 10 to 15 ISIS fighters in the Bakuuje and Mareero areas of the Cal Miskaad range. PCTF pushed in with roughly 200 troops after several days of U.S. airstrikes that had already killed multiple militants.
The raid triggered two to four hours of close-quarters clashes inside fortified caves, including engagements with foreign fighters from Syria, Turkey, and Ethiopia. By sunrise, U.S. and PCTF forces had withdrawn with no reported American casualties.
Early results indicate a senior ISIS-Somalia commander and several aides were killed, along with a total of 5 to 10 terrorists. Forces also destroyed weapons caches and equipment used for gold-mining operations that funded the group.
Puntland’s leadership says its Operation Hilaac now controls almost all of the Cal Miskaad mountains and aims to eliminate ISIS-Somalia by December 2025.
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