At least seven Ugandan soldiers have been killed during fierce fighting with Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia, officials confirmed Sunday.
The soldiers were part of the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), tasked with combatting the Islamist insurgency.
A Ugandan defence ministry statement said the soldiers died during a three-day siege in Lower Shabelle, where forces ultimately retook the contested town.
“Unfortunately we lost seven soldiers during the battle,” said Ugandan People’s Defence Force spokesman Felix Kulayigye, speaking to AFP.
AUSSOM, which succeeded the former ATMIS mission, currently fields 11,146 troops but reported in April it urgently needs 8,000 more.
Al-Shabaab, linked to Al-Qaeda, has long plagued Somalia with violent attacks, though the group was pushed back in 2022 and 2023.
Somali government forces, supported by African Union peacekeepers, had made gains, forcing the militants onto the defensive in recent years.
Yet, a series of renewed assaults has raised fears of an Al-Shabaab resurgence in the Horn of Africa.
In March, militants targeted President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s convoy in Mogadishu, underscoring the growing threat in the capital.
Persistent shortfalls in troops and funding are undermining AUSSOM’s ability to maintain security and contain the Islamist group.
As Somalia battles to stabilise, the loss of Ugandan soldiers highlights the high stakes and continued volatility facing the fragile nation.