Arms-laden Convoy Ambush in Central Somalia Leaves Five Dead, Clan Militias Seizes Heavy Weapons

MOGADISHU — At least five people were killed when militiamen ambushed a convoy in central Somalia and seized heavy weapons, the local government and residents said on Tuesday, seven months after a decades-long arms embargo was lifted.

The convoy, accompanied by a security escort, was traveling near the town of Abudwaq on Monday when it was attacked by militiamen from a local clan, overpowering the security forces, four residents told Reuters. The arms, including machine guns, anti-aircraft weapons, and rocket-propelled grenades, were said to have originated from neighboring Ethiopia.

“It is unfortunate that five people died from both sides yesterday over weapons,” said Ahmed Shire, a security adviser to the president of Galmudug State, where Abudwaq is located. “We understand the weapons fell into the hands of civilians.”

Rashid Abdi, an analyst with the Sahan Research think-tank, called the ambush “the single most serious incident of arms proliferation in central Somalia” and suggested that some of the weapons would likely be acquired by al Shabaab, an al Qaeda affiliate.

Writing on X, Abdi described the incident as a “clear case of why lifting of arms embargo on Somalia was a big strategic mistake.”

The last restrictions under an arms embargo that had been in place, in some form, for more than 30 years were fully lifted by the U.N. Security Council in December. Somalia’s government argued that the move would enable it to confront security threats and strengthen its national forces.

For nearly two decades, Somalia has been battling an insurgency led by al Shabaab. African Union peacekeepers are gradually reducing their presence to transfer more responsibility to Somali forces, although both the AU and the Mogadishu government have warned of a potential security vacuum if the drawdown proceeds too quickly.

Clan-based militias have played dual roles in the conflict, fighting alongside government forces against al Shabaab while also engaging in violent disputes over land and resources.