Puntland security forces say a major offensive in the Al-Miskaad mountains killed at least 44 ISIS fighters and pushed the group out of several hideouts in the northeast of Somalia. The reporting supplied for this item says the operation combined ground assaults with airstrikes from the United Arab Emirates, making it one of the clearest examples in the packet of Puntland working with an external military partner against a local insurgent network.
According to the Hiiraan Online report, the offensive formed part of Puntland's ongoing Hillaac campaign. The most immediate military effect was the recapture of positions in the Togga-Jecel area, where the group had maintained a foothold for years. Puntland officials told the outlet that those locations had long been used as operational bases, which is why their recovery matters beyond the casualty count alone. If insurgents had used the same routes and shelters repeatedly, taking them back would disrupt more than one clash.
The report says UAE warplanes carried out two strikes in parallel with the ground operation. One hit near Damdamale and killed 22 militants. A second strike targeted fighters in Togga-Jecel and killed seven more. Taken together with the ground operation, those attacks produced the total of at least 44 dead that Puntland authorities announced. The source does not offer an independent battlefield audit, so the article should present the figure as the authorities' account rather than a confirmed final tally.
What is clear from the evidence is that Puntland regards the operation as part of a longer campaign to squeeze ISIS out of the mountains. The authorities said they would continue pursuing any fighters who remain. That matters because the group has not simply appeared as a passing raiding force; the source says ISIS has been active in Puntland's mountains since splitting from Al-Shabaab in 2015 and has used the region for assassinations, extortion and attacks on security forces.
The wider significance of the offensive is that it shows how local, regional and international actors are still converging on the same stretch of rugged terrain. The Hillaac campaign is not just a single raid. It is an effort to clear routes, recapture shelter and make it harder for militants to regroup. The UAE strikes, meanwhile, show that Puntland's security effort has a cross-border dimension that can amplify its reach.
For now, the verified story is narrow but important: Puntland says it hit ISIS hard, reclaimed key mountain positions and intends to keep the campaign going until the militants are driven out.
