SEVERAL PRISONERS SHOT DEAD IN SOUTHERN SOMALIA

Four detainees were said to be shot dead at a location near the Central Police Station in Beled-Hawa District in Gedo region, according to reports. The detainees who are accused to be linked to the terrorist group Al-Shabaab were arrested by the security forces in Beled-Hawa and transferred to the police station for further investigation. Reports from that Gedo region revealed that government forces took the detainees out of the central Police station on July 21 night and shot them dead at an open square in the town.
However, there is no statement released from the district officials regarding the execution of these four detainees by government forces. There was no court trials or verdicts made against the suspects.
Residents told reporters that suspects were involved in the killing of government forces and were captured at the outskirts of the town during security operations that was carried out against the militant group Al-Shabaab. Extrajudicial killings were reported to occur frequently in the past period particularly in Juba and Gedo regions, as government forces managed to push away Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab group from many areas and arrested dozen fighters.