MOGADISHU, Somalia

Several al-Shabaab terrorists were killed after the Somali army conducted a military operation against the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group in the central region of Hiran, liberating the group's stronghold, an official said on Sunday. 

A military official in the region told Anadolu Agency over the phone that during the operation the army liberated Teedaan village near the town of Mahas in the Hiran region which has been the terrorists’ biggest base.

He added the army's counterterrorism operations to hunt down the terrorists continue in the region.

Since the beginning of this month, the region of Hiran has seen a spike in military activities against al-Shabaab terrorists who last month reportedly crossed the region's border with Ethiopia's Somali region.

Last week, a US airstrike in the region killed at least four al-Shabaab terrorists, US African Command (AFRICOM) said in a statement after the strike.