Somali al-Shabab base 'captured outside Mogadishu'

Al-Shabab described its withdrawal from Mogadishu last August as "tactical"

A major Somali militant base has been captured on the outskirts of the capital, government officials and nearby residents have told the BBC.

"This operation is necessary to consolidate the security of Mogadishu," the African Union force's Maj Gen Fred Mugisha said as the offensive began.
AU and government forces took control of most of Mogadishu last year.
But correspondents says al-Shabab fighters were able to launch attacks in the city from their Maslah base.
Al-Shabab is under attack on several fronts, with troops from Kenya and Ethiopia also gaining ground recently.
But the group, which joined al-Qaeda last month, still controls much of southern and central Somalia.
It described its withdrawal from Mogadishu last August as "tactical" and has continued to stage suicide attacks in the city.
Somali government forces with the support of AU troops launched the attack on Maslah at dawn, the AU mission in Somalia, Amisom, said in a statement.
Maslah, 5km (3 miles) from Mogadishu, is on one of two main roads out of the city.
A similar push two weeks ago was made on the other main road out of Mogadishu heading towards Afgoye, a strategic town held by al-Shabab.
Amisom said this "saw the security cordon around the city expanded".