GAROWE (Kaab TV) – Puntland security forces have apprehended a Turkish national in the Baalade Valley during a counter-terror operation targeting hideouts of the militant group ISIS-Somalia early last week.
The captured suspect has been identified as Feyzul Hashim Suleiman, a Turkish national.
This development marks a significant milestone in Operation Hilaac, now in its fourth and concluding phase.
The sustained counter-Daesh offensive, which began in December last year, is widely regarded as one of the most effective counter-terror campaigns in Somalia in recent years.
“The Baalade Valley has been a key hideout for the terrorists, serving as both their base and a field hospital. Puntland security forces launched a major offensive, capturing several militants alive while eliminating many others,” said Mohamed Jama, a military officer involved in the operation.
CONFIRMED: Puntland security forces have apprehended a Turkish national in the Baalade Valley during a counter-terror operation targeting hideouts of the militant group ISIS-Somalia early last week.
The captured suspect has been identified as Feyzul Hashim Suleiman, a Turkish… pic.twitter.com/rm4bw4sTkz
— Kaab TV (@KaabTV) October 18, 2025
Over the past several months, Puntland forces have captured dozens of militants alive and killed hundreds more.
According to Puntland intelligence sources, foreign fighters among the captured and killed militants have been identified from Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Sudan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Ethiopia, and Tanzania.
Turkish militant fighters
The total number of Turkish nationals detained by Puntland security agencies in recent months now stands at two.
The first, Hassan Atar, was apprehended in June 2025.
“Authorities are actively pursuing at least two other known operatives suspected to be at large in the Al-Miskaad area — Emre Kemal Yılmaz and Aylin Derya Kaya,” said Brigadier General Ahmed Abdullahi Sheikh, one of the senior officers leading the counter-terror campaign.
The presence of Turkish militant fighters within the ranks of ISIS-Somalia in Al-Miskaad has raised concerns among security experts.
Intelligence sources indicate that several of these individuals are fugitives from Türkiye, including some reportedly former military personnel implicated in the failed July 2016 coup attempt.
Their exfiltration from Türkiye and subsequent integration into ISIS-Somalia are believed to have been facilitated through PKK-linked smuggling networks.
These operatives are thought to have initially joined ISIS Central before relocating to Somalia’s Al-Miskaad region.
“This pattern indicates a complex convergence of transnational threat actors,” added Brigadier General Ahmed Abdullahi Sheikh.
While ISIS-Somalia remains smaller in scale compared to the al-Shabaab insurgency, its continued presence in Puntland underscores the region’s persistent security challenges.
Formed in 2015 when former al-Shabaab cleric Abdulqadir Mumin pledged allegiance to ISIS, the group operates primarily in the Golis Mountains, carrying out assassinations and IED attacks targeting security forces and local officials.
Puntland’s strategic location along the Gulf of Aden and its proximity to the Red Sea make it a crucial corridor for international maritime trade.
However, the same geography also exposes it to smuggling networks and transnational criminal activity, which extremist groups exploit for funding.