Hiiraan Online

Mogadishu (HOL) — The Islamic State group in Somalia is still acquiring livestock from pastoralists in the Al Miskaad Mountains, according to security officials, illustrating the challenges Puntland faces in cutting the group’s remaining supply lines.

Security sources say militants purchase animals from nomadic families living near the Baalade valley, often paying two or three times the market rate. The inflated payments have attracted herders struggling through prolonged drought and deepening household debt, creating an informal supply chain that has helped the group sustain fighters entrenched in the mountains.

The continued trade highlights gaps in Puntland’s isolation strategy during its multi-phase “Operation Hilaac” offensive, launched in late 2024 to dismantle Islamic State–Somalia strongholds in the Golis and  Al Miskaad ranges. Puntland authorities say their forces have captured dozens of caves and outposts since the campaign began, but security officials acknowledge that small militant cells continue to exploit difficult terrain and community vulnerabilities.

In several villages recently retaken during Hilaac operations, Puntland forces discovered fresh slaughter sites believed to have been used by ISIS fighters, reinforcing assessments that the group still depends on local traders and on families living in hard-to-reach mountain settlements.

Puntland has repeatedly warned residents against maintaining any ties with ISIS. Last month, regional authorities ordered the evacuation of Tasjiic and several surrounding villages in Bari region, citing concerns that some households were providing support to the militants. The directive stalled after residents said they had no alternative areas to relocate to, limiting Puntland’s ability to establish a full cordon around suspected safe havens.

Clashes have continued around the Baallade Valley and nearby water points, including the Baarakalaah well. Puntland officials have acknowledged casualties among their forces, though they have not released figures. ISIS claimed in a statement accompanied by photos that it repelled six assaults in the area and killed ten regional security personnel. The claim has not been independently verified.

Puntland’s U.S.-backed offensive has included multiple airstrikes in the Al Miskaad and Golis ranges. On February 2, Puntland authorities said U.S. strikes killed 46 ISIS fighters in the mountains, a figure reported by Hiiraan Online at the time. A senior ISIS commander, Abdirahman Shirwac Aw-Said, later surrendered to Puntland police, according to regional officials.

In late July, Puntland regional security forces, in collaboration with U.S. counterparts, captured a senior ISIS-Somalia leader identified as Abdiweli Mohamed Aw Yusuf during counterterrorism operations in the mountainous areas of the Bari region.

Walalac served as the head of finance and foreign relations for ISIS-Somalia and was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department in July 2023, placing him on the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT). He was captured along with two others during the operation.

Despite these setbacks, analysts say ISIS retains an estimated 100 fighters spread across the Habley Mountains and Baallade Valley, areas with limited road access that complicate supply denial and battlefield pressure. In August, Puntland forces advanced on suspected militant positions near Habley as part of the campaign’s fourth phase, following earlier declarations by President Said Abdullahi Deni that 98 percent of the Al Miskaad stronghold had been recaptured.

ISIS’s ability to draw on local markets, drought-driven economic pressures, and remote terrain illustrates why small militant networks continue to endure in parts of northeastern Somalia, even as Puntland claims major battlefield gains under Operation Hilaac.