Vital water source destroyed in El Garas: what we know

On September 14, 2023, The Somali Digest reported that a vital water source and a water-carrying tanker were destroyed in El Garas, a town in Galgaduud region, Galmudug. The report, published under the headline “Mystery surrounds destruction of vital water source in El Garas,” does not establish what has happened since.

At the time of publication, responsibility for the destruction was contested. Al-Shabaab claimed that a U.S. airstrike demolished the well along with a tanker that locals used for carrying water. The group’s affiliated media said U.S. warplanes attacked El Garas district, damaging the district’s water well and a civilian tanker near the well, and injuring one worker. Al-Shabaab also said a drone attack destroyed another well in the village of Sabbah near El-Lahelay on the outskirts of El Garas district.

Somali government sources offered a different account. The Federal Government of Somalia’s Ministry of Defence asserted that its operations, in collaboration with international partners, eliminated more than 30 al-Shabaab militants in El Garas. The Ministry said operations targeted four al-Shabaab positions, two near Wabho and two near El Garas. The Somali National News Agency (SONNA) reported that al-Shabaab had detonated a water well in El Garas, leaving one resident wounded. SONNA indicated that the extremist group had rigged key sites with explosives before the Somali army and local forces drove them out.

The U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) stated that U.S. soldiers were not present in the area during the El-Lahelay operation and did not conduct any airstrikes in support of it. AFRICOM said U.S. soldiers were responding to a request from the Somali government to medically evacuate civilians who sustained injuries during a government operation.

The Somali Digest noted it could not independently verify who was ultimately responsible for destroying the water source. The article adds that El Garas is a place where mainly the Duduble and Murusade clans live, and that al-Shabaab often steals pumps of wells when government troops are about to capture an area, including in Adan Yabal during Phase I of government operations. However, the report does not link this pattern directly to the El Garas incident.

No subsequent reports are available in the public record cited here, leaving unresolved whether the well and tanker were repaired, whether any investigation took place, or whether responsibility has been formally established.