The militant group al-shabaab has captured 10 Somali youths in the town of Jowhar in Middle Shabelle region in the last 24 hours, eyewitnesses told Somalia Report on Sunday.
According to area residents, the youths were forcefully whisked away after they defied orders to get them enlisted as members of the Islamist group. Witnesses said the young men were now being detained in a local jail.
Abdi Mohamed, an elderly resident told Somalia Report that he saw the Somali youths being kidnapped by th al-Shabaab fighters during swoop in Johwar.
”The militant group always tries to punish those youths who refuse to be their colleagues," said a father who requested anonymity for security reasons, adding that most children had been forced to join the al-shabaab, failure to which they faced death threats from the militant group.
The insurgents are also busy recruiting child soldiers among the school going children, the residents said.
