Reports from El-Jiqow village, Mahas district, in Hiiraan region say that two people died after drinking poisoned water from a water well.
The two, identified as Mohamed Uul Nor and Saney Abiikar Adan, are said to have fallen seriously ill immediately after drinking the water, only to die shortly after. Five other people were rushed to the Mahas district hospital for emergency treatment.
Residents have accused Al-Shabaab of poisoning their only water well after invading their village and forcefully ordering them to vacate the area.
In mid-September, Al-Shabaab fighters descended on the tiny village of El-Jiqow and left a trail of destruction in their wake after razing down several houses and destroying the only water well with explosions.
Concerted efforts from the Federal government and locals saw the repair of the treasured water well soon after as all water points had dried due to the crippling drought that has continued to hit the area, only to find out that the water had been poisoned.
According the Somalia government officials, Al-Shabaab has been known to go to any extreme in order to further its agenda. Somali Prime Minister, Hamza Barre, branded the Al-Shabaab militants as “children of hell” after they attacked the Hayat Hotel in Mogadishu which left at least 21 dead and 117 with injuries.
