Al Shabaab militants attacked two police checkpoints overnight in Northern Somalia, leaving at least one civilian dead, witnesses have said.
In the first attack, the insurgents hurled two grenades on a night checkpoint in the port town of Bossaso, which serves as a commercial hub for the semi-autonomous region of Puntland.
One civilian died at the scene and two others were left injured. The attackers fled the scene immediately.
Meanwhile, Puntland security forces battled al-Shabaab fighters on the outskirts of Bossaso after the militants launched an attack on a police post.
According to credible sources and travellers, gunmen used RPGS and heavy machineguns when they attacked the forces stationed in the area which is one of the bases for the troops fighting against the militants who have hideouts in the Galgala mountain ranges.
Casualties of the battle which took several hours are not clear yet.
The al-Qaeda-linked militant group claimed the responsibility of the coordinated attacks, vowing to continue its campaign in the region.
Officials of the Puntland administration have not commented on the attacks.
Al Shabaab insurgents have been intensifying attacks on security forces seeking to destabilise the stable region.
Last month, a suicide bomber killed seven staff members of the UNICEF including four international staff in Garowe, the state’s capital.
