Puntland Captures Nearly 50 Foreign ISIS Fighters in Northeastern Somalia

Sunday January 18, 2026 Garowe (HOL) — Puntland authorities on Saturday released the names and photographs of nearly 50 foreign Islamic State fighters captured during military operations in the Calmiskaat mountains of Somalia’s Bari region, days after declaring the yearlong campaign against the group largely complete. Security officials said the detainees include fighters from at least seven countries, underscoring the transnational nature of the Islamic State’s presence in northern Somalia. Of those presented, 18 are from Ethiopia, making up the largest group, followed by 11 from Morocco. Others were identified as nationals of Saudi Arabia, Tanzania, Türkiye, Yemen and Syria. advertisements Puntland officials said the disclosure followed the formal conclusion of the military operation in the Al-Khalifa mountains, which targeted Islamic State strongholds in the rugged Calmiskaat mountain range. Authorities said only a small number of militants remain in hiding in remote areas. The Puntland government has previously estimated that more than 2,000 foreign fighters were embedded with Islamic State in the mountains before the offensive began. Officials now say between 600 and 700 militants were killed during the campaign. The conflict has been Puntland’s longest and deadliest confrontation with Islamic State, stretching over more than a year and exacting a heavy toll on regional forces. Puntland officials said hundreds of soldiers and officers were killed, while others were permanently injured during the fighting. The campaign relied heavily on airstrikes and logistical assistance from the United States and the United Arab Emirates, Puntland authorities said. Officials publicly thanked both countries, crediting their support as decisive in weakening Islamic State’s command structure and operational capacity. At the same time, Puntland leaders reiterated their long-standing claim that they received no support from Somalia’s federal government during the campaign. Federal authorities, however, have disputed that account, accusing Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni of rejecting federal involvement amid broader political tensions between Garowe and Mogadishu. The disagreement reflects a wider political rift between Puntland’s leadership and the federal government over governance, elections and power-sharing, which has complicated coordination on security operations. Despite the friction, analysts say the scale of foreign fighter involvement revealed by the detainees highlights the strategic importance of the Calmiskaat operation, not only for Puntland but for regional and international security. Islamic State has used northern Somalia as a recruitment hub, training ground and staging point for attacks and external operations. Puntland authorities said the captured fighters will be processed under existing legal frameworks, though they did not provide details on prosecutions, detention conditions or possible repatriation. The announcement marks a rare public accounting of Islamic State’s foreign ranks in Somalia and comes as Puntland shifts from large-scale combat operations to stabilization, surveillance and pursuit of remaining militants in the mountains.