Somali general confident of defeat against IS

FILE - Somali security forces patrol for militant groups in Puntland, northeastern Somalia, Dec. 18, 2016. For much of January 2025, forces have been advancing on Islamic State hideouts in the region. FILE - A man looks at a computer screen displaying an image of Somali-born cleric and Islamic State-Somalia leader Abdulkadir Mumin, in Nairobi, Kenya, Sept. 1, 2016.

For almost a month, security forces in the semi-autonomous Somali region of Puntland have been advancing on the mountainous hideouts of Islamic State militants.