'We go go wherever dem hide' - How sojas dey root out IS for Somalia

For Somalia remote al-Miskad mountains, one group of sojas gada togeda around one small hand-held screen, dem dey track Islamic State group fighters on one drone feed.

One pesin wey dey move through di valley appear for di screen. "E go fetch water for im friends," di drone operator tok. "e dey run and e carry somtin on im back," anoda soja tok.

Di man wey dey close to di screen dey close to one cave, wey di army believe say na hideout for 50 to 60 IS fighters.

Di Puntland Defence Forces get about 500 sojas wey station for dis base for di north-east of Somalia.

Ten years ago di barren and inhospitable landscape bin serve as home to only a few nomadic communities, but dat change wen IS establish dia ground for here, and shift dia focus to Africa as dem don drive dia fighters comot dia strongholds for Syria and Iraq.

By April 2025, Gen Michael Langley, wey den be di commander of United States Africa Command (Africom), tell US Congress say "ISIS dey control dia global network from Somalia".

And for recent years, US don support dia Somalia fight against IS, as dem repeatedly bomb insurgents wey dey hide for Somali caves – for 2025, di Pentagon carry out 60 attacks on IS-Somalia.

Now, on local level, IS "ability to stage attacks for Somalia don dey degraded" and e no pose significant threat to Puntland or Somalia today", Tricia Bacon, director of di Policy Anti-Terrorism Hub for American University for Washington DC tok.

However, IS-Somalia still "dey play critical role in terms of providing resources, support, and facilitation for oda Islamic State affiliates, both in Africa and further afield, like Afghanistan", she explain.

Na one Somali national Abdulqadir Mumin establish IS-Somalia, wey base for di semi-autonomous region of Puntland for di north-east of di kontri. E once live for Sweden and UK and e get British citizenship.

For 2015, e show alongside 17 men for inside one video wey pledge allegiance to IS.

Mumin previously na member of di militant group al-Shabab, wey don dey battle govment for two decades and still dey control large parts of southern Somalia.

IS-Somalia force al-Shabab out of Puntland al-Miskad mountains, and dem bring in foreign recruits and e gradually bicom training and financial hub for IS wider network.

Di group get influence for di port city of Bosaso and one US treasury report tok say for 2022 IS-Somalia "raise $2m [£1.5m] from extortion payments from local businesses, imports, livestock, and agriculture".

Di Puntland Forces bin manage to push IS-Somalia out of Bosaso for di start of 2025, but di militant group still dey control villages and small towns for di nearby al-Miskad mountains.

One of dose na Dardar, wey be home to 600 pipo.

IS brutality and fear follow bodi.

Pipo wey dey live for hia tok say dem write strict rules on one blackboard for one nearby village wey ban men and women from mixing in public, rules wey forbid men from wearing long trousers below dia ankles or get stylish haircuts.

Women gatz wear one specific type of hijab wit gloves and socks to cover dia hands and ankles, and music no dey allowed.

Dia harsh regime and ideology bin leave deep scars.

"Life bicom veri difficult," Said Mohamud Ibrahim, di local imam wey sidon for floor of im mosque tok, "Pipo dey fear. Dem kidnap some and some odas still dey miss."

While some pipo run comot di village, e stay, but e say IS kick am comot di mosque. "Dem say: 'We be di imam now. And if you no follow our instructions and leave di mosque right now, you go get wetin you deserve.'

"I understand say wetin dem mean na say dem go either behead me or kidnap me."

Among di worshippers for di mosque na Mahad Jama. Two years ago, IS fighters kidnap and kill im niece, Shukri.

"She be good girl, veri loving daughter, she care for her mama. She be practising Muslim," e tok as e lower im head under im black and white scarf to shield imsef from di midday sun.

Shukri bin get belle wen dem kill her. She leave behind two children and one sick mama.

"You fit imagine wetin e feel like to lose your niece… and you know even know why dem kill her. Wen you receive tori of di death of a child, e dey almost impossible to accept," Jama add.

Shukri get one seven-year old son wey im name na Said. Di little boy dey deaf and e dey rarely comot im mama side.

Di night wey IS come dia house, Shukri bin dey wit her. Dem kill am too.

Afta many months of fighting, di Puntland Defence Force take ova di village for February 2025. Di Americans bin help, dem target and kill three IS militants for May 2024.

However, IS still get bases for di area.

Muna Ali Dahir, one 32-year-old officer, na one of di few women among di sojas for here.

She don fight for battles bifor: "We fight hard and we win… becos dis na our land," she tok.

Dis time though, she dey stay for di base, dey prepare for potential casualties.

One young soja show us one foto for one phone wia e grab di hand of one IS fighter e capture. Di prison tall and big pass am, e get thick black beard and long hair. Anoda soja dey hold di oda hand.

"Dis na Hassan. Di Turkish man we capture," 24-year-old Abdikhair Abdiriza Jama tok.

For June 2025, UN estimate say di Islamic State group get up to 800 fighters for Somalia, more dan half of dem na foreigners.

Puntland Forces claim say dem don kill hundreds of members of IS ova di past 16 months, and dem don release images of more dan 50 foreign fighters dem capture, from kontris wey include Ethiopia, Morocco and Syria.

Puntland authorities say dose wey dem arrest dey face face trial and, in some cases, di death penalty.

Human Rights Watch previously bin don raise concerns ova due process and di treatment of prisoners wey chop accuse say dem dey part of one Islamist armed group.

One UN report for 2022 note say Somalia dey work to ensure say "dem dey carry dose wey dem hold for custody for questioning in a coordinated manner so dat di rights of detainees go stand".

Abddikhair Jama na 14 years wen IS bin first come to dis region. "I no believe say dem dey exist." At first, I bin tink say na just propaganda," e tok. "But wen I hold one of dem… I realise say na foreign fighters dey attack our kontri."

As we tok, di sharp crack of test fire bin vibrate across di camp. Dem load heavy machine guns and supplies on top camels and sojas file out of di base in small groups for di assault on IS positions.

One army commander explain say one American surveillance drone dey for air dey gada intelligence, wey dey help determine wia to fire.

Mortar rounds roar through di valley, enta di IS caves and explosions echo off di mountainside. No return fire.

Dem set up di drone again, dis time na to assess di damage and, on di small screen, di cave entrance show say e don burn.

Di Puntland Defence Forces discova say American drones bin later get involved and e strike di fighters inside di caves - e no dey clear how many.

Di fight against IS for Somalia no dey ova.

Tricia Bacon for American University warn say although IS-Somalia "currently dey constrained… dem don prove to be resilient organisation, wey dey capable of recovering and regrouping from losses".

And Abddikhair Jama say: "We no go stop until we capture di last fighter.

"Weda e take 10 or 15 years, we go go wherever dem move go or hide. Na only wen di land dey fully cleared we go rest."

Meanwhile, im and di oda sojas continue to dey live in harsh conditions. Dem no get running water or electricity and dem dey sleep for makeshift tents wey dem use branches, orange tarpaulins and rocks build. Dem dey survive on di goats wey dem dey rear and helicopter dey bring in supplies twice a day.

For di quiet moments between battles, Dahir dey call her family - she get eight children but na only two times she see dem last year.

She say her children na her motivation: "Dem go say: 'Mama, go come back and we go win.' E dey make me feel like say I dey do di right tin.

"I hold dis kontri, and dose wey dey attack am dey wrong."