Somalia forces arrest senior Al-Shabaab fighter in hotel

Somalia's security officers on Tuesday arrested a senior Al-Shabaab fighter in a hotel in the capital city of Mogadishu.

The National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) confirmed in a statement that the suspect whose identity was not disclosed was nabbed in a hotel in Bakaro market, the biggest market in Mogadishu.

"We have conducted a special operation at Golden Hotel in the busy market. We found and captured a senior terrorist member and his network. He was among the top Al-Shabaab with a huge bounty on his head," NISA said in a statement released in Mogadishu.

The security agency said the Al-Shabaab suspect was arrested along with several other suspected militants who are now being questioned by the Somali security forces.

NISA officials promised to release his name soon. There was no immediate comment from the Islamist militants on the arrest of their senior official.

The latest move came after 300 people were arrested in operations carried out into several districts in Benadir region this week alone, as security officers intensify crackdown on criminal elements in the restive Mogadishu.

The Somali National Army backed by the African Union Peacekeeping forces have managed to flush out the insurgents out of the capital, but the group seems to be active and carries out deadly attacks. Enditem