HARGEYSA (SD) -Somaliland has announced that it has apprehended individuals associated with the Al-Shabaab group who recently traveled from Jilib district in the Middle Jubba region.

In a statement released by the Somaliland intelligence agency, an operation involving the intelligence agency and the Somaliland military resulted in the capture of members of Al-Shabaab.

The arrested members consist of seven people including five men and two women, according to the statement. Somaliland alleges these are high-ranking officials within Al-Shabaab.

The arrest comes at a time when Al-Shabaab recently issued a stern warning following the maritime agreement between Somaliland and Ethiopia, signed by Somaliland’s outgoing President Muse Bihi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.