The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) confirmed that its troops, backed by Somali government forces, killed more than 50 al-Shabaab militants in heavy fighting in the southern Somali town of Barire on Friday.

"AUSO would like to clarify that its forces, in collaboration with the Somali National Army (SNAF), launched an offensive on July 25 to retake the town of Barire," the African Union Stabilization and Assistance Mission in Somalia (AUSO) said in a statement.

Awsom said this in response to the killing of Al-Shabaab after it claimed that African Union armored personnel carriers had been destroyed in heavy fighting in Barire and that Awsom soldiers had retreated.

“The joint military operation inflicted heavy losses on the terrorist group, with more than 50 al-Shabaab militants killed and many others seriously injured,” the African Union Mission in Somalia (AWSO) said in a statement, Xinhua reported.

Barire town, located 60 kilometers southwest of Mogadishu, is one of the strategic areas along the Shabelle River.