Locals who spoke to Sunatimes alleged that they fled their homes after Al-Shabaab militants who recently gained control of these towns subjected them to torture, beheading and robbery.

Others said they fled the homes after several of their relatives were killed by the militants, forcing them to leave behind their property and escape what they called rebel brutality.

The Ahlu Sunna administration in the region claimed that it has distributed humanitarian aid to the displayed families.

The group’s executive committee chairman Mohamed Yussuf Hefow told Sunatimes that most of the displaced people used to well off while in their hometowns and such handouts cannot be enough to meet their needs.

He however called on aid agencies to come to the aid of these families who were uprooted from their homes by Al-Shabaab militants.