MOGADISHU - Ethiopian troops captured a rebel-held town in central Somalia on Saturday, Addis Ababa and residents said, in a new front against the al-Qaida-linked militants who are seen as a threat to the region's stability.
The al-Shabaab rebels said on Saturday they had repelled three Ethiopian assaults north of the town and then carried out a "planned withdrawal" from the settlement.
Both Ethiopia and Kenya have sent troops into Somalia to fight Islamist al-Shabaab militants, following a wave of cross-border attacks and kidnappings Nairobi blamed on the rebels.
The reports suggested the militants were now facing opposition on three fronts.
