A senior al-Shabab commander surrendered to Somali government forces on Monday after eight years of insurgency, an army official said.

The Somali National Army (SNA) said Ali Abdullahi, al-Shabab commander in charge of Hajji Muse area in Lower Juba region surrendered to the government forces during a joint operation in the town of Bar-Sanguun.

Abdifatah Ibrahim, the division 11 army commander of the SNA, said several members of the extremist group which has waged nearly daily attacks against the internationally-backed government were also arrested during the security operation by the allied forces.

Ibrahim said Abdullahi admitted to have been a member of the al-Qaida allied terrorist group for the past eight years. Abdullahi's security guard also surrendered.

He said the operation was carried out jointly between AMISOM and government forces after receiving credible intelligence reports that led to the surrender of Abdullahi and his security guard.

The militant group is yet to comment on the latest move by its senior official whose surrender comes amid increased military operations in southern Somalia, particularly Lower Shabelle region, which remains one of the strongholds of the group.

Xinhua