Al-Shabab video appears to show killing of Ugandan soldier

HARGEISA, Somalia – Somalia’s al-Shabab extremist group has released a video that appears to show the killing of a Ugandan soldier who had been held captive since an attack on an African Union peacekeeping base in 2015.

The footage released Tuesday shows the soldier, called Masassa M.Y., sitting handcuffed with someone holding a gun near the back of his head. The footage shows him falling backward onto the ground.

The video says he was captured during the attack in Janale town. Al-Shabab claimed it killed more than 50 Ugandan troops there, though Ugandan officials reported 19 deaths.

A Ugandan army spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.

It is not clear how many soldiers might still be held captive from the Janale attack. The extremist group killed one in November 2015.

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