TFG forces, backed by allied moderate Islamist militia and the African Union peacekeeping force AMISOM, have in recent months made significant gains, taking key insurgent positions in the capital Mogadishu and and strategic towns near the Kenyan and Ethiopian borders. One former al-Shabaab fighter, now working as a security officer for the TFG, said he knew of dozens of people who had defected or wanted to defect.

"I came from al-Shabaab with over 80 fighters," the 23-year-old told Somalia Report in a small house near Villa Somalia within the government-controlled zone of Mogadishu. "The reason for this is clear: the militants illegally kill and harm you, there is no freedom there."

Al-Shabaab sources contacted refused to issue any other comment other than to deny that their fighters were defecting in significant numbers.

Richard Bailey, media chief for the AMISOM support team, said the National Security Agency is now handling dozens of defectors each month, and that this number is steadily increasing as an under-pressure al-Shabaab resorts to more brutal tactics to force its fighters to go forward.

"There has been a dramatic increase (of defecting fighters) ... over the past few months since al-Shabaab started increasing the brutality of the way they recruit, train, and handle their fighters," he told Somalia Report.

"A fighter knows he cannot go backwards; we have seen incidents of defectors being shot by their own people either for disobeying orders, trying to retrieve a body, help a friend or run out the back," he added. "There are numerous occasions where you take a building and will find somebody who ... is waiting waving a white flag."

Hardline foreign fighters from Afghanistan, Yemen and other hotspots are said to be the most brutal, and are a large part of the reason Somalis are considering swapping sides.

"I am happy fighting these foreign al-Qaeda fighters who have come to my home," the defector said. "Many al-Shabaab fighters have been crossing over and more will come: for example, Doodshe is a senior office in charge of 35 fighters who controlled the main checkpoint in Afgoye, Lower Shabelle region. Today they work with the government."

He said that dozens of foreign fighters formed into a group called Abu Yahya al-Libi, named after a top al-Qaeda leader, were based in the Badmadow training camp near insurgent stronghold Kismayo. He could not give exact names, but said that these people had trained many groups and individuals, including Alabama-born Omar Hammani (also known as Abu Mansoor Al-Amriki). Hammani was reportedly killed during fighting in early March, but no body was found and the death remains unconfirmed.

The strategic port town of Kismayo fell into insurgent hands in late 2008, and is a key long-term target for the TFG. Rumours are flying around that the TFG is now planning to send down a force to attempt to wrest back control of the port, which is a key insurgent supply route.

The former fighter said the TFG had promised to pay every person who defects $250 per month, although he acknowledged he had not received any money yet. Organizing regular payment has proven to be a problem for the government, and had previously led to many forces going the other way to Al Shabaab, which could guarantee them a wage. The insurgents are reportedly now facing a shortage of funding, however.

NOTE: The name of the author has been hidden for security reasons.

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Speaking at a press conference late Monday afternoon, the prime minister said: "We are calling on United Nation offices in Kenya to reside in Mogadishu within 90 days."

This new call to move offices comes after the TFG banned two senior UN officials working for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

In an apparent reference to this, Farmajo said: "We will never allow any group or individual who works for the elimination of our government."

The TFG is also planning on boycotting a UN peace conference to be held in Nairobi later this month, and Farmajo's demand the UN move to Mogadishu appears to be a sarcastic jibe aimed at the large body of UN workers based in the Kenyan capital.

Much of the trouble stems from the recent decision of the Somali parliament to extend its mandate by three years and the cabinet's subsequent vote to extend its mandate by one year. Both mandates had been due to run out in August.

The international community, including the UN's Special Representative for Somalia Augustine Mahiga, heavily criticized the extensions.

Putting aside the spat, Farmajo also appealed to the international community to work harder in its fight against piracy and commented on the importance of conducting operations against pirates on land.

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TFG Soldiers on Parade - File Photo

Somalia's Transitional Federal Government, emboldened by recent successes in the border regions with Kenya, is planning an assault on the insurgent stronghold of Kismayo, reliable sources within the government told Somalia Report.

The strategic port, which Islamist fighters seized from pro-government militia in 2008, is a key sea supply route for militant Islamist group al-Shabaab and also serves as a base for training camps.

A source in the Somali defence ministry, who did not wish to be named, said that more than 400 newly trained forces would be used in the assault, which could come later this month.

"The TFG has prepared well-trained soldiers and this offensive will present a real challenge to the insurgents," he said. "They will face the militants by using new tactics including short, sharp strikes, artillery and landmines."

Additionally, government forces are planning to simultaneously launch sea attacks on key towns in Lower Shabelle region, with 25 boats and a team of defected al-Shabaab fighters at their disposal, the source said.

"This kind of operation will easily deliver our troops, who are mostly defectors and know how to fight the insurgents, so we aim to seize Barawe district, including Marka town (90km south of Mogadishu)," he said.

Rumours have long been circulating in African Union peacekeeping circles about such an assault on Kismayo, with sources saying the government hopes to profit from al-Shabaab sending forces from Kismayo to shore up the border regions. The TFG's Kenyan-trained forces and local militia have been gaining ground along the border regions with Kenya, most recently seizing Dhobley in Lower Juba region. There have reports the forces received air support, most likely from Ethiopia or Kenya, in this fighting.

Government officials say the TFG is planning to attack other towns in Gedo and Lower Juba regions, and al-Shabaab has sent at least 200 new recruits from Kismayo to reinforce its positions.

According to unverified reports, al-Shabaab's leaders are growing nervous about the loss of ground, leading to internal disputes. Senior leader Sheikh Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr is reportedly based in Kismayo, while Sheikh Mukhtar Robow and other senior commanders are hiding out in settlements in Bakool region.

Somalia Report contacted Robow, but he declined to comment on the supposed split.

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A UN-sponsored peace conference continuing Wednesday in Nairobi has highlighted major differences in the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). Sheikh Sharif and Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo called on members of government to boycott the conference, but the speaker travelled to the meeting with a delegation of lawmakers.

“We heard seen many regimes in Somalia, but the speaker ... is a new Somali regime,” Sheikh Sharif said during a meeting with around 50 lawmakers in Villa Somalia.

Sheikh Sharif said parliamentarians had to put their infighting behind them and cooperate “to solve many problems in the country.”

The trouble over the conference follows stinging international criticism, led by the UN's Special Representative for Somalia Augustine Mahiga, over the three-year extension parliament voted itself, and the subsequent one-year extension the cabinet awarded itself.

Sheikh Sharif said that the international community should get behind the TFG to help it battle militant Islamist group al-Shabaab and solve a host of other problems during the term extensions.

“The UN must respect the leaders of Somalia, instead of supporting a group,” he said. “What is needed from the international community is help for the TFG and Somali people.”

The president's call for help from the international community comes after Farmajo demanded UN offices based in Nairobi move to Mogadishu within 90 days, and banning orders slapped on two senior UN human rights' workers.

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The Transitional Federal Government took control of the settlement, which is halfway between Bardere and Luq, after fighting broke out late Friday night.

“After fighting, our troops captured the settlement; we will attack other al-Shabaab bases in the coming hours,” Gedo Governor Mohamed Abdi Kalil told Somalia Report. “We killed five of them and wounded others, as well as seizing military equipment, including weapons.”

Kalil refused to give details of the weapons seized or the next targets in the offensive.

Al-Shabaab officials in the region declined to comment, other than to demand Gedo residents support their cause.

Locals are tense as they await the next bout of fighting, which comes in the context of attempts by the TFG and allied militia to increase gains made in Gedo, which borders Kenya, in recent months. The government gains have led to an increase in defections from al-Shabaab in the area, while the insurgent group is turning increasingly to planting landmines and using hit-and-run tactics in an attempt to stop the rot.

Three suspected al-Shabaab members were arrested in Kenya late Friday as they attempted to return to Somalia with bomb-making materials.