Bakool (Somali: Bakool, Maay: Bokool, Arabic: بكول) is a region (gobol) in southwestern Somalia.[3]
Bakool Bokool | |
|---|---|
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Location in Somalia. | |
| Coordinates: 4°20′47″N 43°32′59″E / 4.34639°N 43.54972°E | |
| Country |  Somalia |
| Regional State |  South West |
| Capital | Huddur |
| Area | |
| • Total | 54,962 km2 (21,221 sq mi) |
| Population (2019[1]) | |
| • Total | 1,156,400 |
| • Density | 21/km2 (54/sq mi) |
| 1,234,456 | |
| Time zone | UTC+3 (EAT) |
| Area code | Bakool |
| HDI (2021) | 0.295[2] low · 14th of 18 |
Overview
It is bordered by the Somali regions of Hiiraan, Bay and Gedo.
Bakool, like Gedo and Bay, as well as most parts of the Jubbada Dhexe (Middle Juba) region, used to be a part of the old Upper Region, which was subdivided in the mid-1980s. It has its capital at Hudur.
In March 2014, Somali Armed Forces assisted by an Ethiopian battalion with AMISOM re-captured the Bakool province's capital Hudur from the Al-Shabaab militant group.[4] The offensive was part of an intensified military operation by the allied forces to remove the insurgent group from the remaining areas in southern Somalia under its control.[5]