Somalia - Rebels Are Reportedly Fleeing - NYTimes.com Fighters from Somalia's Islamist extremist rebels have started to leave their remaining coastal stronghold, Kismayo, in the face of advancing allied African troops, residents and a military official said Tuesday. Armed militants from the Shabab, a group allied with Al Qaeda, left Kismayo in pickup trucks after freeing prisoners in the town, Muse Hassan, a Kismayo resident, said by phone. Col. Cyrus Oguna, a spokesman for the Kenyan Army, which is part of the African Union forces fighting Shabab militants, said the fighters were fleeing because they sensed defeat. However, a Shabab spokesman said on Twitter that the reports were "blatant lies."