(CNN) -- Somali militants accused the nation's transitional government of "baseless propaganda" after officials said the rebel group is on the verge of splitting up.
Government forces have seized more areas in the capital of Mogadishu with the help of African Union troops, officials said in a statement.
"These gains come amidst reports that the Al-Shabaab's second in command has withdrawn his forces from the city as rifts within the extremist group deepen in the wake of the failed Ramadan offensive," a government statement said this week.
The transitional government has expanded the areas it controls in Mogadishu to seven districts that are home to 90 percent of the city's population, according to the government.
But an Al-Shabaab military commander fired back Friday.
Sheikh Mukhtar Robow told reporters in the capital that the group was united, and he declared the militants "remained students" of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
Officials said this week that a rift between Robow and Al-Shabaab leader Sheikh Abu Zubayr had resulted in Robow withdrawing his troops from the capital.
CNN
