Kulbiyow was an important military base directly at the Somalia–Kenya border, and was operated as part of the African Union Mission to Somalia's (AMISOM) Sector 2[1] which was entrusted to the Kenya Defence Forces.

Al-Shabaab began operating around Kulbiyow in November 2016; Somali media alleged that the Kenyan security forces were warned that the insurgents were planning a major attack in the area.

[10][8] On the next day, the Kenyans received intelligence about an impending counter-attack by the Jihadists, so that soldiers were sent on scouting missions to help gather more information and to prepare Kulbiyow's defences.

[3] When the attack eventually began on the night of 26–27 January, it was launched from Badhadhe,[10] and was led by the Saleh al-Nabhan Battalion, an Al-Shabaab unit which had already won some renown by partaking in the major Islamist victory of El Adde in the previous year.

Though the car bomb was finally destroyed by a Kenyan soldier who fired an 84mm anti-tank gun at it, the vehicle had already breached the base's outer perimeter by this point.

[6][10][5][12] The garrison had called for help, and nearby Kenyan security forces mobilized to assist, but the rebels had mined the roads leading to Kulbiyow, causing losses to the reinforcements and delaying their advance.

[8] Meanwhile, Kenyan Harbin Z-9 attack helicopters arrived at the battle site and began to fire at the militants, forcing them to scatter,[4] though the insurgents appeared to have been able to withdraw with much loot in good order.

[11] The attack was believed by analysts to have primarily been a propaganda coup by Al-Shabaab, which wanted not only to prove that it still was "a force to be reckoned with", but possibly also influence the upcoming elections in Kenya, where the mission in Somalia was increasingly questioned due to high casualties among the KDF.