Tag Archives: Al Shabaab

BREAKING: Al-Shabaab leader, Hussein Mukhtar surrenders.

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The African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM, on Thursday confirmed that the leader of the militant group al-Shabaab has surrendered to government forces in Baidoa town in southern Somalia.

The AU mission confirmed that Hussein Mukhtar surrendered to the Somali National Army (SNA) on Tuesday following a government amnesty offer for militants to surrender.

“AMISOM calls on Al-Shabaab fighters to heed the government’s amnesty,’’ AMISOM said in a statement.

It called on al-Shabaab militants to lay down their weapons and join the Somali people to rebuild their county.

“AMISON hopes that other sons and daughters of Somalia who have been misled into terrorist acts will emulate the courageous action of Mukhtar,” it said.

The Somali government announced an amnesty offer in 2014 to members of the al-Qaida linked group al-Shabaab, which had been launching attacks on government forces and AMISOM.

NAN recalls that Al-Shabaab once controlled much of southern and central Somalia and imposed a harsh form of Islamic law that banned music and led to public amputations for accused thieves.

Government and African Union troops have recaptured most of the territory, but the militants were still able to kill several members of parliament last year, and launch two major assaults on the presidential palace.

The Somali government first offered amnesty to al-Shabaab fighters last September, after al-Shabaab’s top leader, Ahmed Godane, was killed in a U.S. airstrike.

Since Godane’s death, al-Shabaab’s leaders have been divided, but it has remained a strong fighting force and challenge to the Somali government.

In words directed at the militants, then president Hassan Mohamud said he knows many al-Shabab members joined for “reasons that made sense at the time,” including the need for money, or a sense they were proving themselves to be good Muslims or good Somalis.

But, he added, “What you did does not have to dictate the rest of your life.”

Mr. Mohamud acknowledged some Somalis are uneasy about amnesty for al-Shabab members. He said those who defect go through a process of “supervised rehabilitation” and are monitored by Somali security forces to ensure they continue to reject the militant group.

He asked Somalis to “accept the need for concession and to exercise forgiveness” in order to close “a dark chapter in Somalia’s history.

 

Source: Xinhua/NAN

Kenyan police officers killed by Al-Shabaab militia in terror attack

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An unknown number of Kenyan police officers were killed by al-Shabaab militants in the border town of Mandera during a raid early Thursday, officials said.

Police sources said the terrorists attacked a police camp in Arabia, Mandera town in northeast Kenya on Thursday dawn, and cut off police’s communication in the area.

Northeastern regional commander Mohamud Saleh confirmed the raid, saying they had sent a response team to check on casualties.

“There is no communication with officers on the ground but there was an attack there, teams are heading there,” Mr. Saleh said.

A regional government official, Eric Oronyi, said the unknown number of heavily armed attackers raided the police camp at around 3 a.m. local time Thursday (0000 GMT).

“We have sent reinforcements to the scene since communication has been cut off.

“We have not established the number of casualties or the exact damage but the situation is not good,’’ Mr. Oronyi said.

The incident came barely a week after Al-Shabaab militants overran a Kenyan military camp in southern Somalia under the Africa Union Mission in Somalia, killing nine Kenyan soldiers.

However, al-Shabaab claimed to have killed 57 Kenyan soldiers.

Report says a major manhunt for the Al-Shabaab attackers is currently underway in Somalia.

Somalia’s al Shabaab says kills dozens of Kenyan troops in raid on base

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The Islamist group al Shabaab said on Friday its fighters killed dozens of Kenyan troops when they attacked a remote military base in Somalia the previous day, a claim the Kenyan army denied.

A spokesman for al Shabaab, which often launches attacks on troops of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), said its fighters killed at least 57 Kenyans at the base in the southern town of Kulbiyow, near the Kenyan border.

Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, al Shabaab’s military operation spokesman, told Reuters about Friday’s attack.

“We are pursuing the Kenyan soldiers who ran away into the woods.

“Two mujahideen (fighters) rammed suicide car bombs into the base in Kulbiyow town before storming it,” he said, adding that as well as counting 57 Kenyan bodies, the group seized vehicles and weapons.

“We have taken over the base.”

Al Shabaab, whose assessment of casualties often differs markedly from official versions, typically rams the entrance to a target site with a car or truck bomb so fighters can storm in.

The group, which once ruled much of Somalia, wants to topple the Western-backed government in Mogadishu and drive out the peacekeepers made up of soldiers from Kenya, Djibouti, Uganda, Ethiopia and other African countries.

Driven out from the capital Mogadishu in 2011, al Shabaab has been fighting for years to impose its strict interpretation of Islam on Somalia.

African Union and Somali troops have driven al Shabaab fighters from major urban strongholds and ports, but they have often struggled to defend smaller, more remote areas from attacks.

“That is false,” Kenyan military spokesman Lt. Col. Paul Njuguna told Reuters, in reference to al Shabaab’s claim that 57 soldiers were killed although he did not give any casualty figures.

“The operation is ongoing. We are receiving updates,” the officer added.

Kenyan television channel NTV reported in a headline that “several KDF (Kenya Defence Forces) soldiers believed killed” in the raid and heavy fighting was reported.

In January 2016, al Shabaab said it had killed more than 100 Kenyan soldiers in El Adde, a Somali camp near the border with Kenya.

The Kenyan military never gave details of casualties, but Kenya media reports suggested a toll of that magnitude.

 

Source: Reuters

BREAKING: Al-Shabaab attack on Somali hotel claims at least 7 lives [VIDEO]

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At least seven people were killed after two car bombs exploded outside a popular Mogadishu hotel Wednesday, and gunmen forced their way inside the building and opened fire, police said.

The attack, claimed by the Al-Qaeda-aligned Shabaab insurgent group, began when a car loaded with explosives rammed the gate of the Dayah Hotel near the Somali parliament and state house.

Gunmen then stormed the hotel and exchanged fire with security guards, according to police official Ibrahim Mohammed.

 

A second massive blast went off after ambulances and journalists had already rushed to the scene, leaving at least four reporters injured, including an AFP photographer who suffered shrapnel wounds to his shoulder and leg.

AFP images showed security forces and civilians milling about outside the devastated hotel — its windows and doors blown out — after the first explosion, when a second car exploded with a massive blast, sending thick plumes of smoke into the air and sending people fleeing.

Gunfire rang out from the hotel as civilians and rescue workers carried away the injured.

“So far we have counted about seven dead, most of them civilians and security guards. There are also many people who were wounded in the two blasts,” said Mohammed.

“Two gunmen were killed and the area is under control of security forces,” he said.

The Shabaab group claimed responsibility in a statement distributed on its Telegram messaging account.

“The mujahideen fighters have attacked a hotel and have managed to enter the hotel after detonating a car loaded with explosives,” it said.

The Shabaab is fighting to overthrow the internationally-backed government of Somalia and regularly stages deadly attacks on state, military and civilian targets in the capital and elsewhere in the war-torn country.

– ‘Limited’ election –
The hotel attack is the deadliest so far in Somalia in 2017 and comes as the country is in the midst of a drawn-out election process to choose a new government.

In December 2016, more than 20 people were killed when a truck laden with explosives was detonated near a military base close to the Mogadishu port.

Somalia has not had an effective central government since the 1991 overthrow of president Siad Barre’s military regime which ushered in decades of anarchy and conflict in a country deeply divided along clan lines.

The clan rivalries and lawlessness provided fertile ground for the Shabaab to take hold and seize territory, frustrating efforts to set up a central administration.

After a series of transitional governments were formed abroad, a previous parliament was chosen by 135 clan elders and set up in Mogadishu in 2012.

Somalis were promised a one-person, one-vote election in 2016.

But political infighting and ongoing insecurity due to the presence of Shabaab meant Somalis were handed a “limited” election, in which 14,025 specially picked delegates voted for 275 parliamentary seats distributed according to clan.

Another 72 seats in a new upper house were shared out according to region.

The newly-elected lawmakers will soon vote for a new president, however a date has not been set for the election, which has been delayed numerous times.

The 2016 process is seen as taking the country a step closer to a universal suffrage election now planned for 2020.

12 People Killed In Al-Shabaab Terrorist Attack On A Hotel In Mogadishu, Somalia

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At least 12 people were killed in the Somali capital yesterday Sunday, November 1, after Al-Shabaab terrorist used a vehicle packed with explosives to blast their way inside Sahafi hotel in Mogadishu.
The Al-Qaeda linked Shabaab claimed responsibility for the dawn attack at the hotel, which is popular with members of parliament, government employees and businessmen.
“Attackers exploded a car bomb to gain entry before going inside… we have reports of 12 dead,” policeman Abdulrahid Dahir said.
Witnesses said they had seen several bodies of people killed in the initial blast, when a minibus packed with explosives was reportedly used to ram the gates of the hotel’s fortified compound, which was followed by a second heavy explosion.
Al-Shabaab commandos then stormed inside, with witnesses reporting intense gunfire and several loud blasts.
     “There was a huge explosion and people around the entrance were killed,” said Mohamed Ismael, a witness, who was nearby when the attack began.
Al-Shabaab spokesperson Abdulaziz Abu Musab claimed the gunmen had overrun the hotel, which is situated near the major K4 roundabout.
     “The mujahedeen fighters took control of the Sahafi hotel, where apostates and invading Christians were staying,” he said in a statement. “The mujahedeen are carrying out operations inside the hotel after the takeover.”
But the African Union mission in Somalia, Amisom, a 22,000-strong force fighting the Shabaab, said they fought alongside government troops and had secured the hotel.
     “Somalia government forces and Amisom have taken control,” the AU force said in a brief statement.

In the latest report, government officials claims all the gunmen have been killed. Below are photos of Somalia MP Abi Abtidon and a former army commander General, Dhega-Badan killed in the hotel attack.

        

 

Boko Haram Urges Somali’s Al-Shabaab Terror Group To Join Islamic State

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In a video posted on Twitter on Wednesday, October 14, Boko Haram extremists urged Somalia’s Al-Shabaab terror group to join them in pledging allegiance to the leader of the Islamic State group, and thus abandon al-Qaida.

In the video, an unidentified armed Boko Haram fighter tells Al-Shabaab fighters that uniting “is of greater benefit to the struggle on the path of Islam” and will “help in defeating the infidels of the world.” The appeal is part of a wider courting of Al-Shabab. Similar messages came nearly two weeks ago from militant extremists in Iraq,Sinai, Syria, and Yemen.

Olalekan Waheed: The Fight On Terrorism In Africa, How To Win This War

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It is no longer news that terrorism is now an, if not the main, issue in African politics today. The terrorist did their very worst on 2 April, 2015. The Garrissa University terror attacks in Kenya by the notorious al-Shabab terrorist group which left 148 innocent students dead should at least be enough to convince even the most ridiculous doubting Thomas of the reality of the threat pose by these groups on our existence as a continent. The question then is how to fight it!

There have been various suggestions on how to deal with this disturbing trend. One central aspect in all the suggestions is the role of the Military. The perhaps only point of disagreement is methods or mode of its (Military’s) involvement.

Before we go on, we need to make some important clarifications. We have no issue against using the military to tackle terrorism can at best provide mixed results. This is from the fact that the military operates on conventional principles in prosecuting convention wars. National Armies are expected to observe certain laws in war such as treaties governing “Prisoners of War” and the likes. Professional Armies are by law prevented from training under aged as soldiers. Extraterritoriality often extended to friendly or allied militaries, particularly for the purposes of allowing that military to simply pass through some territories during war. All these do or may not apply to unconventional groups like guerrillas or terrorists. It is therefore illogical to fight unconventional elements using conventional means!

It is time for a more pragmatic approach to tackling this issue. The recent successes recorded by local hunters, in Nigerian towns of Mubi, Michika, and Madagali, and the efforts of the local group called Civilian Joint Task Force(JTF) in rolling back the notorious Boko Haram in Nigeria provides a vital clue to kick start the process. The success recorded by these efforts proves that the military may lack the thorough analyses as a result of poor institutional and system processes to really root out this menace.

To curb the menace of terrorists, there is need for a trans-border approach. We say these because terrorists are groups without territories of their own. This is where the African Union(AU) and other sub-regional blocs come in.

Like I argued in an earlier article the AU needs to do more than just depend on army recruits from member states. It must itself have its own standing High Command for its own specific operations and enforcements of its sanctions. The Union which has a rich history of armed struggle against colonialism, having through it powerful Liberation Committee, trained guerrilla groups against colonial and apartheid regimes, must rise up to its new challenge without much ado. The Union must ignite its historic spirit of struggle, and face this monster of terrorism.

It is on this note that I recommend an Anti-Terror Department (ATD) or any other suitable name under the direct supervision of the African Union(AU) for the specific purpose of combating terrorism. The ATD must be well-funded by member states, voluntary donations from individuals and organisations whose objectives are incidental with those of the African Union. It must have a secretariat of its own, and an effective means of propaganda. You heard us right “Propaganda” in the fight against terror.

We are equally recommending the ATD be trained under the guidance of professional soldiers in the art of conventional warfare. The ATD must be granted the full powers of extraterritoriality throughout the continent. This condition is not negotiable.

In some cases some governments for foreign policy reasons or any other politically-motivated reasons sponsor or harbour terrorist groups. This is where the efficacy of the propaganda machinery of the ATD will be put to test. The AU must do all within its powers: political, economic, social or any other to put pressure on such government by cutting of its arms supplies.

Volunteers for operations for the ATD must be regularly paid from funds available at its disposal. They must all be of African descent. Their camping base must be in strategic places in North, Central East and Southern Africa for effective operations.

The Garrissa University attacks and other nefarious activities of al-Shabab in East Africa and Boko Haram in West Africa should be seen as early warnings by the AU for further attacks whose next port of call is highly unpredictable.

We are aware some may take our recommendations as too simplistic. We agree. But a quick reminder here is that the United States-led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation(NATO) have for more than a decade been in Afghanistan fighting Al-Queada and the Talibans the only mistake has been fighting terror using conventional methods!

Views Expressed are solely that of author and does not represent views of www.omojuwa.com nor its associates

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Olalekan Waheed ADIGUN is a political risk analyst and an independent political strategist for wide range of individuals, organisations and campaigns. He is based in Lagos, Nigeria.

 His write-ups can be viewed on his website http://olalekanadigun.com/

Tel: +2348136502040, +2347081901080

Email: olalekan@olalekanadigun.com, adgorwell@gmail.com

Follow me on twitter @adgorwell

British Muslim Convert Fighting For Al-Shabaab Pictured Sharpening Knives Before Beheading Villagers In Barbaric Massacre

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A British Muslim convert killed while fighting for al-Shabaab in Kenya was responsible for viciously beheading innocent villagers in a barbaric massacre which saw him labelled the ‘White Beast’.

Thomas Evans, 25, was said to have gone from house to house, battering down doors with an axe as he looked for non-Muslims in the bloody late-night raid of a small village in northern Kenya.

Survivors described the man from Buckinghamshire as a ‘vicious man’ who dragged his victims away from their homes and terrified families before slaughtering them with his ‘long knife’.

British Muslim convert Thomas Evans was filmed sharpening his knife before beheading innocent villagers in a barbaric massacre in Kenya.  The villagers labelled the 25-year-old from Buckinghamshire the 'White Beast'

Survivors of Evans' brutal attack said he dragged his victims away from their homes and terrified families

Credit: dailymail

Al Shabaab Attacks Village In Kenya’s Garissa

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Al Shabaab militants attacked a village in the northeastern Kenyan county of Garissa, the ministry of interior said on Friday.

The Somalia-based al Shabaab group, which has carried out frequent attacks in Kenya in recent years to try to force Nairobi to pull its troops out of Somalia, struck a university in the same area last month, killing 148 people.

A ministry statement said the militants entered Yumbis village, 70 km (45 miles) north of Garissa town, but were driven back. “Security forces on Thursday evening thwarted an attempted attack at Yumbis village,” it said.

“Security forces swiftly mobilized and engaged the militants in a gun battle. No casualties were reported.”

A police source in the area who did not wish to be named said the militants roamed Yumbis for an hour in two trucks bearing Kenyan registration plates. They hoisted their black flag on a mosque where they held prayers, before they headed out to a nearby village called Damajale.

A combined force of police and the army drove them off about three hours later, the source said.

Kenya’s tourism industry, a top foreign exchange earner, has borne the brunt of the attacks, as worried tourists cancel their bookings.

Credit: Reuters

Somali Government Ban Al-Shabab’s Name From Media

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The Somali government has told media houses to stop referring to militant group al-Shabab by their name. They instead want the group to be called Ugus, an acronym for the Somali words meaning “the Group that Massacres the Somali People”. BBC has more:

Al-Shabab responded by asking journalists to refer to the Somali government with the same acronym, Ugus. In this case, Ugus means “the Group that Subjects the Somali People to Humiliation”.

Al-Shabab, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda, controls many rural parts of southern Somalia.  The head of Somalia’s Intelligence and Security Services Gen Abdirahman Mohamud Turyare told journalists that al-Shabab, which means the youth in Arabic, was “a good name”.

“We should not allow this good name to be dirtied. This enemy we are fighting is called Ugus.” Gen Turyare was speaking at the headquarters of information ministry in front of journalists and information ministry officials.

Kenya Bombs Al Shabaab Camps In Somalia In Response To Garissa Attack

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The Kenyan air force on Sunday bombed two Al Shabaab camps in Somalia in response to the Al Shabab terrorist attack on Garissa University College according to a Kenyan defence Forces (KDF) source.

Al Shabaab militants on Thursday killed 148 people mostly students when they stormed Garissa University in Kenya.

Kenya jets pounded the camps in Gondodowe and Ismail both in Gedo region bordering Kenya according to the military source. It was difficult to establish the death toll and how much damage done due to cloud cover.

“We targeted the two areas because according to information we have, those (Al Shabaab) fellows are coming from there to attack Kenya”, the source said.

Al Shabaab militants have killed over 400 people in Kenya since 2013. It has been difficult for Kenya to stop the flow of Al Shabaab militants and weapons across its 700km border with Somalia.

culled from Reuters

African Troops Take Key Port from Al Shabaab

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Somali troops backed by African peacekeepers on Sunday recaptured the last major port in Somalia held by Al Shabaab, removing a key source of revenue for the Islamist militia.

The move was another blow for Al-Qaeda’s main affiliate in Africa and came just a month after the death of their leader Ahmed Abdi Godane in a US air and drone strike.

The African Union’s AMISOM force, which draws 22,000 soldiers from six nations, said Barawe, 200 kilometres (120 miles) southwest of Mogadishu, fell without “much resistance from the terrorist group.”

“The terrorists used the port there to import arms as well as receive foreign fighters into their ranks,” an AMISOM statement said.

“The group also used Barawe to export charcoal to the Middle East, a lucrative multi-million dollar business that served as their main source of funding,” the statement said.

Provincial governor Abdukadir Mohamed Nur said the situation was “calm and the militiamen had fled before the forces reached the town”.

“They could not put up resistance and have emptied their positions,” he said.

Al Shabaab exported charcoal through Barawe to Gulf countries, earning at least $25 million (19 million euros) a year from the trade according to UN estimates.

Ugandan Police Uncovers Al-Shabaab Cell

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uganda

Uganda has been on high alert since Al-Shabab’s leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane, was killed in a US air strike in Somalia earlier this month.

Police in Uganda say they have seized large amounts of explosives during raids on suspected Al-ShabAab militants. Authorities said the terrorist cell was planning to carry out imminent attacks in the capital Kampala.

 A police spokesman said, nineteen people have been arrested and are being interrogated about their intentions.

On Sunday, the US lifted its warnings after saying it believed the “immediate threat of an Al-Shaabab attack has been effectively countered”.

US Strikes Major Al Shabaab Base- Somali Officials

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US AIR

Reports  say that the US has struck where Al Shabaab were meeting.

Ahmed, a Senior Intelligence Official with the Somalian Government said, “there was an air strike at a base where senior members of al Shabaab had a meeting last night.”  He also added that, “So far Godane’s death is a strong rumor that may or may not turn to be true. What we know is that the militants were bombarded. However, it is difficult to know how many of them or who particularly died.”

Abdiqadir Mohamed Sidii, Governor of Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia, where the strike occurred, some 245 km (150 miles) southwest of the capital Mogadishu, said he believed Godane and other senior al Shabaab members had been killed.

He said, “We understand a U.S. drone killed Ahmed Abdi Godane and other seven senior members last night near Hawaay area around Barawe town.” He however did not say how he got the information on the attack, given the location is in an area still under Al Shabaab control.

Residents in Haaway said they heard loud explosions late Monday in an area they described as a densely forested.