Twin Cities buddies took similar paths to jihad

MINNEAPOLIS -- The two high school buddies loved to shoot hoops and crack jokes with their friends. They both converted to Islam in early adulthood. And both were recruited by terror groups to leave the United States and die for jihadist causes.

It wasn't immediately clear how Douglas McAuthur McCain and Troy Kastigar were drawn into radicalism after their initial conversion to the Muslim faith or whether they might have influenced one another along the way. But the two best friends went down similar paths and met the same end.

Both men attended Robbinsdale Cooper High School in the Minneapolis suburb of New Hope. Kastigar was in the class of 1999, though he left school in February of that year without a diploma, according to school records. McCain went to Robbinsdale from 1997 to 1999, before transferring to nearby Armstrong High School. He did not graduate either.

Address records show McCain lived at Kastigar's house for a period from 2000 to 2001, although that could not be independently verified.

"They were really funny guys. They were goofy. They were just always laughing, hanging out together, joking around. They were just nice," said Alicia Adams, a former classmate who was friends with both McCain and Kastigar in high school.

There was nothing in their background or behavior to "make you think they would become an extremist or a killer or anything of the sort," she said Thursday. People who knew the pair were "trying to wrap all of our heads around it."

U.S. officials confirmed this week that the 33-year-old McCain was killed in Syria while fighting with the Islamic State group. Officials have said that Kastigar was killed in Somalia in September 2009 while fighting with the terror group al-Shabaab.

The U.S. State Department said Wednesday it was looking into reports that a second American fighting with the Islamic State group had been killed in Syria.

Anders Folk, a former federal prosecutor who handled the al-Shabaab cases in Minnesota, said it's noteworthy that two converts with no familial ties to Syria or Somalia latched on to the most extreme interpretation of Islam.

"The fact that two guys from the Midwest, from Minnesota, could both be recruited by different terrorist organizations in different foreign countries shows how effective the rhetoric is at converting certain people to the cause," Folk said. "It also shows that the message isn't about where you go or what country you go to, but the message is about joining the fight. And that message is resonating with young men in America."

Both young men had minor criminal records, including charges of disorderly conduct, traffic violations and instances in which they gave false names to police officers.

The two friends were not into organized sports, but both loved basketball -- McCain's favorite team was his hometown Chicago Bulls -- and the teens were always playing at neighborhood parks and at the Y, Adams said.

Neither Kastigar nor McCain converted to Islam while in high school, Adams said. McCain's Twitter feed included a May 14 post that said he "reverted to Islam 10 years ago" and called it the best thing to happen to him.

Adams said she had kept in touch with McCain over Facebook and through phone calls, and she last spoke with him within the past year, when he was living in San Diego. She said he was doing work in a mosque there, had traveled to Europe and had hopes of being a rapper.

McCain loved learning about Islam and sharing his faith with anyone who would listen, but he was not radical and was respectful of others' beliefs, Adams said.

Kastigar left Minneapolis in November 2008. A 2011 report by the GOP House Homeland Security committee says he was killed in Somalia in September 2009. He was 28.

In August of last year, al-Shabaab released a video that featured Kastigar and other Minnesota men. In the nearly 40-minute video, Kastigar compared his experiences in Somalia to being in an amusement park.

"If you guys only knew how much fun we have over here -- this is the real Disneyland," he said. "You need to come here and join us and take pleasure in this fun." The video also showed Kastigar's shrouded corpse.

Sources say second American killed fighting with ISIS in Syria identified as Abdirahmaan Muhumed

Somali-American Jihadi, Abdirahman Muhumed, 29, killed in #Syria this week fighting alongside

A second American reportedly killed fighting with the Islamic State group in Syria has been identified as Abdirahmaan Muhumed, of Minneapolis, two sources told Fox News late Wednesday. 

KMSP-TV in Minneapolis reported that Muhumed was killed in the same battle as Douglas McAuthur McCain, who grew up outside Minneapolis in the town of New Hope and most recently lived in San Diego. The State Department confirmed McCain's death earlier this week, but spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Wednesday that the U.S. has no independent confirmation of the second American's death. "We're looking into it," she said.

A source told Fox News that Muhumed's family had been sent a photo of his body from Syria, but had not been formally notified by the State Department. Fox News was unable to contact the family. 

A profile of Muhumed by Minnesota Public Radio this past June described him as a 29-year-old Somali-American who had been married more than once and was a father of nine children. MPR reported, citing the FBI, that at least 15 young men from the Twin Citites' Somali-American community had traveled to Syria to join Islamic State, the militant group formerly known as ISIS that has captured wide swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq. 

In a Facebook messages to an MPR reporter, Muhumed wrote "I give up this worldly life for Allah" and "Allah loves those who fight for his cause." A picture posted on the social network showed Muhumed carrying a Koran in one hand and a rifle in the other. 

Federal investigators believe that approximately 100 Americans have traveled to Syria to join Islamist groups. Most of them are disaffected young men targeted by recruitment videos like those one put out by the Somali-based, Al Qaeda-linked group al-Shabaab that praised Minnesota's "martyrs." One such "martyr" was Troy Kastigar, a high school classmate of Douglas McCain and a Muslim convert who was killed in Somalia in 2009. 

Abdi Bihi, a leader in the Twin Cities' Somalian community, told KMSP that ISIS has recently begun trying to recruit young women from the Twin Cities to their cause.

"They are brainwashing them to marry them off to jihadists," he said. "They call them to help out as nurses, help out the wounded -- but the real catch is they will be sexually exploited."

While the jihadists may see fighting as a path to paradise, Bihi said the only thing young people who take that path will face is disappointment, possibly even death.

"What will not change is the pain and agony and suffering of the parents," he lamented.

Fox News' 

Somalia PHOTO'S of Blind Somali Jihadist fighting alongside ISIS militants in Syria . 

Somalia: Former Minister of Defense agrees to join Jubaland Peace Proces

KISMAYO, Somalia August 27, 2014 (terrorfreesomalia)-Former a former Minister of Defense  Barre Adan Shire (Barre Hiiraale) has agreed to join the ongoing jubaland peace process after lengthy mediation efforts on Wednesday, terror free somalia  reports. Federal Government of Somalia’s Minister of Internal Affairs Abdulahi Godah Barre, Jubaland officials and traditional leaders paid visit to Col. Bare Hirale stronghold of Goob Weyn which lies a few kilometers away from the southern port city of Kismayo. A two-hour deliberation on the fate of the former warlord led to the Thursday’s return to Kismayo by clan militia. Meanwhile, Jubaland insisted it welcomes the move but put condition on the arrival of militiamen. Jubaland administration accepted that Hiiraale and his special bodyguards be returned to Kismayo and demanded the reintegration and rehabilitation of other armed clan militia who could pose security threat to the peace process. Somali government delegation escorted the commanders of  Bare Hiirale militia Col. Abdi Egal, Mohamed Ali and Abdirashid Moallim to strategic Kismayo seaport. He refused to lay down arms and renounce armed violence as Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed arrived in Kismayo in an effort to consolidate jubaland peace process in April this year. Militia loyal to . Bare Hiiraale engaged in a deadly battle with local forces loyal to the President of Jubaland administration jihadi  warlord Shiekh Ahmed Mohamed Islam (Madobe) in Kismayo and subsequently fled to unknown vicinities in the outskirts of Kismayo following the seizure of Kismayo by Jubaland forces in June 2013. Kismayo suffered from two decades of bloody stalemate, with rival warlords and armed clan militias competing for the lucrative seaport and the fertile hinterland near Jubba River. -

American jihadist who traveled to Syria reportedly killed, US official says - Stripes

American jihadist who traveled to Syria reportedly killed, US official says - Stripes

Mogadishu youth stage demonstration to denounce Al Shabaab activities

Somali youth groups in the capital Mogadishu have marched in the major streets in the capital today to show their support for the government while denouncing Al Shabaab militant group actions.

The peaceful demonstration which was organized by center for community dialogue brought together youth groups, women organizations and all district commissioners of Mogadishu municipality.

The protesters chanted anti Al Shabaab slogans while carrying placards that contained messages of peace and patriotism.

The chairman of center for community dialogue Issa Ahmed Omar has urged members of youth to take part in the stabilization of the country.

“The population of the young people in this country is 75 percent and they have important role to play in security and peace building,” He said.

This is not the first time that a protest to denounce Al Shabaab militant group activity in the country was held in Somali capital Mogadishu.

Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh and Mogadishu Mayor Mohamed Hussein Mungab attended anti Al Shabaab protest after the group’s deadly assault on the Somali presidential palace and parliament on july.

Somalia military court sentences man to jail for being father of alleged Al-Shabaab fighter

Mogadishu (terrorfreesomalia) – In the first verdict of its kind in Somalia, a military court in Mogadishu sentenced the father of an alleged Al-Shabaab member to six months of jail time, while his son was sentenced to death by firing squad.

Osman Ali Malin aged 45, was accused by prosecutors of being the father of 18-year old Dahir Osman Ali also known as “Dahir Dayah”, an alleged Al-Shabaab fighter who was charged with the killing of traffic police officer, Yusuf Hassan Adow more commonly known “Yusuf Tarafiko” in Mogadishu, the court heard.

The sentencing of Osman Malin by the military court comes weeks after the chairman of Somalia’s military court Col. Abdurahman Turyare publically declared that parents of suspected Al-Shabaab members would be arrested and sentenced, accusing them of “failing in parenthood”.

The declaration by Col. Turyare however received criticism from human rights activists and civil society workers alike, who said this was akin to collective punishment and was unconstitutional to punish individuals for the actions of others. They further argued that the Al-Shabaab is a secretive movement, and that the likelihood of parents knowing that their children were involved in the movement is very slim. The criticisms however fell on deaf ears, as the military court insisted on going ahead with their decision.

Jihad In America Cornhole Watch: Ali Muhammad Brown

Jihad In America Cornhole Watch: Ali Muhammad Brown

British Muslimah Wants To Be First Woman To Behead Western Prisoners

British Muslimah Wants To Be First Woman To Behead Western Prisoners

Imperial Very Good News! Assad Kills ISIS Jihadi Abu Moussa

Imperial Very Good News! Assad Kills ISIS Jihadi Abu Moussa

Amisom to withdraw from Somalia in two years

African Union peacekeepers will withdraw from Somalia in two years according to a road map contained in the latest daily updates by Amisom Daily Media Monitoring.  The African Mission in Somalia ( Amisom) would end the intervention in Somalia in 2016, according to the latest assessment by stakeholders.

African Union Acting Special Envoy to Somalia Lydia Wanyoto and Somalia ambassador to Uganda Sheik Sayid Ahmed Dahir say the road map will be adhered to. They expect that by that time the federal government will have the capacity to independently run the affairs of the war-torn state. Ahmed said Somalia is on the right path and thanked regional governments, especially Uganda for ensuring the conflict is subdued. The Kenya Defence Forces contribute a substantial number of troops to Amisom. Other nations are Uganda, Burundi, Sierra Leone and Ethiopia. Meanwhile, Amisom and the Federal Government of Somalia have concluded a three-day conference to educate the Somalia civil society on the role they can play in the implementation of the country's Vision 2016. Somalia has no functional civil society since the collapse of the central government. In the recent past, due to improved security attributed to the Somali National Army (SNA) supported by  Amisom, there are functioning institutions. See also: Suspected Al-Shabaab militia kidnap Kenyan driver ''The objective of the conference was to identify the role of civil society in supporting inclusive political dialogue and initiation of processes of social reconciliation, to restore trust between communities through review,'' Amisom reported. Amisom said this would help identify the role of civil society towards the finalisation and adaptation of a federal constitution by December 2015 and to identify how civil society can participate in the processes leading to elections by 2016. The conference gave the civil society an opportunity to create awareness among themselves on recent political developments in Somalia. It was presided over Labor and Social Affairs Minister Luqman Mohamed and was attended by 58 participants including, six members of Parliament. "I can assure you that the Federal Government of Somalia is willing to work with all civil society groups to move the country forward. The efforts of the Government should be complemented by the civil society," he said.

US General lauds UPDF role in pacifying Somalia

The Somalia and Eritrea monitoring group uncovers a web of deceit and financial mismanagement

The Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group, UN-SEMG, has finally published its much-awaited report on the Federal Government of Somalia’s (henceforth FGS) dubious and exclusive contract with Shulman Rogers, a US Law Firm, for the recovery of Somali national assets frozen overseas. Ironically, this is the same contract that triggered the abrupt resignation of Yusur AF Abrar, the former governor of the Central Bank of Somalia, barely a few weeks after her appointment to the post. As a conscientious person, Yusur smelt a rat and immediately rendered her resignation from afar, Dubai. In here resignation letter of 30th October 2013, Yusur Abrar stated, referring to Shulman Rogers contract: “From the moment I was appointed, I have been continuously asked to sanction deals and transactions that would contradict my personal values and violate my fiduciary responsibility to the Somali people as head of the nation’s monetary authority”. This is a damning indictment to President Mahmoud. People who were allegedly pushing her to sanction such dubious deals turned out to be none other than the President himself, together with his trusted former NGO colleague and former foreign minister, Fawzia Haji Adam.

For those who are familiar with the behavior and conduct of the current FGS on issues related to public finance management, it is business as usual. For the donor communities, however, the report is a bitter pill to swallow as they tried their level best, over the past few years, to make this government afloat and promised millions of dollars of development fund in Brussels only a few years back. Indeed, it is a huge disappointment that would make them think twice before they raise any more funding for President Mahmoud’s government, or for that matter for any future Somali governments. Most importantly, this is extremely a bad news for the Somali people in general as the donor community will not be so generous after this horrible fiasco. The Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group’s report also reveals an extensive network of corruption and financial malpractices at the very top of the FGS: the president, the discredited former foreign minister of Somalia, Fowzia Haji Adam, a number of shadowy and unscrupulous figures related to the Somali President and the former governor of the Central Bank of Somalia, Abdi Salam Haji Omar who, despite his initial resistance against Shulman Rogers’ predatory advances, eventually caved in under pressure. Indeed, the list of culprits is very long.

The UN-SEMG report further reveals the lack of accountability, transparency as well as the lack of separation of duties between the President and the Central Bank of Somalia. The investigations of the Monitoring Group also uncovered a web of deceit and a sinister ploy to fraudulently steal the nation’s assets stashed in foreign banks and institutions for personal purposes. Although the Central Bank of Somalia should be independent and take no instructions from the President as well as ministers in accordance with parliament bylaws, President Mahmoud had usurped the roles of the governor, the Board of Directors and that of the Minister of Finance. Literally, he has become the de facto governor of the CBS. Shadowy figures, who have no roles and responsibilities in the government, let alone in the CBS, but believed to have the tacit support of President Mahmoud were given an unprecedented authority as brokers to pursue the recovery of Somali assets located overseas since the collapse of the Somali state in 1991.

Whilst the former minister of Foreign Affairs in Somalia was the main facilitator in this deceitful endeavor to strip the nation off its valuable assets, the Minister of Finance whose job it is to manage the public finance, together with the entire Somali Parliament whose fiduciary duty it is to account for and protect the nation’s assets were kept in the dark. Whichever way you put it, this is a broad daylight robbery on the nation’s assets. No any other description fits President Mahmoud’s behavior in this terrible saga.

On 15 July 2013, under the direction of President Mahmoud, the Governor of the then Central Bank of Somalia, Abdu Salam H. Omer, signed an exclusive contract described by observers as shoddy deal with Shulman Rogers for the recovery of Somali national assets frozen abroad since the collapse of the last Somali government in 1991. According to the terms of the contract, Shulman Rogers would receive a fixed 5% of the value of funds or assets recovered. An additional 6% of any assets recovered will be retained by the law firm as part of undisclosed bonuses and expenses. This is a massive amount, a blank cheque if you like, that this impoverished country can ill-afford. And this is precisely why Jeremy Shulman, the main partner of the firm, was making all sort of accusations and innuendos against the UN-SEMG and its main coordinator, Mr. Jarat Chopra, in his poorly-attended press conference held on 12th August, 2014.

 

In the same press conference, Jeremy Shulman admitted the recovery of Somali assets in the tune of USD 33 million in which his firm had benefited immensely, without saying this of course in public. According to Jeremy Shulman, Around $12 million US dollars were deposited to a Turkish bank on behalf of the Central Bank of Somalia because there is no facility to hold such money in the bank’s Mogadishu headquarters.  The difference between the recovered money and the amount deposited in the aforementioned bank was unaccounted for, probably gone into the pockets of Shulman Roger, Ganjab, Amalo, and President Mahmoud’s large entourage of brokers. Conservative estimates put the Somali funds and assets frozen abroad in the range of USD 300-350 million, meaning that this US Law firm, Shulman Rogers, has gotten a niche market in a country abandoned by its people and whose leaders have become a ruthless hyenas feasting on its flesh. It seems Somalia has no one to turn for help right now.

Corruption and financial mismanagement was ubiquitous among the Somali top officials over the years. This is not a new phenomenon and will, unfortunately, continue for the foreseeable future. What is new, however, is the level, the scale and the manner such practices were conducted under the current government of Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud whose authority barely reaches beyond the bounds of the embattled capital of Somalia, Mogadishu. The President’s attempt to recover Somali national assets frozen abroad at this time, particularly when the country he runs is divided along antagonistic tribal regions is totally inconceivable and insensitive to say the least. In the absence of solid and transparent government institutions, including a properly regulated central bank, how could the recovered assets be divided among Somalia’s existing and emerging administrative regions such as  Puntland, Somaliland (still part of Somalia) and other autonomous regions? Will the proceeds of this scheme be spent entirely in Mogadishu and its immediate environs? Such a plan should have been at the bottom of the president’s priority list until the country is united again and at it ease with itself. But then again, this shows the mentality of the country’s top leaders and how bereft they are of the current Somali reality on the ground.

Conclusion

It is not the intention of this short piece to cover all the malpractices cited in the UN-SEMG report allegedly committed by the current government of Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud and his partners. It simply draws the reader’s attention to go through the full report of UN-SEMG to enable to understand how this country is going from bad to worse and hopelessly at the mercy of ruthless, uncaring and corrupted officials who are simply sizing up their pockets for a big loot. What is revealed under UN-SEMG report is the tip of an iceberg of the continuing misappropriation and financial malpractices of President Mahmoud’s government. You look no further than the email exchanges and other correspondence between the man entrusted to lead the nation, the incumbent, his confidants by the name of Musa Ganjab and Abdul Aziz Amalo (and God knows how many more behind the scenes), his former foreign minister, Fawzia Haji Adam and  the law firm run by Jeremy Shulman to realize the depth of this massive heist on Somalia’s last remaining national assets stashed in foreign institutions. If the process of recovering Somali assets abroad continue at this pace, by the end of President Mahmoud’s tenure in office in two years’ time, there will be no more national assets abroad to recover. This brazen and fraudulent assault on the Somali assets is not only a resigning matter for President Mahmoud and his government, but it is a crime against Somali people who are yearning for a good governance like their counterparts elsewhere. In a country languishing at the bottom of all measurable benchmarks; divided along vicious tribal lines; dogged by clan-ism and cronyism; corruption and financial malpractices, the question on everyone’s lips is this: who will rightly point the finger of blame to the heisters of Somali assets without being called names?

 

 

Read the full report: Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring group on " PDF Format"

 

Via Mohamed F Yabarag
Email:myabarag@gmail.com

Rahm Warsame
terrorfreesomalia@gmail.com

We welcome the submission of all articles for possible publication on Terror free Somalia .  will only We consider articles sent exclusively. Please email your article today terrorfreesomalia@gmail.com. Opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of 
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EXCLUSIVE: AMISOM command in Kismayo officially taken from KDF

 In an unannounced move by the African Union the AMISOM command in Kismayo has officially been transferred from the Kenyan Defense Forces to Sierra Leonean forces a few weeks ago, as a top Somali government official confirmed to Terror free Somalia.

The government official, who requested that his name not be disclosed, stated that the decision to transfer the AMISOM command in the seaport town of Kismayo from the Kenyan forces to the Sierra Leonean forces came after the Somali government requested so from the African Union, after accusing the Kenyan forces of violating Somalia’s sovereignty.

“The African Union accepted the request by the Somali government to remove the Kenyan forces from the AMISOM command in Kismayo, I can confirm that the command has been handed to Sierra Leonean troops” the government official told Terror Free Somalia. “The Somali government filed a complaint to the AU in regards to the Kenyan forces after involving themselves in several violations, including preventing senior government officials such as ministers and MPs from accessing Kismayo without any right, whilst detaining some of them at the airport for days. The Kenyan forces were also involved in taking sides of certain clans during conflicts in the city, and have further been involved facilitating the illegal trade of charcoal from Kismayo’s seaport, which was banned by the  UN and Somali government” he further stated.

The move by the African Union is believed to have angered leaders in the Jubba interim administration, including Ahmed Mohamed Islam “Madobe”, a former Islamist leader turned KDF ally, who visited the Somali capital several times to meet with government officials and members of the international community to convince them to prevent this decision. However, his efforts were futile as the African Union decided in favor the Somali government’s request.

The Kenyan Defense Forces invaded southern Somalia in late 2011 and moved on to take southern seaport town of Kismayo in 2012 along with a host of other towns, before it joined the AMISOM in that same year. Ever since there has been a friction between Mogadishu and Nairobi on how Kismayo would be administered and by whom, with the Somali government at times openly accusing the Kenyan forces of fulfilling their own agendas alongside illegal activities without the consent of the Somali government.

Japanese Man Captured Reportedly Executed by ISIS in Iraq

Japanese Man Captured Reportedly Executed by ISIS in Iraq

Islamic State of Losers Having Very Bad Week

Islamic State of Losers Having Very Bad Week

My SMS relationship with Al-Shabaab

Al-Shabaab, the militant Islamist group operating in Somalia and Kenya, likes to communicate with journalists by SMS. But receiving their text messages and talking to them on the phone can be an unnerving, and at times surreal, experience.

The other morning I woke up to a text message and missed call from Al-Shabaab.

As always, the message was written in perfect English. It informed me about a film Al-Shabaab has made called Beyond the Shadows. It said the film gave an "accurate portrayal" of what happened when French commandoes last year tried - and failed - to rescue a suspected French intelligence agent held hostage by the group.

A few days later I got another call from Al-Shabaab. The clear, relaxed voice on the other end of the phone told me I was about to receive a text message about the group's role in the killing of a senior police official in Somalia earlier that day.

Sure enough, a few seconds later the text message arrived. Then came a second call to confirm I had indeed received the message.

This is the usual pattern. A call, a text message, then another call to check the message - or the SMS press release, as Al-Shabaab calls it - has arrived.

Scrolling through these messages on my phone, I can chart the history of Al-Shabaab attacks.

Many of the recent ones are in Kenya. One five-part message, written in the style of a news agency report, claims responsibility for an attack on a restaurant in Djibouti popular with foreigners (or, as Al-Shabaab calls them, "Western crusaders").

I have seen Al-Shabaab's violence at close hand.

Lazy Sundays

Earlier this year, I was just a few buildings down from the Jazeera Palace Hotel in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, when it was attacked, first by one suicide car bomber, then another, who waited for the emergency services to arrive before driving his vehicle into them and the hotel to ensure maximum casualties.

The blasts from the exploding cars were huge. Bullets cracked down the street as the security forces tried to beat back Al-Shabaab fighters who had come - in a minibus, I was told - to try and storm the hotel. In the middle of all this, the main target of the attack - a senior security official - came with his entourage to the place where I was. We set up a circle of chairs for them, and they sat there like statues, in stunned, stony silence.

I sometimes find it difficult to relate these acts of extreme and terrifying violence to the calm, measured voice of the Al-Shabaab official on the other end of the phone - to the precise, clinical wording of those text messages.

What started as brief calls about particular attacks have over time developed into longer, wider discussions about the movement's practices and philosophies.

Sometimes there is room for debate. But when I ask about certain subjects - the treatment of spies or adulterers for example - the tone of voice changes. It becomes cold and mechanical, as if the words are learned by rote.

I had the conversation about spies one lazy Sunday morning when I was still in bed.

I got a call from Al-Shabaab, and as I sat in my safe, comfortable bedroom, I heard the voice say: "If you are found guilty of spying, there is only one punishment. You will face the firing squad in a public place. Everybody must witness the killing of a spy. The spy must receive three, four or five bullets to the head."

But perhaps the strangest conversation I had was one sunny day outside the Houses of Parliament in London.

I was due to attend an event there but as I was early, I was sitting in a park outside, in the shade of those grand buildings. My phone rang. I saw the words Al-Shabaab flash on to my screen. What started as an update on the latest attack on the Kenyan coast ended up as a lecture about my faith.

Physical scars

"Have you thought about the afterlife?" asked the official. "You know, Mary, you won't be around in 20, 30, 40 years' time. I seriously recommend you consider converting to Islam," he added. This man seemed genuinely concerned, as he urged me in a gentle voice to take up the Muslim faith.

All the time, images of people I know or have known, who have been caught up in Al-Shabaab attacks, flashed before my eyes.

Some of them are now dead. Others have suffered horrific physical injuries, like a politician I met whose body was ripped apart in an explosion. His black skin is now mottled with raw, angry, bright pink scars. He can't hear anything now because of the damage the blast did to his ears.

Others don't bear any physical scars but jump every time they hear a bang, even if it's just a door. They shudder when they walk past a parked car in Mogadishu, afraid it might explode. Their hearts miss a beat whenever someone they don't know approaches them for fear they might be a suicide bomber.

They, like me, have received texts from Al-Shabaab, only the nature of the messages is very different, as they often contain death threats.

I never quite know when I am going to receive the next message from Al-Shabaab.

I might be on holiday with family, having supper with friends, when all of a sudden, a text message will burst on to my screen, bringing two very different worlds into sharp collision.

-BBC-

Al-Shabaab leader arrested

Somalia’s Information Ministry website published a photos of Hassan Hanafi showing bullet scares of his face. The Ministry says Hassan Hanafi went to Kenya to receive treatment following bullet injuries he sustained after military offensive by Somalia government forces and AMISOM on Buloburte town in central region of Hiran

BBC News reports that police believe the suspect is former journalist Hassan Hanafi, who is accused of killing journalists in Somalia. However, the man has denied under interrogation that he is Hanafi, according to the report. Al-Shabaab has carried out a spate of attacks in Somalia and Kenya, states the report which notes that last September, 67 people were killed when the group's fighters laid siege to the upmarket Westgate shopping centre in Kenya's capital, Nairobi. According to the report, Somalian security sources said Hanafi was arrested in Nairobi following co-operation between the intelligence services in both countries. Hanafi was reportedly receiving medical treatment when police swooped on him, marking a rare cross-border arrest of a terror suspect.
Full BBC News report

PORTRAITS OF MOGADISHU

In 2011, an international peacekeeping force pushed al Shabaab Islamists from Somalia's capital city. The fight continues in the countryside and in Mogadishu. The weakened extremists launch periodic suicide bombs and IED attacks.

For a generation, the lives of young Somalis have been obscured by the violence. Today, the fragile peace in Mogadishu allows youth to imagine a future beyond war.

We asked five people to share their stories.

For more portraits from Mogadishu click here.

Somali army has 400 bogus officers, says commander

                                         Hawiye -Habar-gidir sup-clan- Warlord  bogus Gen Indho ade

The commander of the Somali National Army (SNA), General Dahir Aden Elmi alias Indhaqarshe, has declared that more than 400 officers in the military were wearing fake ranks.

At a press briefing on Friday, Gen Elmi said that his office wants to correct the anomaly within the force.

“All the wrong ranks were attained by unprofessional people during the years of civil war,” stated the commander. He said that the National Army command discovered the anomalies following investigations.

“The conclusion that 400 fake officers were in the army surfaced following surveys undertaken by a committee established for the purpose,” said Gen Elmi.

He added that he will submit the findings to the ministerial cabinet for endorsement.

In addition, Gen Elmi stressed that the army does not have sub-officers with the rank of inspectors.

“We are training recruits to fill the posts of army inspectors at Jazeera Military Training Camp,” he said without giving numbers.

Annihilating militants

When Somalia’s central government led by the late Gen Mohamed Siad Barre, collapsed in 1991, all the state institutions including the army collapsed.

However, when the rebuilding of the armed forces started, many people wore ranks including those of generals they did not professionally attain.

Successive government leaders during the transitional period (2000-2012) dished out ranks to some people who had no appropriate military or police training.

Gen Elmi added that the Somali National Army in close collaboration with the peacekeepers serving with the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) will soon enlarge the operations against Al-Shabaab, the radical Islamist group.

“We (Amisom and SNA) will soon capture all the territories currently controlled by Al-Shabaab,” proclaimed Gen. Elmi.
He added: “We set up a plan designed to finally annihilate the anti-peace elements.”

The general said the planned operation against the Al-Qaeda-linked movement will clear the group from Somalia for good.

Many countries including Somalia’s neighbours Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti as well as the European Union and USA have been helping the Somali government to rebuild its security forces including the army.

PRESIDENT HASSAN AT THE US- AFRICA SUMMIT

Washington D.C. The Somali capital Mogadishu has recently seen an escalation of targeted killing of lawmakers, government officials and civilians.  A total of five lawmakers have been killed this year so far.  President Hassan who has been elected on Sept, 2012 with a mandate of improving security and stability of the country is failing to deliver such objective.

President Hassan who is currently participating in the US- Africa Submit that is underway in Washington from August 4 –6, 2014 has held a press conference on Aug 4, at the Institute of Peace to launch a new initiative for Somalia’s youth “Investing in the next generation: creating the future for Somalia’s youth.” He outlined the need to empower Somalia’s youth by providing education and 

employment as an alternative to attracting radicalism and its aftermath. Although this initiative is long overdue it should however be commanded.

Answering questions from the press on the current security situation in Somalia and that of his own, President Hassan pointed out that Al-Shabab attempted to assassinate him but failed.  He noted the security of the country is improving. President Hassan stated that “my security concerns are not that different than that of any Somali civilian and I feel that I am much safer today than any other time.”

On the issue of the deadly Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa, the president was asked measures and plans to contain the disease considering the contingency of troop rotation from Sierra Leon as part of AMISOM troops, the President responded to the question and said “as a precaution my administration in collaboration with the AU stopped the rotation of the troops from Sierra Leon”.

At the world stage, it was not too long ago when President Hassan was the darling of the west and Somalis. His appointment presented world leaders and the average Somali person with a much needed hope of restoring the country to peace and security, and prosperity.

In the two years he has been at the helm of the nation’s highest office, Mr. Hassan’s Somalia is far from that hope. The security situation is deteriorating; Al-shabab seems to be getting stronger, bolder and deadlier.  Deadly targeted killing are more rampant, corruption and nepotism is at its highest and the future seems grim.

via -WardheerNews

US- Africa Summit

Somali Shebab claim killing of senior police chief

                                          Somalia's Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab  suicide bomber 

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Somalia's Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab said they had carried out a car bombing that killed a senior police chief in the north of the war-torn country Monday, the latest in a string of attacks.

Bari region’s Police commander killed in an AlShabaab attack in Bosaso: R.I. P

Government officials in Mogadishu confirmed the death of Adirahman Abbas, police chief in the Bari region of Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region, on the northern Gulf of Aden coastline."With the blessing of Allah, the mujahedeen have carried out a successful operation targeting senior apostate officials," Shebab spokesman Abdulaziz Abu Musab said in a statement, boasting that three other policemen also died in the blast.

Abbas headed the police in Puntland's key port of Bosaso, the Bari region's main city.

A suicide bomber is reported to have driven a car loaded with explosives at Abbas' car.

Officials confirmed that other police officers died in the blast, without giving an exact number.

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Soldiers stand guard as reporters take photos at the main gate of the presidential palace in Mogadis …

Musab claimed the police chief was "targeted due to his crimes against Muslims... having imprisoned, tortured and killed many, thereby fulfilling the orders of the Crusaders."

Recent Shebab attacks in Somalia have targeted key areas of government and security forces in an apparent bid to discredit claims the insurgents have been weakened.

"God willing, everyone who treads his path will face a similar fate," Musab added.

Most of the recent Shebab attacks have been in the capital Mogadishu, over 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) to the south of Monday's bomb, but the Islamists also have struck from bases in the rugged Golis mountains close by to Bosaso.

The mountain range, straddling the porous border between Puntland and self-declared independent Somaliland, is honeycombed with caves and difficult to access.

The 22,000-strong African Union force fighting the Shebab in southern Somalia say the extremists are on the back foot, having fled fixed positions in Mogadishu three years ago and have since lost most large towns.

But they still hold sway in vast swathes of the rural hinterland from which they regularly launch guerrilla raids, including the Golis mountains.

In Mogadishu, the Shebab have assassinated five lawmakers this year, and have twice launched major assaults on the presidential palace, breaching the walls of the fortified compound.

In May, the Islamist insurgents also launched a similar attack against the national parliament.

The Shebab have also increased attacks against regional countries with troops in the AU force, with a series of killings in neighbouring Kenya, following last September's attack on Nairobi's Westgate mall in which at least 67 people were killed.