press statement: port of Mogadishu

TO THE ATTENTION OF THE PUBLIC OPINION

September 30, 2014

Turkey, who had started quite intense humanitarian assistance for Somalia in 2011, is still maintaining this mission continuously, and building a strong brotherhood bridge between the Somalian community and Turkish community.

This mobilization, which is being operated via public establishments, private companies and humanitarian aid foundations, is being consolidated with unconditional support for Somalia in the international platforms also. The only reason behind Turkey’s self-devotion, is its idea of contributing to the Muslim Somalian public’s prosperity and Somali state’s consistency.

Turkey’s aid campaign aimed at Somalia had been started by newspapers and TV channels that are connected to the Albayrak Group, and reached a peak with our President Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to Somalia.

Within this frame, Mosques, hospitals, schools, water wells, orphanages and roads are being constructed. Again, within this frame, construction of airports and works in the municipal field are ongoing. The Somalian army is receiving professional army trainings by the Turkish General Staff, and Somalian students are being offered scholarships in Turkey.

Turkey’s aid campaign mobilization aimed at Somalia is being constituted as an example on an international level, and this support is injecting a strong Somali love to Turkey’s public opinion.

Our President Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, government, business world and Turkey’s public opinion is supporting these studies from their hearts, and thus, motivating our corporations and aid organizations. These aids had provided business options to countless Somalians, and caused a serious dynamism in the country’s economy.

Turkey’s interest, love and contribution oriented in Somalia are continuing by increasing exponentially.

Within this frame, the Albayrak Group had taken on an active role in Somalia’s development. Since August 2012, much work has been conducted towards rehabilitating the Port of Mogadishu and is still continues, in order to transform it into a sea port that has international quality, elevating it to a central position in the Somalia and African economy.

Despite the fact that the Port of Mogadishu is the only employment and source of income potential in the country, it had been confirmed that the state could not gain any resource from here. As for the Albayrak Group, they had promised that without any conditions, they would be transferring 55% of the revenue from the Port.

As for the 45% revenue which is left for the Group’s administration; it is reserved for the international promotion directed at increasing machine equipment investments, construction investments, new docks and port-based trade.

The Albayrak Group is in an endeavor towards turning the Port of Mogadishu into a key address in the African economy and international market. In order for every process to be recorded and every operation to be healthy, it’s essential to establish a system, and to conduct the process according to these principles. Our Group had actualized the 1st investment phase with this objective. From now on, the ISPS application will be made by establishing a closed circuit camera system and an environment wall construction that is appropriate to the international security protocols. Besides, a modern port administration building will be constructed, and the psychical conditions will be increased to the highest level for service procurements. The entrance channels of ships, which are entering the port, will be cleaned with underwater surveillance, and in order to increase the capacity, the 2nd phase equipment investments will be made.

After these studies, our Somalian Muslim brothers’ exportation to Turkey, East Africa and content-wide will increase, and this will become prominent as a serious contribution towards increasing the level of prosperity.

While the Albayrak Group is making these investments, some circles within the Somali Parliament, despite the fact that we had explained all the realities to them, for the sake of holding onto the income they had gained just for their selves, are attempting every kind of provocation. They are conducting this via a group, which had been exploiting people for years.

Our group has no commercial expectation from this contract. The Albayrak Group’s objective is to support the Somalian community. The Turkish community’s unrequited aids are also for this. The Albayrak Group will be continuing this support, which they had conducted, without any commercial expectation until this day, without paying any mind to these circles. Though, the attempts of these foreign supported segments being oriented in breaking the motivation of Turkey will be shared with the Somalian public opinion.

Respectfully announced to the Somali public.

THE PORT OF

MOGADISHU

operated by Albayrak

Islamic State, Shabaab leaders added to US terrorism list.

Today, the State Department added a number of jihadist commanders and operatives to the US' list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists. In addition to the four al Qaeda leaders, an Al Nusrah Front commander, the leader of the Junud al Islam, and terrorist groups Jaish al Muhajireen wal Ansar and Harakat Sham al-Islam, State added three Islamic State commanders and a Shabaab leader to its terrorism list. Below are State's summaries of the Shabaab and Islamic State leaders.

As of mid-July 2014, Amru al Absi was selected as ISIL's provincial leader for Homs, Syria, in the Aleppo region. As a principal leader of ISIL in Syria, he has been in charge of kidnappings.

Salim Benghalem is a Syria-based French extremist and ISIL member, who carries out executions on behalf of the group. In 2007, Salim was convicted and sentenced to prison in France for a 2001 murder. Today, Benghalem is the subject of a European arrest warrant because of his activities on behalf of ISIL.

Lavdrim Muhaxheri is a Kosovar Albanian foreign fighter for ISIL who operates in both Syria and Iraq. Muhaxheri made international headlines in July 2014 after uploading to Facebook graphic photos of himself beheading a young man.

Maalim Salman was chosen by now-deceased al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Abdi aw-Mohamed (aka Godane) to be the head of African foreign fighters for al-Shabaab. He has trained foreign nationals who were seeking to join al-Shabaab as foreign fighters, and has been involved in operations in Africa targeting tourists, "entertainment establishments," and churches.

For more information on the other designations released today by State, see LWJ reports, US adds Chechen, Moroccan-led jihadist groups to terrorist list, and US government designations target al Qaeda's international network.

Imperial Good News: A LOT of Mujahideen Dead (bumped)

Imperial Good News: A LOT of Mujahideen Dead (bumped)

Its It a Fast Ship?

Its It a Fast Ship?

The Blessed Release of The FBI Investigation of Samir Khan AKA Inshallahshaheed (Sticky)

The Blessed Release of The FBI Investigation of Samir Khan AKA Inshallahshaheed (Sticky)

Somali PM back in Mogadishu after trip to Europe ,UK, Norway and Turkey ,More details on his recent trip to Europe

Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed on Wednesday returned to the Somali capital, Mogadishu and gave more details about his recent trip to Britain and Norway.

Speaking on his trip to Britain, the prime minister said that he and his delegation including defense minister attended a meeting with the international partners in London to discuss ways to enhance Somalia’s security sector and the national army.

The prime minister said Somalia needs a strong army to defend the country and take over the internal security of the country from the African Union troops when their mandate comes to an end.

He added they have designed new measures to regulate the rebuilding process of the national army.

While speaking on his visit to Norway, the prime minister said he met with senior Norwegian government officials and asked Norwegian government to assist Somalia in holding fair and free elections in 2016.

He also stated to have asked the Norwegian officials to support his government’s efforts to conclude the review process of the constitution, improving the judiciary system and assisting his government in creating job opportunities for the youth to prevent them from joining armed groups in the country.

Somali PM urges Somalis in Norway to rebuild the country

Somali Prime Minister H.E Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed has called on Somali community members in Norway to return home and take part the rebuilding process of the country.


Speaking at a meeting with the Somali community members in Norwegian capital of Oslo, the prime minister urged the community to play their part in helping the government execute its plans and fulfill its promises.


“We are making progress towards free and fair elections which will allow Somali people to choose their leaders,” said the prime minister.


“We organized reconciliation conferences to give Somali people a chance to forgive each other and to establish inclusive federal states in the country in preparation for the 2016 elections.” He added.

Some members of the Somali community in Norway who spoke at the meeting with the prime minister lauded the government for its efforts to restore peace, security and good governance in the country.


Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed and his delegation arrived in Norway days after he met with Somalia’s international partners in London over the rebuilding of the Somali security sector and the national army as the war against al Shabaab militants intensifies.

Remarks at the 2014 Frontiers in Development Forum

Remarks at the 2014 Frontiers in Development Forum

Remarks at the 2014 Frontiers in Development Forum

Remarks at the 2014 Frontiers in Development Forum

The Pirates of Puntland: An al-Shabaab emir by any other name...

The Pirates of Puntland: An al-Shabaab emir by any other name...: Back when I was following al-Shabaab more closely, I found it useful to have a visual representation of the organisation, which took th...

@BrookingsInst Conservative Economists @Somali PM at ChathamHouse . Shaping Somalia’s Post-Transitional Structures

RW Soomaaliya Cabdiweli Sh Axmed oo ka hadlay Chatham House UK 17 09 2014

Somali PM H.E Abdiweli received a warm welcome in Birmingham , From British Somali Community "Last night's events",

2014 Press Releases | United States Virtual Presence Post Somalia

2014 Press Releases | United States Virtual Presence Post Somalia

African Union Forces Destroy al-Shabaab Camps in South Somalia

The African Union intervention force in Somalia said it destroyed two camps of the al-Shabaab militant group near the southern town of Badhadhe.

Kenyan and Ugandan forces carried out the Sept. 12 attack on the village of Lagta Berta, the African Union Mission in Somalia, or Amison, said in an e-mailed statement dated Sept. 13. The militants had fled to the area from their stronghold in Barawe, which is the target of an advance by Ugandan troops, according to Amisom.

“Al-Shabaab suffered heavy losses,” Amisom said, adding that the area was “a hideout for the terrorists.”

U.S. forces killed Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Abdi Godane, 37, in a Sept. 1 raid in southern Somalia, according to the Pentagon. The group is now headed by Ahmed Omar, who’s also known as Abu-Ubeydah. The al-Qaeda-linked militants claimed responsibility for an assault on the Westgate Mall in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, last year, in which at least 67 people died.

Uganda arrests Somali Shabaab bombers

Monday, 15 September 2014

Ugandan police said Sunday that suspected Islamist Shabaab insurgents arrested in weekend raids had planned to carry out bomb attacks, as the U.S. embassy said the immediate threat had been “countered.”

Police raids on Saturday came two weeks after Ugandan troops, fighting in Somalia, reportedly provided intelligence that helped U.S. Special Forces kill the Shabaab’s chief in a devastating air strike.

“Al-Shabaab planned to carry out attacks in Kampala and other towns over the weekend, but police working with sister agencies stopped these attacks and we have recovered the explosives they were to use,” police chief Kale Kayihura told AFP.

“We have arrested a number of suspects and they are being interrogated,” he said, without giving further details on the number arrested or the targets they had planned to attack.

The U.S. embassy on Sunday lifted warnings to its citizens to stay at home, but said people should remain vigilant.

“Based on coordination with Ugandan authorities, and taking into account the heightened security measures the government has put in place, we believe that the immediate threat of an al-Shabaab attack has been effectively countered,” the embassy said in a statement. 

“We remain vigilant to the possibility that some of the attack cell could still be at large.” 

Last Monday the U.S. embassy warned that al-Shabaab insurgents may try to exact revenge for a U.S. air strike that killed the militant group’s commander.

“Stay alert to the ongoing potential for terrorist attacks in Uganda,” it said. 

“We also caution U.S. citizens of the possibility of retaliatory attacks in Uganda by Al-Shabaab in response to the U.S. and Ugandan military actions in Somalia last week which killed Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Godane.”

Uganda’s government said the country - a major contributor to AMISOM, the African Union (AU) force fighting the Shabaab - was “happy” at the death of Godane, and had provided the U.S. with key intelligence on his whereabouts.

Cool new video of Somalia shot only with cameras from drones -Your Beautiful Country Somalia (New Video)

Somali PM heads to London for upcoming conference on Somalia

A delegation led by Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed on Monday left Somali capital Mogadishu to attend an upcoming conference to discuss ways to enhance the capacity of Somalia’s armed forces which is expected to kick off tomorrow in London.

The prime minister who briefed the media in Mogadishu before his departure expressed the importance of the conference for the capacity of Somalia’s armed forces saying he expects significant outcome from the meeting.

International donors will attend the meeting and the prime minister is expected to meet with delegates from international community and the Somali diaspora community in London.

The prime ministers returned from a recent visit to Baidoa town where he attended the opening ceremony of a reconciliation conference for south western communities which currently underway in the city.

He is accompanied by senior government officials including ministers of defense and information.

Germany arrests three Shabaab suspects returning from Kenya

BERLIN, Sept 8 – Three German men were arrested at the weekend when they flew home from Kenya, on suspicion of being members of Somalia’s Shabaab Islamist militant group, officials said Monday.

“Three suspects were arrested at Frankfurt airport” on Saturday, a spokeswoman for the federal prosecutors service told AFP, adding that a press conference was planned for later in the day.

Public broadcaster SWR earlier reported the men had returned to Germany because they no longer wanted to take part in combat for the Shabaab.

The report said there were no indications the three were planning attacks in Germany.

Shabaab, Al-Qaeda’s main affiliate in Africa, controls vast swathes of Somalia’s rural hinterland from which it carries out regular guerrilla attacks against government institutions and international forces based in the capital Mogadishu.

he Shabaab has recently stepped up attacks against countries that contribute to the 22,000-strong, UN-backed African Union force deployed against them in Somalia since 2007.

Neighbouring Kenya has been especially hard hit, most notably with the attack on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping mall last September in which at least 67 people were killed.

Abu Ubaidah Al-Shabaab’s new leader a devout, ruthless hardliner, say sources

Most Wanted fugitive - Kismayo 1995 ,Al-Qaeda Affiliate Shabaab New Emir Ahmad Umar,aka Abu Ubaidah aka Ahmed Diriye

The new leader of Somalia’s al-Qaeda-linked Shabaab rebels is thought to be a devout and ruthless hardliner who was one of the most trusted lieutenants of the group’s late chief, according to experts and analysts.

Al-Shabaab acknowledged in a statement on Saturday that Ahmed Abdi Godane, its previous leader, had been killed in a US air strike on Monday. The Islamist group named Ahmad Umar, also known as Abu Ubaidah, as its new head.

Very little is known about Abu Ubaidah, and a senior al-Shabaab official only described him as having been very close to Godane, a hardliner who had overseen the group’s transformation from local insurgency to major regional guerrilla threat.

"Avenging the death of our scholars and leaders is a binding obligation on our shoulders that we will never relinquish nor forget no matter how long it takes," the al-Shabaab statement said.

"By the permission of Allah, you will surely taste the bitter consequences of your actions," it added, while also renewing a pledge of allegiance to al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden’s successor.

Sources close to al-Shabaab said Abu Ubaidah was thought to have been involved in a major internal purge that took place last year, when Godane eliminated several key rivals including a commander thought to be his likely successor.

Abu Ubaidah is also thought to have had a hand in the last year’s killing of Alabama-born Omar Hammami — better known as Al-Amriki or "the American" — who was one of the most prominent foreigners fighting in Somalia but who fell out with Godane.

According to an intelligence source, Abu Ubaidah is believed to have played a role in the Shabaab’s most shadowy and feared wing, the clandestine internal secret service known as "Amniyat", which Godane set up to maintain discipline and expose rivals and informers.

The source said the new leader is thought to be in his early 40s and from the southern port town of Kismayo, which is currently held by Kenyan troops fighting with the African Union’s Amsiom force. He also once served as the Shebab’s governor in the Bay and Bakool region.

However disinformation cannot be ruled out, another intelligence source said, explaining that the pressure of constant surveillance and drone strikes means the Shebab may even have named a "ghost" or "given a pseudonym" as a deliberate tactic to protect their real hierarchy.

Godane himself took over the leadership of the Shebab in 2008 after then military leader Adan Hashi Ayro was killed by a US missile attack.

EXCLUSIVE REPORT: Who is Amir Mahad Omar aka Ahmed Dirie aka Abu Ubeid: The New Leader of Somalia al-Qaeda affiliate.

Most Wanted fugitive - Kismayo 1995 ,Al-Qaeda Affiliate Shabaab New Emir Ahmad Umar,aka Abu Ubaidah aka Ahmed Diriye

EXCLUSIVE REPORT: Amir Mahad Omar Abdi-Kareem was born in Kellafo, Ogaden region of Ethiopia , his real age remains unknown but as his students from Kismayo told terror free somalia his age is about 46.

Somalia al-Qaeda affiliate Al Shabaab's new emir Ahmad Umar,aka Abu Ubaidah aka Ahmed Diriye was a former close ally and Adviser to Godane,

Somalia's Islamic extremist rebel , Al-Shabaab named a new leader which his real name is Mahad Omar Abdi-Kareem but he uses many different names such as Abu Ubeid which means a father of Ubeid. His son's name is known as Ahmed Dirie by Al-Shabaab .Godane's predecessor is his cousin -they are the sons of two sisters-Godane's mother named  Ibado Warsame while the new leader's mother called Fatumo Warsame,Fatumo is older than Ibado. we confirmed.  The mothers of the two leaders hail from Isaq sub-clan of Garhajis,Habaryoonin,Raaska Reer Sugulle.

The Somali militant selected Mahad Omar Abdi-Kareem at a meeting in Barawe on Saturday as the media confirmed. 

The Shabaab's new emir  , who can be the U.S's next target hails from a Somali clan Dir  sama as Godane but different Sup-tribe. His the sup-tribe of Bajamal , a tribe believed to be same descendant of  Biyamal. 

Emir Mahad Omar Abdi-Kareem was born in Kellafo, Ogaden region of Ethiopia , his real age remains unknown but as his students from Kismayo told terror free somalia  his age is about 46. 

Mahad Omar Abdi-kareem was the Shabaab's "Waali" or  the governor of Bay and Bakool regions of Somalia.

Terror Free Somalia has found the voice of the new Emir which dates back Oct 19, 2013 when he was addressing to an opening ceremony at a hospital in Bay region. An image of his taken at that time shows the Emir with a group of people. Mahad Omar , now Ahmed Omar has been recent months Ahmed Godane's deputy and his special adviser. 

We are the first Independent media that has unmasked the truer name of the Shabaab's new leader and that has received his voice at first hand.Waagacusub media was the first Somali media that has uncovered the truer name of the late Shabaab leader, Ahmed Godane.

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Unfortunate? Update: Al Shabaab Leader Ahmed Abdi Godane Confirmed Dead!

Unfortunate? Update: Al Shabaab Leader Ahmed Abdi Godane Confirmed Dead!

Imperial Good News! Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's Right Hand Man Dead as a Rock

Imperial Good News! Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's Right Hand Man Dead as a Rock

If Shabaab chief Godane is dead, East Africa and the Horn should prepare for the worst

HERE is intense speculation in Somalia and beyond about whether a US drone strike on an Al-Shabaab convoy near the southern Somali coastal town of Barawe on Monday, September 1, killed the Somali militant group’s Emir (supreme leader) Ahmed Abdi Godane.

The Americans are hedging, and Somali intelligence and African Union sources in Mogadishu suggested to Mail & Guardian Africa that Godane survived the attack. However, were it to turn out that the Americans indeed got the Shabaab chief, it would be a big blow for the hardline factions within Al-Shabaab, and, potentially, likely to trigger a power struggle and further fragmentation.

But the jury is out on whether it marks a turning point in the struggle against militant jihadism in Somalia and the Horn, as many hope.

If the recent history of Islamist militancy and jihadism is any guide, the likelihood of a more militant leadership emerging followed by an upsurge in jihadi violence inside Somalia and East Africa should not be discounted.

Deadly mutant

Al-Shabaab’s evolution since 2006 has been one of progressive radicalisation, and every major setback has only served to make it more violent and entrench the power of the hardcore jihadists.

Could Godane’s death, if confirmed, catalyse further radicalisation and lead to the emergence of a more deadly Al-Shabaab mutant?

That is the fear of many, but there is also dim hope that the combination of renewed military pressure and the death of Godane may create the right context for the vast majority of Al-Shabaab’s non-ideological combatants to surrender.

Operation Indian Ocean

An ambitious military campaign by the 22,000-strong AMISOM troops and the Somali National Army code-named “Operation Indian Ocean” has been under way in central and southern Somalia in the last one month.

Sources have told  Mail &Guardian Africa that he new offensive is “qualitatively different and better coordinated”, with US Special Forces providing crucial logistical support as well as aerial surveillance and satellite intelligence to the African troops.

The joint forces are fighting on multiple fronts and a string of significant towns and villages, such as Tayeglow, Buulo Marer, Goolweyn and Jalaqsi have been recovered from Al-Shabaab.

AMISOM and Somali Army sources say a key strategic objective of the new campaign in the southern axis is to retake the coastal town of Barawe, the last remaining major Al-Shabaab bastion in southern Somalia.

The US drone strike on Monday may have been based on “actionable intelligence” that Godane was in the convoy, as US officials say, but from a purely military perspective, it may have also been a fortuitous piece of luck that could give tactical advantage to the AMISOM troops advancing on Barawe.,..more

Theh Ghey: ISIS (ISIL/IS) Perp Dressed As Female Gets PWND

Theh Ghey: ISIS (ISIL/IS) Perp Dressed As Female Gets PWND

Hmmm, US Army Tatoo On ISIS (ISIL/Islamic State) Perp?

Hmmm, US Army Tatoo On ISIS (ISIL/Islamic State) Perp?

ISIS Loses MC (bumped: Video Added) (Update II: Heartbreak! He's Not So Dead Jim!)

ISIS Loses MC (bumped: Video Added) (Update II: Heartbreak! He's Not So Dead Jim!)

Ruthless Leader Aims To Extend Reach Of Al-Shabaab, Eyes The West

(CNN) -- He is merciless toward opponents, secretive to the point of being a recluse and a true believer in the cause of global jihad.

And from his hideout somewhere in southern Somalia, Mukhtar Abu Zubayr, the emir of Al-Shabaab, has planned numerous terror attacks, including the deadliest in Kenya since the U.S. Embassy bombing in 1998.

Zubayr, who is also known as Ahmed Abdi Godane, already has a price on his head. In 2012, the U.S. State Department authorized a reward of up to $7 million for information on his whereabouts. But he has 15 years on his terror resume, and according to information provided by a well-placed source in Mogadishu who has extensive knowledge of Al-Shabaab, he "is ruthlessly eliminating real and imagined rivals" within the group.

U.S. manned and unmanned aircraft set out on Monday to end his campaign of terror, though the fate of Zubayr or a deputy, Abu Abdalla, was still unclear a day later.

Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said the attack was directed at the Al-Shabaab leader and that "we certainly believe that we hit what we were aiming at."

But he didn't say who, if anyone, died in the attack.

Zubayr's vision has been to transform Al-Shabaab from an insurgent outfit focused on Somalia into a terrorist group capable of devastating attacks beyond Somalia. He has already directed at least two: suicide bombings against bars in Kampala, Uganda, in 2010, and last year's Westgate mall siege in Nairobi, Kenya. After the Uganda attacks, which killed more than 70 people, Zubayr warned: "What happened in Kampala was just the beginning."

One key suspect in the Kampala attacks, known as Jabir, allegedly was an explosives instructor and answered directly to Zubayr. Jabir is known to have visited Uganda at least four times before the July 2010 attack.

The source in Mogadishu told CNN last year: "Zubayr is creating Al-Shabaab 2.0."

For Zubayr, the struggle has always been a global confrontation with "disbelievers" rather than just about Somalia. He also vowed that his group would launch a direct attack against the United States.

Zubayr is 37, according to most accounts, and originally from Somaliland, now a vaguely autonomous part of northern Somalia. He is slim to the point of wispy, as shown in the few photographs of him, and prefers recording audio messages to appearing in public.

As a teenager, he studied at a Pakistani madrasa, thanks to a grant from a wealthy Saudi, and he returned home with militant beliefs. He was thought to have been involved in the abduction and killings of foreign aid workers in Somaliland, including the death of Italian aid worker Annalena Tonelli in 2003.

Among his close associates in Al-Shabaab's early days was Aden Ayrow, a towering force in the group and a ruthless and mercurial pro-al Qaeda hard-liner. After Ayrow's death in May 2008 in a U.S. strike, Zubayr asserted his leadership of Al-Shabaab and immediately pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden. According to a U.S. diplomatic cable published by WikiLeaks in 2009, he once refused to discuss a military offensive against government forces in Mogadishu with Al-Shabaab's allies until one of them apologized for remarks he had made critical of bin Laden.

But bin Laden was wary of an al Qaeda merger with Al-Shabaab. About a year before his death, he wrote to Zubayr that enemies would "escalate their anger and mobilize against you. This is what happened to the brothers in Iraq or Algeria."

Bin Laden's deputy at that time, Ayman al-Zawahiri, took a different view. A letter dated December 2010, which was recovered from bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and was thought by researchers to have been written by al-Zawahiri, was critical of bin Laden's decision to rebuff entreaties by the Somali militant group.

"I see it to be very essential for al Qaeda to confirm and declare its linkage with its branches. ... Please reconsider your opinion not to declare the accession of the brothers of Somalia," the author wrote.

In February 2012, Zubayr formally declared Al-Shabaab an affiliate of al Qaeda with a long message to al-Zawahiri in which he said: "We will go with you as loyal soldiers until doom and injustice disappear from Islam."

Zubayr has always rejected any negotiations with Somalia's transitional federal government. According to another U.S. diplomatic cable unearthed by WikiLeaks, Zubayr rejected an initiative in 2009 by Libya's Moammar Gadhafi to mediate in Somalia, telling him that once a true Islamic government was established in Somalia, he would move on to other countries, including Libya.

He opposes elections, saying, "The reality is that democracy is something Allah made unlawful, and someone else cannot make it lawful."

As Al-Shabaab came under greater pressure from the African Union force stationed in Mogadishu, Zubayr turned to suicide bombings against civilians. In December 2009, an Al-Shabaab bomber killed 23 people at a university graduation ceremony in Mogadishu.

Some factions inside Al-Shabaab disowned the attack, but Zubayr was unmoved. As a northerner, unlike other Al-Shabaab commanders, he did not belong to a clan in the areas controlled by the group and was therefore less concerned about civilian casualties. According to a confidential U.N. assessment, Zubayr demanded more suicide attacks to supplement conventional fighting.

At least two such suicide attacks have come this year: a May attack on a restaurant popular with foreigners in the city of Djibouti and failed attacks on a presidential compound in Mogadishu.

Zubayr's rejection of negotiations, poor management of military campaigns and the clan system soon led to dissent in Al-Shabaab. According to diplomatic cables in 2009, Zubayr wanted to declare an Islamic caliphate in areas controlled by Al-Shabaab, which included much of central and southern Somalia.

Others in Al-Shabaab's leadership disagreed, saying the group had to gain greater public support before such a move. But fearful of assassination, they kept their counsel. The imposition of brutal Taliban-like law eventually alienated large sections of the population in southern and central Somalia.

One prominent Al-Shabaab member, the American Omar Hammami, said in a video in 2012 that other elements in the group were trying to kill him. He followed up with a series of tweets attacking Zubayr.

"Abu Zubayr has gone mad. He's starting a civil war," he tweeted.

Zubayr responded by ordering the killing of Hammami, who was wounded by a gunshot in April 2013. His intelligence wing caught up with Hammami months later and killed him, just days after he told the Voice of America that Zubayr had "turned Al-Shabaab into an organization that oppresses Muslims in an effort to win control of Somalia."

Even longtime supporters and friends, such as Ibrahim al Afghani, turned against Zubayr, and paid with their lives. Al Afghani was killed in a shootout in June 2013 in the southern town of Barowe.

The Mogadishu source told CNN that prominent figures in Al-Shabaab -- including Sheikh Mukhtar Robow and Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys -- now fear for their lives. Zubayr's purge accelerated during the summer of 2013, leading Aweys to negotiate his surrender to authorities, apparently for his own protection.

After a Kenyan-led military operation pushed Al-Shabaab out of population centers in 2011, pro-al Qaeda hawks within the group gained the upper hand. The loss of the port city of Kismayo, the source of much of Al-Shabaab's income, weakened arguments that the group had too much to lose by embracing al Qaeda's global jihad.

One reason Zubayr has emerged triumphant in these internal battles is that he controls Al-Shabaab's intelligence wing, known as Amniyat, a ruthless entity organized in cells and commanded by Mahad Mohamed Ali, also known as "Karate."

Counterterrorism analysts say that as other units in the group have been weakened, Zubayr has come to rely heavily on Amniyat, which he sees as the kernel for Al-Shabaab's transformation into a regional al Qaeda affiliate.

Zubayr's reliance on force in an organization that has long worked as a loose collective has made him a legion of enemies inside Somalia, and even led to criticism on some jihadist forums sympathetic to al Qaeda.

After the Westgate attack, Kenyan and Western intelligence agencies stepped up efforts to end Zubayr's reign of terror, but it remains unclear if this week's airstrike against him succeeded.

CNN's Eliott C. McLaughlin contributed to this report.

The-CNN-Wire

Fate of Godane unknown as US assesses airstrikes in Lower Shabelle

US forces have carried out airstrikes against al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Abdi Godane, with casualties reported but uncertainty hanging over the fate of the main target, Somali officials said Tuesday (September 2nd).

The Pentagon confirmed the US military carried out an "operation" on Monday against al-Shabaab, and that it was "assessing the results".

"The Americans carried out a major airstrike targeting a gathering by senior al-Shabaab officials, including their leader Abu Zubayr," Lower Shabelle Governer Abdukadir Mohamed Nur said according to AFP.

Godane is also known by the name Abu Mukhtar al-Zubayr, and he is listed by the US State Department as one of the world's eight top terror fugitives, with a $7 million bounty on his head.

Godane has been the target of a number of airstrikes in the past year, including two near-death misses at the hands of the Kenyan and US militaries in January.

Al-Shabaab tight-lipped on fate of leader

In past strikes, whether by sheer luck or tip-offs, Godane reportedly left the target zones just moments before the attacks ensued. This time, he may not have been so fortuitous, although US and Somali officials, as well as al-Shabaab, are remaining tight-lipped on the outcome of the operation for now.

An al-Shabaab official who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity dismissed claims of his death as "rumours".

However, al-Shabaab spokesman Abu Mohammed told the Associated Press that Godane was travelling in one of the two vehicles hit by the airstrike on Monday, but it was unclear whether he was among the six militants reportedly killed.

"We are assessing the results of the operation and will provide additional information as and when appropriate," Pentagon Press Secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said in a statement.

The airstrike comes days after the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and Somali government forces launched "Operation Indian Ocean", a major offensive aimed at seizing key ports from al-Shabaab and cutting off one of their key sources of revenue -- multi-million dollar exports of charcoal.

Al-Shabaab fighters have largely fled in advance of the allied forces, and the Lower Shabelle governor said the airstrike targeted al-Shabaab commanders as they gathered to discuss the operation.

"They were meeting to discuss about the current offensive in the region," Nur said. "There were casualties inflicted on the militants, but we do not have details so far."

Nur said the strike hit an al-Shabaab hideout used as a training camp for suicide bombers in remote villages of Lower Shabelle region, south of the capital Mogadishu.

The airstrike comes a day after al-Shabaab detonated a car bomb outside the National Intelligence Centre in Mogadishu, followed by a gun battle with Somali security forces that left at least seven militants and five others dead.

On Saturday AMISOM announced it launched a renewed offensive against al-Shabaab, saying it had captured the town of Bulomarer, 160 kilometres southwest of Mogadishu. Bulomarer was the scene of an attempted raid by French commandos in January 2013 to free an intelligence agent being held hostage.

AMISOM and Somali government troops were also seen heading towards Barawe, the last major port held by al-Shabaab on Somalia's Indian Ocean coast.

US special forces in October 2013 launched an attack on a house in Barawe targeting a top al-Shabaab commander Abdulkadir Mohamed Abdulkadir, a Kenyan of Somali origin who goes by the alias Ikrima, but were fought off with several US Navy SEALs believed to have been wounded.

Godane's rise to power

Godane, 37, who reportedly trained in Afghanistan with the Taliban, took over the leadership of al-Shabaab in 2008 after then chief Aden Hashi Farah Ayro was killed by a US missile strike.

Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri has recognised Godane as the head of the "mujahedeen" in East Africa, although letters released after Osama bin Laden's death show he had lower regard for Godane's abilities.

Godane's leadership has come under fire by his own men in recent years, creating a deep rift between various factions of al-Shabaab, which Godane has dealt with by reportedly ordering the execution of dissenters.

After killing at least two top commanders last year, Godane used al-Shabaab's clandestine internal secret service known as "Amniyat" to further tighten control on the militant group's members.

Nonetheless, under Godane's leadership, al-Shabaab gunmen have carried out a number of high profile attacks, both at home in Somalia as well as in Djibouti, Kenya and Uganda -- all nations contributing troops to AMISOM.

Inside Somalia, suicide commandos have staged brazen attacks in the heart of government, including at the presidential palace known as Villa Somalia, parliament, a United Nations base, Mogadishu's main court complex and, on Sunday (August 31st), the intelligence headquarters.

Godane also claimed responsibility for July 2010 bombings in the Ugandan capital Kampala that killed 74 people, and also reportedly oversaw the September 2013 massacre in Nairobi's Westgate mall, a four-day siege in which at least 67 people were killed.

Security experts say Godane acts as both a spiritual "emir" and tactical head of al-Shabaab forces, underscoring why he is a priority target of drone and airstrikes.

Ahmed Abdi Godane: Al-Shabab's Somali leader

A reclusive figure with a love of poetry, Ahmed Abdi Godane became a feared jihadist, running assassination and bomb squads in Somalia.

He rose to the helm of the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group in 2008 after a US air strike killed his predecessor Aden Hashi Ayro in a remote village in southern Somalia.

Mr Godane's ascent to power surprised some observers as he came from the breakaway northern region of Somaliland.

"His rise to power within al-Shabab is unparalleled and in many ways counterintuitive in the history of Somalia's political and military formations," Rashid Abdi, an East Africa analyst who specialises on al-Shabab, told the BBC.

"How did someone with no clan constituency in southern Somalia accumulate such powers and manage to command such following in a tribal country where clan loyalties and affiliation trump everything else?",,more

Potential Implications of U.S. killing al Shabaab’s Leader In Somalia - Ahmed Godane

Yesterday, after a long pause in overt counterterrorism in Somalia, the U.S. launched a drone strike near Barawe aimed at a convoy. Separate reports indicate four missiles killed up to six militants; one of whom may be al Shabaab’s notorious leader, Ahmed Abdi Godane (aka Mukhtar abu Zubayr).

As al Shabaab’s emir, Godane officially merged the terror group with al Qaeda, swearing allegiance to Osama Bin Laden’s successor, Ayman al-Zawahiri.  Since this merger though, al Shabaab’s trajectory under Godane’s leadership has been in decline with the group fracturing and shrinking over the past two years.  Despite his corrosive leadership, Godane maintained his grip on al Shabaab, continued to execute devastating terrorist attacks against a fragile Somali government and has successfully spread jihadist inspiration and terror attacks to nearby Kenya highlighted by last year’s spectacular attack on Nairobi’s Westgate Mall.  If Godane was killed by the U.S. drone strike (still an ‘if’), his death would likely have a significant impact on Somalia, the Horn of Africa and ‘Old Guard’ al Qaeda’s remaining adherents in the Horn of Africa. 

Potential Impacts of Godane’s Death on Somalia 

Godane, even by al Qaeda’s standards, demonstrated extreme levels of ruthless killing and excessive violence, alienating allied clan leaders and the local populace.  By some accounts, Godane forced the merger with al Qaeda to assert his dominance over what has always been a fractious al Shabaab.  Since February 2012, Shabaab has fractured and been pushed into the hinterlands of South Central Somalia.  Hassan Dahir Aweys, a stalwart of Islamism in Somalia, and Sheikh Mukhtar Robow, a Godane competitor for al Shabaab’s crown, both broke ranks with Godane over his excessive violence and passion for al Qaeda’s global agenda over the more important local objectives of the clannish al Shabaab.  Since breaking ranks, Robow’s militias have engaged in open combat with Godane’s al Shabaab. 

Even more revealing of Godane’s character has been his murderous repression of dissenters.  Under Godane, Shabaab took a preference for local Somali fighters vis-à-vis foreign fighters -- namely, Omar Hammami an American recruit from Alabama.  But then Hammami vocally broke ranks with Shabaab. The Hammami episode revealed intense dissension in the ranks eroding Godane’s support and Shabaab’s foreign fighter flow.  The Godane-Hammami debate led to Shabaab pursuing a year and half long manhunt ending in the murder of Hammami at the hands of Godane’s henchmen.  Godane’s ruthless side was further revealed by his murder of his own long-time aide and friend Ibrahim al-Afghani, a well-respected veteran and founding member of Shabaab,

Shabaab’s fractures and Godane’s elimination of dissenters created a Shabaab governance structure built on fear.  Godane ruled with an iron fist, and thus his death will/would have a significant impact on al Shabaab and the insurgency plaguing the country’s fragile new government.  I suspect, if Godane were killed, to see a case study in Somalia of how leadership decapitation as a counterterrorism tactic can have a major impact.  Somalia in general, and Shabaab in particular, presents a situation where clan leaders have an outsized sway in the direction of their group; leaders trump ideology. 

Here are several considerations if we find out that Godane was killed in Somalia yesterday:

• When feared leaders die, fractures happen quickly and dynamically – Godane kept a close eye on his enemies and a closer eye on his subordinates through a dominating internal intelligence arm.  I suspect many of Godane’s lieutenants already had plans of their own should Godane die or they remove him via a coup.  My estimate would be the most hard core of Godane’s adherents will break off and form a particularly violent element of al Shabaab.  I’d also estimate that there will be a separate less committed faction of Shabaab that will break away and look to defect, setting up deals with the Somalia government – a positive sign.  Whatever happens, I would estimate major changes in the next month in terms of Shabaab loyalties with fractures emerging across clan and sub-clan lines. 
• Robow comes out stronger amongst Somalia’s jihadists– If Godane is out of the picture, I suspect Robow will be strengthened and can consolidate some of his power in Bay and Bakool provinces of Somalia.  The larger question is whether Robow might look to settle with the Somali government.  Always more of a local jihadist leader rather than a globalist, Robow might be content to rule his own turf in Somalia’s interior if the Somali government and allied forces grant him a settlement – a tricky task seeing as how the U.S. has designated Robow a “Foreign Terrorist”.
• An opportunity for the new Somali government – While we might expect some immediate retaliatory attacks by Shabaab loyalists on Somali government targets and international groups, I suspect Godane’s death might present an opportunity to create more truces with local clans ostensibly forced into Shabaab allegiance under Godane. 

Potential Impacts of Godane’s Death on the Horn of Africa  

If Godane were killed, I imagine there would be several regional implications as well:

• Will jihadist affiliates in Kenya and Tanzania crumble or break out? – As Shabaab grew weaker in Somalia, Godane was surprisingly successful at spreading his influence to disenfranchised Muslim populations along Kenya’s coast, amongst Nairobi’s Somali slums and into northern Tanzania.  In one sense, Godane’s death might bring the fragmentation and dissolving of emerging jihadist elements in the Horn of Africa like al-Hijra.  Or conversely, maybe these young and now disconnected jihadist groups will be freed of Godane’s control to pursue disorganized but more frequent violence.  In either case, I expect Godane’s death will impact jihadist extremism through the Horn of Africa. 
• Experienced and dangerous foreign fighters on the loose – With Godane dead, al Shahaab’s deadly external operations forces might be looking to either retaliate, relocate or both.  As seen by the successful and well-planned attack on the Westgate Mall last year and Harun Fazul’s interrupted plans to conduct an al Qaeda attack on a hotel in London, Shabaab has a proven capability to attack outside Somalia and hit Westerners.  Key Shabaab foreign fighters like Ikrima, Karate and the under discussed but important American Jehad Mostafa have a proven track record for delivering attacks and detecting their next moves will be crucial.  I suspect they will either wreak havoc by accelerating operations they already have in motion, or will rapidly move to a new battlefield and affiliate if they believe their Somalia safe haven is compromised. The closest option for their refuge would be al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula in Yemen, for whom Shabaab has a proven relationship, or if they seek a more relevant home they could try to infiltrate into Syria’s jihadist enclaves.  In all circumstances, keeping tabs on Shabaab’s Western foreign fighters will be crucial.

Potential Impacts of Godane’s Death on the al Qaeda versus ISIS battle 

Will Godane’s death be a seminal moment in the ‘Old Guard’ al Qaeda versus ISIS battle?

Finally, and probably most interesting, Godane represents one of the few remaining outspoken loyalists to Zawahiri and ‘Old Guard’ al Qaeda.  But, young jihadists are clearly more excited about ISIS and there have been recent reports of Somalis showing up to pursue jihad in Syria.  If Godane is dead, will Shabaab’s new leader swear allegiance to Zawahiri and ‘Old Guard’ al Qaeda, to abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and ISIS, or will he pursue an independent track for Shabaab in Somalia independent of today’s jihadi politics? 

Again, these implications will only matter if it turns out that Godane is in fact dead.  Godane may have survived this latest drone strike; it's quite possible given there are hardly any pictures of this secretive leader - he’s the terrorist equivalent of the ‘Dread Pirate Roberts’ from the movie The Princess Bride.  However, these considerations might be informative for Godane’s future death if he turns out to be alive. Godane’s death now or in the near future is likely considering he lives in Somalia and has many enemies, both foreign and domestic.   by Clint Watts