On its Facebook page, al-Shabaab’s official media outlet Radio al-Andalus expressed support for Boko Haram’s abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in Nigeria’s Borno state. Mimicking a ceremony al-Shabaab held with Kenyan hostages, Boko Haram claimed in a recent video that over 100 of… Read More ›
On 8 January 2014, al-Shabaab’s al-Andalus radio outlet released a Facebook message to telecoms and communities under its territories stating that mobile and fibre optic Internet access would be banned in 15 days. According to the post, anyone violating this new… Read More ›
In the aftermath of al-Shabaab’s New Year’s Day bombings at the Jazeera Hotel in Mogadishu, Somali officials including Acting Interior Minister Abdikarim Hussein Guled and commander of the Somali police force General Abdikarim Dahir Said showed their support for victims… Read More ›
A car bomb allegedly targeting a convoy of Puntland Maritime Police Forces (PMPF) exploded in a market in Bosaso, often dubbed Puntland’s economic hub. Puntland officials blame al-Shabaab for the attack as many observers await the group to claim responsibility… Read More ›
Ethiopian government spokesperson Getachew Reda hinted that the country’s troops could join AMISOM in Somalia. This comes as the United Nations Security Council is soon expected to vote on a troop increase of 4,000 for the multi-national force currently capped at 17,761… Read More ›
On 28 October 2013, a reported U.S. drone strike near the al-Shabaab stronghold of Jilib in Middle Juba struck a car carrying two of the group’s militants identified as top suicide explosives expert Ibrahim Ali Abdi (aka Anta Anta & Adeer Ali) and Warsame… Read More ›
While most reports have focused on the potential role and corresponding backlash against ethnic Somalis in regard to the Westgate siege, there continues to be a steady current of activity of Sudanese militants among al-Shabaab, al-Qai’da (AQ), and other armed… Read More ›
One of al-Shabaab’s main objectives during and after Westgate was to divide Muslims and non-Muslims and tempt Kenyans into divisiveness. One week after the crisis, Kenyans look to defy falling into this trap. After al-Shabaab’s 4-day siege of the Westgate… Read More ›
With casualty numbers rising, at least 62 people are dead, many missing, and hundreds injured in a brazen al-Shabaab attack at the upscale Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya. According to unconfirmed reports, between 10 to 15 attackers were involved in… Read More ›
Amid violent infighting between forces loyal to al-Shabaab top leader Ahmed Abdi Godane and dissenting leaders, media reports and security analysts were quick to pose Aweys’s negotiated surrender to central Somalia’s Ximan and Xeeb administration as a big victory for… Read More ›
Key Takeaways: [1] Acute divisions among top al-Shabaab figures is less important than the often existential and broader divisions among other armed groups in Somalia. [2] Training/arming Somali forces is less useful unless deeper divisions are better addressed. On the… Read More ›
Since al-Shabaab’s Supreme Court attack on 14 April 2013, the Somali government has been moving forward with efforts to improve security in the capital. Large contingents of Somali soldiers have been training in Uganda, Djibouti, and Somalia by multiple partners—including the United States,… Read More ›
As many as 34 people were killed and almost 60 injured in a set of coordinated attacks by al-Shabaab in Mogadishu involving suicide bombers, gunmen, and two separate car bomb attacks. A car bomb was detonated at the entrance of the Supreme… Read More ›
somalianewsroom.com 