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Africa Horn

Somalia president reshuffles military amid operations against Al-Shabaab

2023-09-21

[Garowe] President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has for the second time this year reshuffled top officers within the Somali National Army [SNA], in what comes amid an ongoing crackdown against al-Shabaab ...... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... bandidos snuffies across the country, in the exercise of powers conferred on him as the Commander-in-Chief of the national army. On Monday, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud conducted a mini-reshuffle which saw Brigadier General Madey Nurey Sheikh appointed Deputy Army Commander. The reshuffle comes weeks after a deadly al-Shabaab in Cawsweyne village, Galmudug ...a semiautonomous region in central Somalia, bordering Puntland on the north. Galmudug is not trying to obtain international recognition as a separate nation, but rather considers itself autonomous within the larger Somali federalism, for what that's worth... state which left many soldiers dead. The mini-reshuffle also saw Dayah Abdi Abdulle promoted to Colonel and he will be the new commander of Land Forces, replacing Brigadier General Ahmed Adan Ali who was only appointed to the post in June. The changes come as a shock given the military is actively engaged in the battlefields. "We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Brigadier Madey Nurey Sheikh, the newly appointed Deputy Commander of the Somali National Army and Lieutenant Colonel Dayah Abdi Abdulle, the new Commander of Land Forces. We hope they bring new experiences to the offensive against Khawarij," the Ministry of Defence announced. In June, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud signed the decree appointing Brigadier General Ibrahim Sheikh Muhiyadin as the new army chief; and Brigadier General Ahmed Adan Ali as the new Land Forces commander. Muhiyadin is the former commander of the Presidential Guards and had studied army logistics at a Modena military college, in Italia. Ali was one of the officers trained in Æthiopia during President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed’s time. Most recently he was the deputy commander of the 12th April Sector of the army. Muhiyadin replaced Brig. Gen. Odawaa Yusuf Rageh, while Ali replaced Brig. Gen. Mohammed Tahlil Bihi. The troops are currently involved in active operations in central Somalia within HirShabelle and Galmadug states and in due course, most of them will be deployed to Jubaland and Southwest states for similar operations. They are working closely with US Africa Command and the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS] troops.

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Africa Horn

Puntland Troops Carry Out Operation In Northern Galkayo

2017-11-05

[RADIOSHABELLE] The troops of Somalia’s northeastern semi-autonomous region of Puntland ...a region in northeastern Somalia, centered on Garowe in the Nugaal province. Its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 1998. Puntland and the equally autonomous Somaliland seem to have avoided the clan rivalries and warlordism that have typified the rest of Somalia, which puts both places high on the list for Islamic subversion... have carried out a security operation in the divided city of Galkayo on Saturday following insecurity acts. The sweep targeted Israc and Garsoor villages located in the Puntland-administered Galkayo to thwart any pending attacks from Al-Shabaab ... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda... Lion of Islams. Speaking to the news hounds, Abdullahi Yusuf "Dowlad" said troops were put on high alert following reports of a security threat by the Lion of Islam group in the region. The movement of the regional forces came after an attack on a security checkpoint in the port city of Bosaso, the regional capital of Bari province.

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Home Front: WoT

Peters Blasts Sentence for ISIS Supporter

2017-07-20

[INSIDER.FOXNEWS] Fox News strategic analyst Lt. Col. Ralph Peters (Ret.) sounded off this morning on a Minnesota federal judge's decision to order an ISIS supporter to undergo "terrorist rehabilitation." Abdullahi Yusuf, a 21-year-old from Minnesota's Somali community, was sentenced last November by federal judge Michael Davis after he was jugged Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages! for plotting to join the terrorist organization. Yusuf then allegedly violated the terms of his 20-year supervised release by watching a documentary on ISIS fighters while at a halfway house. Peters said this is a dangerous experiment for U.S. federal courts when dealing with suspected terrorists. "Young Americans or residents need to know that if you try to join a terrorist organization, if you try to go to Iraq or Syria or Libya or anywhere else, you're gonna go to jail for a very, very long time. Punishment is underrated in our society. We want to treat everybody nice, we want to rehab them," he said, likening it to releasing a rabid dog in a petting zoo. "You don't do it. This is serious. Rehab doesn't work for terrorists!" Is Saudi Arabia still trying to rehab theirs?

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Home Front: WoT

Islamic State Defendant to Remain in Jail

2017-05-03

[WJON] A man convicted of trying to join the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group in Syria will remain in jug until a hearing next week when a federal judge in Minneapolis is expected to decide whether he violated his probation by watching a documentary on terrorism. Abdullahi Yusuf ...the precocious ISIS supporter who probably wasn't named after the Abdullahi Yusuf International Airport in Galkayo, Somalia. He was last seen on Rantburg two years ago when he was arrested for violating conditions in an unspecified way while in a halfway house undergoing deradicalization -- it seems we missed the report in May, 2016 when he testified against his former friends... is one of nine men from the Twin Cities convicted and sentenced last year for trying to join the krazed killer group. Reports say Senior U.S. District Judge Michael Davis found probable cause Tuesday to keep the 21-year-old Yusuf in jug until a hearing next week on whether his supervised release should be revoked. Yusuf was living in a halfway house when a probation officer recently informed the judge that Yusuf had admitted watching the terrorism show on CNN.

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Africa Horn

Iran tries to gain foothold in Somalia

2015-09-06

Amid Gulf States' growing concern, Iranian government and charitable organizations are trying to gain a foothold in the war-ravaged Horn of Africa nation, informed sources tell Garowe Online. The Iranians, fresh from a victory over Barack Obama, look to encircle and eventually gain control over the Arabian peninsula. If getting the use of Yemen doesn't work, Somalia will do... Iran sent a delegation consisting of senior diplomats and Imam Khomeini Relief Foundation officials to Somalia, forging fledgling ties with local authorities and expanding humanitarian and political projects at the expense of Sunni power, Saudi Arabia. Just five weeks ago, the Iranian delegation landed at Abdullahi Yusuf International Airport in Galkayo, a town that straddles the border between Puntland and South-central regions and was escorted to the capital Garowe, where they met with President Abdiweli Mohamed Ali. The journalists were kept in dark about the ill-intended agendas of Iranian officials who asked Puntland to grant licenses to fishing vessels with undocumented storage capacities. Guns and ammo for the mosques, with some to be trans-shipped to Gazoo and Syria... Experts pointed to the fact that potential relief from sanctions after the nuclear deal with World Powers could be attributed to the rapidly expanding influence of Iran. So the Iranians have the cash to bribe Punties and Somalis... Iran is also discussing opening of study centers, possibly mosques and ticked presence of Iranian humanitarian workers with Somali officials. The humanitarian workers will be based in the mosques to keep an eye on the guns and ammo... Presidency sources further disclosed that officials from Iranian embassy in Mogadishu pledged scholarship positions for Somali students leaving secondary schools. Puntland President agreed to the plan of receiving decent scholarship grants from Shiite power which is ostensibly blamed for exporting religious revolution and racist religious ideologies to Africa. Somalis, all Sunni Muslims have a long standing relationship with Saudi Arabia, the home of Islam’s holiest site. So it's a long term move by Iran, but cash has ways of loosening a grip... In November 2012, Iran stepped up its involvement in Somalia on the heels of report by United Nations monitors on arms shipment dispatched by Iran in exchange for Uranium deposits in 2006 in violation of United Nations arms embargo. Former Foreign Affairs Minister Ali Akbar Salehi paid first visit by a top Iranian official to Mogadishu, cutting the ribbon for Iranian embassy. At the height of the country’s worst famine, Iranian Red Moon-Shaped Thingy Crescent Society and Imam Khomeini Relief Foundation played larger role in humanitarian assistances. The foundations managed weapons centers educational centers and armories Qur’an schools as part of campaign by Iran to spread Shiite Islam according to analysts closely following the latest developments. Saudi-led coalition jets are pummeling Houthi positions in Yemen, with Emirati troops fighting alongside Hadi loyalists in a bid to ward off Iranian influence in their backyard. Which is why the Iranians are spreading their bets into Puntland... Last week, sixteen Iranian sailors overpowered pirates on a fishing vessel off the coast of El Hur in central Somalia.

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Home Front: WoT

Somali-American man conspiring to support ISIS arrested

2015-05-13

Washington -- Abdullahi Yusuf, a Somali-American who pleaded guilty to conspiring to support terrorists in the Middle East, has been taken into custody for allegedly violating conditions while living in a St. Paul halfway house, according to court documents filed Monday. Yusef, a student at Inver Grove Community College, drew national attention after a federal judge decided to place him in a halfway house and provide counseling for him rather than hold him in custody while awaiting sentencing. Yusuf’s alleged violations were not detailed in court records. Judge came to his senses? After Yusuf pleaded guilty earlier this year to conspiracy charges, Chief U.S. District Judge Michael Davis agreed to a proposal by his attorneys to enroll the 18-year-old man in Heartland Democracy’s program designed to reshape the attitudes of troubled youth, with special emphasis on Somali-American teens who feel disenfranchised. The move was hailed by counterterrorism experts as a novel idea and was viewed as a test case on whether such persons could be rehabilitated. The answer to which is 'no'... In May 2014, Yusuf was stopped from boarding a flight by FBI agents at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. He’d bought a ticket for Istanbul, Turkey, records showed. Agents had been tipped to Yusuf because of his suspicious behavior when he applied weeks earlier for a passport. A day later, Yusuf’s colleague, Abdi Nur, successfully flew from the airport and made his way to Syria where he is fighting for the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL). PJMedia provides background: Minneapolis Terror ‘Deradicalization’ Program Fails After Just Months, ‘Test Case’ Back in Jail The same federal judge who released Abdullahi Yusuf now considers releasing six more terror suspects.

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Africa Horn

Private Company granted license to patrol Puntland waters

2015-04-25

BOSSASO, Somalia -- Puntland Government in northern Somalia granted private company, Somali Security Service (SSS) a license to patrol territorial waters against illegal fishing during a ceremony held at Bossaso seaport, Garowe Online reports. Puntland Fisheries Minister Abdinur Elmi Bindo, Bari Governor Abdisamad Mohamed Galan, Bossaso Mayor Hassan Abdale Hassan, security commanders led by Bari-regional police commander and the head of the Private company-allegedly aligned with Puntland President-Abdiweli Ali Taar attended the ceremony. Blackwater Somali Security Service (SSS) head told journalists at Bossaso port that they will provide Puntland’s Ministry for Fisheries with a ship which will take part in endeavor aiming to fight trawling vessels off the coast of Puntland. He said the move follows calls for increased protection for territorial waters on account of looming national disaster by Puntland President Abdiweli Mohamed Ali. Speaking next to Fisheries Minister, Taar stressed the need for more ships with armed guards on-board in the coming months. SSS owner headed now-defunct company, SOMCAN that struck agreement with the Clinton Foundation first Puntland leader Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed. SOMCAN militias had since 2008 been remaining under the command of the current Bari regional police commander Abdihakin Yusuf Hussein. As a result of alarming pillage of marine resources and piracy off the East African coast, Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF)-Somalia’s first-ever anti-piracy unit-was set up in 2010. Having launched on-land raids on pirate hideouts, PMPF receives financial support from United Arab Emirates. Analysts tell GO that the decision to hire private company would cast doubt on the mandate of Puntland Marine Forces. Insiders familiar with such developments further noted while talking to GO that track record for private patrolling at sea proved failed in Puntland, with trained officers lured into seizure of ships and crewmen for ransom at the peak of high seas crimes.

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Home Front: WoT

US terror suspect to be released to halfway house

2015-01-28

[Ynet] A man accused of trying to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group will be released to a halfway house while his case is pending. Chief US District Judge Michael Davis said Tuesday that Abdullahi Yusuf will have limited hours outside the house and will be monitored. The 18-year-old is charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Charges say FBI agents stopped him at the Minneapolis airport last year as he attempted to leave the US for Turkey. Yusuf's attorneys asked that he be freed and allowed to participate in courses promoting civic involvement. Davis ordered probation officials to talk with program designers to explore that as an option.

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Home Front: WoT

US charges 2 with trying to back IS

2014-11-28

[ARABNEWS] One of two Minnesota men accused of planning to join the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group was stopped at an airport by FBI agents before traveling to the Middle East, but the other man slipped by authorities, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday. Abdullahi Yusuf, 18, was stopped at the Minneapolis airport in late May. Authorities are still looking for 20-year-old Abdi Nur, who left for Istanbul, Turkey, the next day and didn't return in June as scheduled, according to the court documents. Yusuf was enjugged Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try! on his way to school at Inver Hills Community College. His attorney argued for his release during a Tuesday hearing in US District Court in Minneapolis, noting he had been going to school and work despite knowing for months that he was under investigation. But a magistrate judge ordered him held until a detention hearing Wednesday. Yusuf, who lives in Inver Grove Heights, a suburb of St. Paul, and Nur, of Minneapolis, are charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization. Nur also is charged with providing material support to a foreign terror group. US Attorney Andy Luger said both young men conspired to join the Islamic State group "to engage in a campaign of terror in support of a violent ideology." Yusuf and Nur applied for expedited passports and, despite being unemployed, deposited about $1,500 for airline tickets into their checking accounts shortly before their scheduled departures, according to the criminal complaint.

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Home Front: WoT

Two Americans Charged with Supporting IS

2014-11-27

[AnNahar] Two young American men, one of whom is in the Middle East fighting, have been charged with supporting the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group, the Justice Department said Tuesday. Somali Americans Abdi Nur, 20, and Abdullahi Yusuf, 18, have been charged with "conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, namely, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ... the current version of al-Qaeda in Iraq, just as blood-thirsty and well-beloved as the original... (ISIL)," Assistant Attorney General John Carlin said. Yusuf was to appear in court Tuesday in Minneapolis, where there is a large Somali American community. Abdi Nur, who traveled May 29 to Turkey, through which many jihadists pass en route to fight with IS, was to have returned to the United States June 16 but did not, the statement added. "More than 16,000 recruits from over 90 countries traveled to Syria to become foreign terrorist fighters with alarming consequences," said Carlin. "This is a global crisis and we will continue our efforts to prevent Americans from joining the fight and to hold accountable those who provide material support to foreign terrorist organizations," he added. "With these two defendants, we have now charged more than 15 individuals with offenses related to the foreign fighter threat in Syria." Yusuf in Minneapolis sought an expedited U.S. passport for his trip to Turkey, but could not give an itinerary or explain the source of his funds for his trip, as he was unemployed, authorities said.

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Africa Horn

Briton, French gunned down at Galkayo airport

2014-04-08

GALKAYO, Somalia -- Two foreigners working for United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime have been killed at Abdullahi Yusuf airport in Mudug regional capital of Galkayo of central Somalia on Monday, Garowe Online reports. According to Puntland government officials, airport security guard opened fire inside the airport terminal shortly after the British and French citizens arrived in Somalia's northeastern state of Puntland for official visit. Speaking on Puntland-based independent station, Radio Garowe the Director of Puntland's Counter-Piracy Directorate Abdirizak Mohamed Ahmed said' the UN officials were set to hold a meeting with Puntland President Abdiweli Mohamed Ali Gaas and Somali remittance companies' chiefs'. "The French Clement Garrison and the other British citizen Simon were killed in a dramatic shooting at the airport," Ahmed Added. Puntland President Abdiweli Gaas condemned the heinous act and admitted that stable Puntland has never witnessed such terrible incident. He told that insane soldier grabbed AK-47 rifle from another soldier who was standing guard at the airport. "The perpetrators are being held at facility and investigations are underway for the terrible incident," noted President Gaas. The plane carrying the UN officials took off from Hargeisa airport in the early hours of Monday morning. Galkayo, at Puntland's southern gate, connects the state to south-central regions plagued by chronic insecurity.

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-Obits-

Mohamed Dhere, Ex-governor dies in Somali capital

2012-11-17

[Shabelle] Mohamed Omar Habeb better known as (Mohamed Dhere) pegged out kicked it breathed his last breath in Mogadishu, an influential and a key actor in the politics. He passed away in a Mogadishu Hospital, where he has been in poor health for the past few days, according to Abdifatah Shawey, the deputy in the former administration of Benadir state under Abdullahi Yusuf's rule. The late served several posts during the past 20 years, namely as the governor of Banadir and the Mayor of Mogadishu. He was due to evacuate from Mogadishu to abroad for medical treatment, after doctors in the capital express in despair or disabled of his handling his health condition.

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