Wednesday, September 05, 2012
by Abdirashid Abdi Diis
Somalia's most powerful Islamist rebel group al-Shabab on Tuesday executed two men, accusing them to be spies for the country's federal government forces, in a southern seaport city of Barawe. The victims identified as Abdinasir Abdi Elmi, 17 and his co-accused Abdikadir Dahir Isman, 20, were tied to a pole at the centre of the town while in masked, before they were finally shot to dead.
The town is in the region of Lower Shabelle which its capital, Merca, was seized a week ago by Somali armed forces with a help of African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) peacekeeping soldiers after Al-Qaeda linked insurgent fighters retreated there.
A huge crowd of the residents from all walks of life flocked the scene of the incident as this corporal punishment is always characterized by a use of loud speakers to call population to come out of their houses or business premises to watch the death sentence.
This is not the first time that pro-islamist courts across southern and central regions of Somalia reached such a similar verdict to execute people suspected to be spies for the government security agencies or the western world. It was barely a month ago when the group also executed two other young men, in Merca, labelled with the same allegations.
Somalia‘s last functioning central government collapsed in 1991 when former president Mohamed Siyad Barre regime lost its control to a military uprising muscle. Since then the Horn of Africa nation is struggling to restore peace and stability for its citizens in the fight against a thread of conflicts that includes political, ethnic, piracy, insurgency squabbling.
Today, however, Somalia is gradually polishing its ruined image and expected to hold a poll to elect its president for the first time in 20 years through a parliamentary vote in the next a few days.
A pro-rebel judge told the crowd the two men involved in their detective duty for government soldiers during which they were seized in Afgoye, a corridor town to the Somali capital, Mogadishu, according to an eye witness. He also added the accused had been under their detention for sometime so as to confirm the case against them.
Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti, Uganda and Burundi are some African nations that sent troops to Somalia. The most anticipated news in the country is when Kismayu, the rebel’s last largest monopoly port city, would be seized. The town is approximately situated 300 miles in southwest of Mogadishu. An unconfirmed report say the town might be seized from the rebels in a week’s time if not days.
But al-Shabab keeps on saying it has an indissoluble agenda to rule Somalia with Islamic teaching.