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Maine community leader and sister of slain MP among wounded at Jigjiga airport
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    Friday October 28, 2022


    Fowsia Musse stands in her Maine Community Integration office on Lisbon Street in Lewiston in 2021. Musse and her son were shot Tuesday by a law enforcement officer during an altercation at an airport in Ethiopia. Her sister, Juweria Subcis, died at the scene. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal file photo



    Jigjiga (HOL) - Fowsia Musse, an American community organizer, was among those seriously wounded by a member of the federal police at Tuesday's airport shooting in Jigjiga, Ethiopia. 

    Musse was visiting her sister, Juwaria Mohammed Subcis, a Somali regional state parliament member, who was killed at the scene.

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    Musse's 14-year-old son was also injured, while her 8-year-old daughter was reportedly unharmed.

    Musse, the executive director of Maine Community Integration, travelled to Ethiopia to visit family for the first time since arriving in the US in 1993 as a 12-year-old.

    Shadia Abdulahi, Musse's eldest daughter, set up a GoFundMe page to raise funds to bring Musse and her two children back to the United States for additional medical treatment. Abdulahi stated that her mother is expected to have suffered a broken leg in addition to gunshot wounds.

    "After killing my aunt Juweria, the security officer began to spray bullets across the entirety of the airport, resulting in a myriad of injuries. My mother was also shot and injured, sustaining wounds from two shots in the stomach and hip. My brother was grazed by a bullet in his shoulder, leaving him with stitches."

    Abdulahi was told her mother was flown from Jigjiga to Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, to receive medical treatment.

    "The trauma and pain that my mother left 20+ years ago only revisited her on Tuesday, October 25th," Abdulahi wrote. "A trip that was supposed to be the trip of my mother's dreams quite literally turned into a nightmare in 72 hours."

    Abdulahi said they are working with the US Embassy in Addis Ababa to ensure Musse's safe return home.

    Fowsia Musse is a community health outreach worker and the executive director of the Lewiston-based Maine Community Integration. The group website said they are "committed to integrating New Mainers into their communities while respecting and uplifting their diverse cultures, identities, and traditions." 

    "Whether it was doing groundwork and delivering Covid-19 information, running testing centers, or even travelling the country and region to participate in peace talks about the ongoing political tensions in the area, Juweria was gracious and intentional in her work and efforts," Abdulahi wrote. "Juweria was indeed the apex and epitome of a true humanitarian."

    As of Thursday evening, the fundraiser to support Fowsia Musse and her family had reached nearly $33,000 of a $100,000 goal.
     

     





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