Wednesday September 13, 2023
Dhusamareb (HOL) - The Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) has released the names of seven al-Shabab leaders reportedly killed in a recent military operation in the southern and central regions of the country.
According to a statement issued by the agency on Tuesday, six of them were killed in the Awdhegle attack on September 10, while the seventh was eliminated in Bulacle, near Dhusamareb, on September 11.
The identified individuals are as follows:
- Sheikh Abdulahi, this leader, operated in the K50 and Buufow areas in the Lower Shabelle region.
- Ali Timo Jilic, also known as Jeylani, was the head of health in the Lower Shabelle region. He has been associated with al-Shabab since 2012 and has been operating in Lower Shabelle since 2017. He was killed in the Awdhegle operation.
- Bashir Dheere led the al-Shabab group operating in the Bula-Marer area. He also was the leader of a faction known as Moalim Salahay. He, too, was killed in the Awdhegle operation.
- Abdiqafar, commonly referred to as Teacher Nadara, joined al-Shabab in 2009. He initially served with the Mogadishu guerrillas, particularly in the assassinations division, before transitioning to the unit responsible for carrying out attacks. According to NISA, he held the position of Al-Shabaab leader in the Lower Shabelle region and was eliminated during the Awdhegle operation.
- Shaaciye Mohamed Ali, known as Kufridid, was a leader responsible for explosives in the Lower Shabelle region. He was also killed in the Awdhegle operation.
- Sakariye Mohamed Bashir, known as Cadnan or Sandheere, joined al-Shabab in Mogadishu in 2011 and primarily worked within the unit responsible for executing attacks. At the time of his death, he held the position of deputy commander of the explosives division in the Lower Shabelle. He was killed during the Awdhegle operation.
- Ahmed Ali Dahir Shuuke, had been associated with al-Shabab for an extended period, performing various roles. However, he was recently tasked with mobilizing the community and persuading young individuals to join the militant group. This leader was killed in an operation near Bulacle in the Galgaduud region.
The killing of these seven al-Shabab leaders follows two weeks after the Somali government displayed Nur Abdullahi Maalinguur, also known as Nur Deeq, a mid-level al-Shabab official. He had surrendered to government forces near the town of Wisil in the Mudug region.
Nur Deeq also used to make threatening phone calls to the business communities, traditional elders and other community members, Fiqi said.
Somalia’s government last year launched what the president called “total war” on al-Shabab, which controls parts of rural central and southern Somalia and makes millions of dollars through “taxation” of residents and extortion of businesses.
