Two top commanders of Somalia's Al Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group have been killed by their own fighters, following power struggle inside the extremist organization. One of the dead, Ibrahim Haji Jama Mead, also known as Al-Afghani, tops Washington’s wanted list of terrorists. Last June, the State Department placed a US$5 million bounty for information leading to his location.
The other, Abul Hamid Hashi Olhayi was also a top commander of the extremist group and one of the founders of the terrorist group. "We have informed their widows of their deaths, as they must now wear the clothes of mourning," Shabab spokesman Abdulaziz Abu Musab told AFP.
Al-Afghani’s sister confirmed the death but called it an execution while Shabab claimed that both men died in a battle. "We deny reports that the men were killed after capture," Musab said. "The two men were killed in a shoot out after resisting arrest on court orders."
Al-Afghani - “The Afghan” - dubbed so for his activities in Afghanistan, held prominent positions in the Islamic extremist movement in Somalia occupying positions as first deputy leader of al-Shabab in charge of finance and also as the head of al-Shabab's Kisimayo administration.
The man was believed to be representing Shabab’s hard-line faction that focuses on global jihad. In the last few years, the insurgent movement has split into rival factions, based along clan lines and ideological differences. It is believed that Al-Afghani challenged the command of top chief Ahmed Abdi Godane, also wanted by the US.
Aweys was "linked to terrorism" by the United States shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington and is on a UN Security Council terrorism sanctions list. The arrest of a man who has been a major player in many stages of Somalia's long insurgency would be a boost for a government and its African allies struggling to contain months of guerrilla-style attacks.
Diplomats suggested Aweys had fled a bout of in-fighting that indicated rifts in the group. Analysts said Mogadishu might be open to negotiate with Aweys, who they say backed a faction in al Shabaab opposed to using foreign fighters. Clan elders and the Adado administration, which is generally seen as friendly to Mogadishu, said negotiations were under way with the central government over what to do with Aweys.
"We are discussing how to solve the issue," said central government spokesman Abdirahman Omar Osman. "Our policy has always been that for those within al Shabaab who are Somalis and want to renounce violence, we are willing to lend a hand."
Adado resident Hassan Nur said the town was tense as militiamen and security forces loyal to the provincial Himan and Heeb administration sped around in pick-up trucks mounted with machineguns. "Aweys and his men are now in Himan and Heeb palace in Adado town," Abdi Kadawe, Adado's police chief, told Reuters by phone.
Rashid Abdi, an independent Horn of Africa analyst, said Aweys' arrest would be a psychological blow but was unlikely to shift the power balance in al Shabaab, which has been weakened by an offensive led by African peacekeepers.
Aweys' influence had been "seriously diminished in recent years," Abdi told Reuters. Aweys, a firebrand cleric believed to be in his late 70s, had been seen by many Somalis as the spiritual leader of al Shabaab and had been revered by militants as the father of Somalia's Islamist movement.
Up to fifty people may have been killed in two days of fighting in a strategic Somali sea port, according to witnesses. Some locals on the ground report at least 12 bodies while others place the figure somewhere around 50.
The violence has intensified in Kismayo since the leader of the Ras Kamboni militia, was nominated by a regional assembly to lead the Jubaland region. Supporter of the rival, backed by the federal government in Mogadishu, clashed with the militia of the regional governor.
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