Concerns Rise Over Al-Shabaab Infiltration in Somali Police Promotions

by: Horn Observer Contributor | 10 July 2024 12:24

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Concerns Rise Over Al-Shabaab Infiltration in Somali Police Promotions

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) - On July 4, an unprecedented number of Somali police officers were promoted. However, while promotions themselves are not new, there is significant concern about some of the beneficiaries.

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The commander of Somali police, Firin Ahmed walks alongside Moalim Mahdi who is the police commander in charge of Mogadishu's Banadir region.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) - On July 4, an unprecedented number of Somali police officers were promoted. However, while promotions themselves are not new, there is significant concern about some of the beneficiaries.

Somali security sources indicate that a dozen of those promoted were former members of the terror group Al-Shabaab and clan militiamen who leveraged their clan influence to gain positions.

A senior officer at the police academy told Horn Observer that several of the newly promoted officers had known connections with Al-Shabaab and had not been properly investigated.

"In this country, nobody investigates anyone, especially if someone is coming from an influential clan or is connected to the top government offices," the officer said.

For those in the former police service of Somalia, this development is disheartening. "We see the future of the police destroyed. I am very sad," the officer added.

For the past 15 years, the Somali police have remained relatively less infiltrated by terrorist groups compared to other government security services. For example, the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) has been previously described as the most infiltrated agency by Al-Shabaab, giving militants ample access to information and resources to plan terror attacks.

In one of the most damaging incidents, on August 4, 2023, NISA announced that it was seeking Abdisatar Abdiqadir Isse and Ayanle Mohamed Ali, who defected back to Al-Shabaab with extensive amounts of information, documents, and communication equipment, including those involved in Turkish and U.S. drone operations.

The two NISA officers were former Al-Shabaab defectors who joined NISA and gained trust, with one even being promoted to the department of operations in liaison with U.S. and Turkish drone operations.

On February 10, 2024, a Somali soldier who was a former Al-Shabaab defector shot and killed four Emirati and one Bahraini military trainers at the UAE camp in Mogadishu. A VOA investigation revealed that Mustafa Mukhtar Adan, recruited into the army from Hudur town in late 2022, never renounced Al-Shabaab violence and kept his allegiance to the group secret.

Despite this, Mustafa was assisted by the Somali defense minister to join the army without background checks. After completing training, he became a member of a specially-selected guard at the UAE training camp. Days before the attack, he fired his gun to test it. When questioned, he said he bought the bullets he fired, so no action was taken. On the day of the killing, he entered the camp mosque during Maghrib prayers, closed the door, and started shooting, killing three UAE officers, including the head of the Somalia training mission, Mohamed Al Mansouri, and a Bahraini officer.

Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack.

Al-Shabaab's infiltration of the government is extensive and risky. The attackers of the Villa Rose hotel in December 2023, which killed a dozen people, were reportedly NISA members who defected from the group to the government.

In July 2016, former Somali MP Salah Badbaado drove a suicide truck towards Mogadishu airport, killing more than 13 and injuring dozens.

Somali police officers have genuine concerns that the officers from Al-Shabaab who were promoted on July 4 could pose a serious security risk. They have shared these concerns with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Mahdi, from the Habargidir clan, was involved in a deadly bombing that killed 21 women who were cleaning rubbish from a street in southern Mogadishu.

Moalim Mahdi, from the Habargidir clan, was involved in a deadly bombing that killed 21 women who were cleaning rubbish from a street in southern Mogadishu.

These officers also highlighted the current commander of the Banadir region, Moalim Mahdi, who was a former Al-Shabaab bombing unit under Aden Hashi Ayrow, killed in a U.S. airstrike in 2008 in central Somalia.

Mahdi, from the Habargidir clan, was involved in a deadly bombing that killed 21 women who were cleaning rubbish from a street in southern Mogadishu. After his defection in 2014, he was enlisted into NISA before his transfer to the police.