Al-Shabaab Expands Assassinations Campaign with Killings in Afgoye, Jowhar, and Mogadishu

by: Horn Observer Contributor | 29 October 2024 00:09

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Al-Shabaab Expands Assassinations Campaign with Killings in Afgoye, Jowhar, and Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) — Al-Shabaab militants intensified their campaign of targeted killings beyond Mogadishu, claiming the lives of a businessman in Afgoye and a police officer in Jowhar on Monday.

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Al-Shabaab militants intensified their campaign of targeted killings beyond Mogadishu.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) — Al-Shabaab militants intensified their campaign of targeted killings beyond Mogadishu, claiming the lives of a businessman in Afgoye and a police officer in Jowhar on Monday.

In Afgoye, about 30 kilometers from the capital, a local businessman was shot dead by suspected Al-Shabaab militants on Monday evening.

The motive remains unclear.

Further north in Jowhar, approximately 90 kilometers from Mogadishu, a police officer was killed shortly after evening prayers near the mosque where he carried his prayers, according to residents.

The two assassinations outside the capital illustrate Al-Shabaab’s expanding reach, targeting individuals in smaller towns across Somalia.

In Mogadishu itself, the militant group continued its series of targeted assassinations against business owners, killing three more businessmen on Monday in the city’s Daaru Salam district.

Witnesses reported that armed men entered a shop near Ahmed Gurey School, fatally shooting three shopkeepers before fleeing the scene.

"The Al-Shabaab men were armed with pistols. They shot the three businessmen while they were inside their shop,” a resident said, requesting anonymity. Somali police have not yet commented on the attack.

The surge in violence follows an incident last Wednesday in Mogadishu’s Hodan district, where two young businessmen were killed and two others injured in a similar attack.

Over the past two weeks, eight business owners have been targeted as Al-Shabaab escalates its intimidation of business communities for defying the group’s ban on CCTV cameras, which the government has mandated in commercial areas for security purposes.

Authorities have been pushing for surveillance installations, threatening business owners with fines or arrest for non-compliance, while Al-Shabaab has warned of deadly retaliation against those cooperating.

The violence also extends to press freedom, as two journalists from a local Himilo TV were detained by national intelligence while covering Monday’s attack in Mogadishu, underscoring the dangers faced by media reporting on Al-Shabaab’s activities in the capital.

This latest wave of assassinations and the widening geographical scope of attacks reflect Al-Shabaab’s ongoing efforts to undermine security mandates and instill fear across Somali communities.