In apparent retaliation for the January 26th drone strike that killed a senior al-Shabaab official, members of the militant group have abducted 17 people, including four of its own members, from the Lower Shabelle towns of Bulo Marer and Sablale, residents told Sabahi.
Ahmed Abdulkadir Abdullahi, also known as “Iskudhuq”, was reportedly killed in the US-led strike in Hawai village, which was conducted in partnership with the Somali government.
The day after the attack, residents said al-Shabaab members entered homes and businesses by force, abducting elders, young people and even men who were part of al-Shabaab.
Ahmed Ali, an elder from Bulo Marer, said al-Shabaab militants told him they were searching for people who were suspected spies for the US government.
“We were suddenly startled by men with masked faces who entered the house forcefully while my family and I were busy eating breakfast,” Ali told Sabahi.
“They refused to let me speak when I attempted to ask them about their intentions. Each member of my family was ordered to stay seated in the same spot. They ransacked the entire house and even messed up all the furniture,” he said. “One of them told me they were searching for spying equipment and people who worked for the infidels.”
Ali said four of his neighbours, including two elders, were taken that day but he did not know why.
Samiya Abdalla, a 39-year-old mother of five in Sablale, said she knew of nine people who were taken from their homes and businesses the day after the drone strike.
“Sablale residents are asking one another why the people were kidnapped and no one knows,” she told Sabahi. “The only thing we are certain of is that they were taken by al-Shabaab. I think they took their anger out on the public following the attack on al-Shabaab by American drones.”
Doubt spreads within al-Shabaab
Ahmed Muse, a 57-year-old elder from Barawe, told Sabahi that al-Shabaab jailed four of its own members after they were accused of spying for Western governments.
“Members of the terrorist group al-Shabaab started doubting one another after the attack took place and they have jailed four of their members who are located in Barawe. I found out about this from members of al-Shabaab that I spoke with,” he said. “Al-Shabaab is finished, they have nothing left and they are on their last stand.”
Yasin Guled, a 61-year-old retired military officer, said al-Shabaab carries out of these kinds of operations whenever it feels that its power is weakened.
“It is al-Shabaab’s habit to arrest and torture people in areas under its control whenever it feels that its power is weakened or one of its commanders is killed,” Guled told Sabahi. “I think al-Shabaab is doing this because it has lost the support of the public.”
He called on the government to quickly liberate areas under the militant’s control so that people can get their freedoms back.
The Lower Shabelle regional administration, however, refused to comment on the abductions.
The local administration has found that al-Shabaab increases the abuses it inflicts on the public every time the administration speaks to the media about its plan to eliminate the group from the areas it occupies in the region, Deputy Governor of Lower Shabelle Abdi Muse told Sabahi.
Therefore, the administration has decided to refrain from speaking about this issue until it liberates areas under al-Shabaab control, he said.
Somali government spokesperson Ridwan Haji Abdiweli confirmed Iskudhuq’s death and the government’s role in the operation, but also would not comment on the current situation in the region.
“These kinds of operations will support Somalia in becoming a place that is off limits to international terrorists who are causing problems for our public,” Abdiweli said January 27th on government-run Radio Mogadishu.
