Modern history of al shabaab while much of the icus leadership quickly fled the advancing ethiopians, members of al shabaab instead retreated into the swampy south of the country, from where they launched a bloody guerilla campaign against the ethiopian military in somalia. Alshabaab in somalia is a judicious and timely study of a poorly understood militant islamist group. Alshabab, or the youth, is an alqaidalinked militant group and u. It once held sway over the capital of mogadishu and large portions of the somali countryside, but in. A brave attempt to both historicize and scrutinize alshabaab, it is a mustread for anyone wishing to understand a group that has unleashed havoc in parts of africa. Al shabaab has a long history of insurgent and terrorist operations in the region, and it has long possessed the ability to conduct such an attack in nairobi. The alshabaab is preparing itself to be battle ready and be a strong force that can be able to overcome the au troops and any other troops that may come to somali to fight them and their ideologies. While at the beginning white foreign jihadists were present alongside alshabaab, over the last year and half there seems to. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
Alshabaab terrorists propaganda and the kenya government. Historical background to the development of alshabaab. Its a great introduction for those new to the topic, but its also a landmark work and absolutely required reading for those who study and work to counter terrorism. While alshabaab lost control of some key towns, it maintains control over large swathes of territory, and many key transport routes. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group. Dr hansen welcomed the opportunity to present his book al shabaab in. Al shabaab center for strategic and international studies.
The february 9, 2012 announcement that al shabaab had become part of al qaeda revealed some of the fracture lines within al shabaabs leadership. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group, 20052012 stig jarle hansen isbn. Foreign service, including as ambassador to ethiopia and state department coordinator for somalia during the international intervention in. Alshabaab attack kills dozens of ugandan soldiers in somalia up to 46 ugandan peacekeepers died in suicide car bomb attack by islamist militants published. The organisation known as alshabaab originally emerged from the islamic courts union icu movement in somalia. Alshabaab and somalias spreading famine council on. They shot and killed one of the abductees, burkhaba deputy district commissioner ibrahim shaati laawe, and they continued to hold the other official at years end. While al shabaab is most active in somalia, it has also committed numerous attacks in kenya, which has contributed troops to military missions in somalia and hosts large numbers of somali refugees. Al shabaab is linked to al qaeda both ideologically and through leadership contacts, training and joint operations in the horn of africa, according to u. According to the national counterterrorism center, the groups rankandfile members hail from disparate local groups, sometimes recruited by force.
On june 8th, alshabaab fighters attacked a military base in puntland, a semiautonomous region in somalia. A remarkable book based on intensive field research as well as on the. This work provides a meaningful context to al shabaab and the somali milieu. Western policies towards somalia and alshabaab, there is no political space for dissidents. Hansens remarkable book attempts to go beyond the media headlines and simplistic analyses based on alarmist or localist narratives and, by employing intensive. Marka has signalled the death knell for al shabaabs domestic territorial integrity. Power sharing and the negotiated settlement of civil wars caroline a.
Alshabaab, the al qaedaaligned militia in somalia, is experiencing some of the most successful months of its recent history. Originally the small, youth militia arm of a relatively moderate islamist organization. Al shabaab arabic for the youth is an islamic militant group that seeks to create an islamic state in somalia. The number of attacks attributed to alshabaab has increased rapidly from less than 10 in 2007 to more than 800 in 2014. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group kindle edition by hansen, stig jarle. Alshabaabs composition is multiethnic, with its leadership positions mainly occupied by afghanistan and iraqtrained ethnic somalis and foreigners. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading alshabaab in somalia. Radicalisation and alshabaab recruitment in somalia. Despite military pressure and global efforts to starve it of financing, the group continues to operate effectively, allowing it.
More worrying for al shabaab, the united states has learned of links between the group and iran, uganda and eritrean governments20. The intervention from ethiopia, a longtime enemy of somalia, is considered to have radicalized alshabab and perhaps pushed it into the arms of. Ethiopia, a part of the antishabaab coalition, is somalias ancient. Roland marchal senior research fellow at cnrs sciencespo. The history of alshabaab south african history online. The al shabaab variously spelled shabab and shebaab terrorist group, an al qaedaaffiliated organization with roots in somalia, attacked shoppers in a nairobi, kenya mall this weekend. Abstract humanitarian response to the ongoing complex emergency in somalia is being further complicated by the actions of the terrorist group alshabaab. The secret history of alqaedas most powerful ally by harun maruf. Al shabaab, which has al qaeda ties and controls most of southern and central regions of the country, has historically banned international aid agencies from operating within territories under its control. The number of casualties caused by alshabaab increased at an even greater rate. Inside al shabaab is the definitive history of the somali militant group, rich with newly disclosed details about the groups genesis and its ties to al qaeda. Leader of alshabaab in mogadishu sheikh ali mohamed hussein.
He has put together a remarkably a remarkably detailed account of alshabaabs history and until the distant and unlikely day when something better comes along, alshabaab in somalia is the definitive book on the subject. Aqam futures project case study series july 2011 project. Background report alshabaab attack on garissa university. Despite military gains against somalias islamist group alshabaab, the insurgents defeat will remain elusive until the somali government and its international partners address longstanding social often clanbased grievances through parallel local and national processes, as the basis for the revival of conventional governmental authority. Alshabaab literally meaning the youngsters was the radical, hard.
Pdf countering the alshabaab insurgency in somalia. On april 19, alshabaab members abducted two officials in burkhaba, bay region. Al shabaab is an al qaedaaffiliated organization that has risen rapidly to prominence in the midst of somalias decadeslong anarchy. Since it emerged from the islamic courts union icu in 2007, al shabaab has carried out more than 1700 terrorist. Witnesses say that alshabaab beheaded civilians during the attack. List of books and articles about somali history online. As a result, his description of events carries a powerful sense of legitimacy.
Somalias growing famine partly stems from a global failure to act on warning signs, but its exacerbated by militant group alshabaab, factions of. Adding layers of complexity to an already complex emergency by little, peter d. Alshabaab fighters at a somali training camp, in an image taken from a video released by the group in 2009. Harakat al shabaab is somalias infamous though underresearched militant islamist group. The icu began as a loose grouping of sharia courts that by 2006 had grown into a powerful islamic militia which enjoyed control over much of southern somalia. They also clearly show al shabaab s relevance within the global jihadist scene. What the westgate mall attack truly reflects is a change in intent on behalf of al shabaabs leadership, rather than a. The attack comes on the heels of somali authorities recent. This research sought to uncover the answers to the following questions. Contrary to historical terrorism scholarship, terrorist groups can. Alshabaab or alshabab ashshabab is an arabic phrase meaning the youth. The origins and current status of the armed group al shabab including their use of child soldiers is explained by somali expert abdi samatar, professor and. Pdf on apr 4, 2014, james forest and others published countering the al shabaab insurgency in somalia. Al shabab al arabi club beirut, a lebanese association football club.
The group has experienced two dramatic transformations in its short history. Al shabaab has been pushed from all of its major strongholds by a robust international effort, and its violent salafism has alienated many somalis. The alshabaab terrorist organisation are largely thought to be behind these last two attacks and were thus the main focal point of this discussion. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group, 20052012 article pdf available in african affairs april 2014 with 167 reads how we measure reads. Al shabab, or the youth, is an islamist insurgent group based in somalia. In this report, the authors argue that al shabaab s current prospects have probably never been so low.
Try searching on jstor for other items related to this book. There had been rhetorical ties between al qaeda and al shabaab before, most notably in september 2009 when al shabaabs leader, ahmed abdi godane mukhtar abu zubair, pledged baya, allegiance. Unlike most of the organizations top leaders, its foot soldiers are primarily concerned with. Maruf, harun, and dan joseph 2018, inside alshabaab.