Before the deadline, Somali tribal leaders are responding to al-Shabab’s terrorist demands

Ali Abdel Aal

Less than a month after the deadline set by Somalia’s al-Shabaab terrorist movement for tribal elders who took part in the elections, the first batch of tribal elders announced their response to the terrorist call by repudiating the government of Mogadishu. They responded to the movement’s threats and wrote down their names.

Terrorist welcoming

In a statement published on 15 July 2019, Al Shabaab called on tribal elders who participated in the election of Somali and regional state parliaments to what they called repentance and gave them a maximum of 45 days to respond, and register their names with the movement’s administrations in areas under their control.

They threatened to target anyone who refused to do so. The tribal sheikhs were only acquiesced to the demands of the movement, which is linked to al-Qaeda.

Government threat

Colonel Mohamed Nour, head of the police station south of the city of Galcaio, vowed to take steps against tribal elders who responded to al Shabaab threats.

Nour described the sheikhs who have caved in to the movement’s threats of cowards, and pointed out that Gilmedge, a Somali state in the center of the country, would consider them members of al-Shabaab, and would not allow them to return to areas run by Gilmedge.

The welcoming ceremony was moderated by a number of senior leaders of the armed movement, including the governor of the central Shabelle state, Youssef Issa Kabkatkdi and the governor of the state of Mudeg, Abdul Qader Abu Adnan, in addition to a large number of armed elements.

On the other hand, the organizing committee of a conference for the reconciliation of the tribes of the state of Gilmedge, postponed the conference, which was scheduled to start on the fifth of August.

Local media said the committee had toured the main cities of Gilmedge to persuade the tribes to participate in the conference, but that significant obstacles faced after the refusal of some tribes to participate in the conference.