Canadian Shabaab commander reported killed in Mogadishu

According to a report in Shabelle, a Canadian citizen who commanded Shabaab forces in Mogadishu was killed by Somali troops:

The Somali Canadian, who was the commander of an al Qaeda associated group in the Jubba regions, and another Al Shabaab fighter died as they drove their pickup through a government-controlled checkpoint, according to Somali army commander, Abdikarim Yusuf Adam.

“Our forces managed to slain the Al Shabaab members after refusing to stop their car and started to fire. What lead to rapid clash was that they traveling in midnight,” Adam told reporters.

The government officer said the confrontation lasted for about 20 minutes.

“The name which al Shabaab commander was operating inside Somalia was Abdurrahman Canadian, but his name in the passport was Muhan Jeans,” he added.

“They were carrying medicine, laptops and other documents in their pickup and we think they lost their way leading to Al Shabaab controlled areas,” the commander spelled out.

Canadian officials have not confirmed the report, according to The Globe and Mail:

Ottawa officials are looking into the case. “At this time, we are unable to confirm media reports of a Canadian national having been killed in the Jubba region while involved in insurgent activities,” said Claude Rochon, a spokeswoman for Foreign Affairs.

Meanwhile, Somalia’s prime minister claimed that government forces are pursuing a senior Shabaab leader from Kenya:

Transitional Federal Government and African Mission forces are pursuing the Kenyan believed to be heading one of the rebel group’s battalions still holed up in parts of the Somali capital, Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed told the Nation in an exclusive interview.

“One of the top commanders of the al Shabaab is a Kenyan. We have made significant inroads into territories the militia previously held and we are sure we will overrun and capture them,” Mr Mohamed said.

It is unclear if the prime minister is referring to Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, a Kenyan, who was appointed by Osama bin Laden as al Qaeda’s leader in East Africa in late 2009. Fazul is also a top leader in Shabaab.

Shabaab is known to have numerous foreigners, many from al Qaeda, in top leadership positions.

Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal.

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Tags: Shabaab, Somalia