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Islamic Emirate of Somalia

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Islamic Emirate of Somalia
Imaarada Islaamiga Soomaaliya
إِمَارَةُ ٱلْصُّوْمَالُ ٱلْإِسْلَامِيَّةْ
2008–present
Flag of Al-Shabaab used in the emirate
The Islamic Emirate of Somalia (light grey) as of October 5, 2024
The Islamic Emirate of Somalia (light grey) as of October 5, 2024
StatusUnrecognized government
CapitalJilib (since 2014)
Kismayo (2008–2012)
Barawe (2012–2014)
Official languagesSomali
Religion
Salafi Sunni Islam
GovernmentIslamic emirate
Emir 
• 2008–2014
Ahmed Abdi Godane
• 2014–present
Ahmad Diriye
History 
• Established
2008
CurrencySomali shilling

The Islamic Emirate of Somalia (Somali: Imaarada Islaamiga Soomaaliya; Arabic: إِمَارَةُ ٱلْصُّوْمَالُ ٱلْإِسْلَامِيَّةْ) refers to the territories in Somalia under the control and governance of Al-Shabaab, which had declared its territory as an Islamic emirate in 2008. It aimed at controlling and governing Somalia, although it remained unrecognized. The borders of the Islamic Emirate of Somalia underwent drastic changes throughout the Somali Civil War.

History

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Al-Shabaab had its origins in the Islamic Courts Union, an umbrella group which governed much of Somalia until the Ethiopian invasion in December 2006.[1][2][3] In 2007–08, al-Shabaab was established as an independent group, gaining much support after branding itself the Somali resistance against the Ethiopian occupation.[2][3]

Al-Shabaab fused Somali nationalism with Salafi jihadism. It was also Pan-Islamist, linking the grievances of Somalia with those of the entire Muslim world.[4][5] However, some of the more nationalist factions of al-Shabaab rejected Pan-Islamism and only wanted Somalia under Islamic rule.[6][7] Much of al-Shabaab was staunchly nationalist, and aimed to expand across all of Greater Somalia.[8][9][5] After the collapse of the ICU in 2007, Al-Shabaab launched its own insurgency.[10] Although focused solely on Somalia, al-Shabaab attracted some foreign jihadists. The vast majority of the foreign jihadists were Somali diaspora. The rest included volunteers from East Africa, the Middle East, and the West.[11] High ranking foreign fighters included Fuad Qalaf Shongole, a Swedish Somali,[12] Jehad Mostafa, a Kurdish American,[13] Omar Shafik Hammami, a Syrian American,[14] and Mujahid Miski, a Somali American.[15]

During the Ethiopian military occupation, many Somalis saw al-Shabaab as a genuine national resistance movement, while al-Shabaab further capitalized on its nationalist ideology.[16][17] During 2008, al-Shabaab rapidly expanded and governed territory for the first time.[18][17] The group also established networks and territorial bases concentrated in the rural south-central regions.[17] The African Union reported Al-Shabaab was about 2,000 fighters strong during 2008.[19]

In September 2008, al-Shabaab announced its establishment of a government administration in Kismayo, and planned to declare the Islamic Emirate of Somalia. The group claimed that administrative positions would be divided between al-Shabaab, surviving ICU members, and clan leaders. However, various clan elders and ICU commanders complained that they were left out of the negotiations. In January 2009, the ARS joined the TFG, with Sharif Sheikh Ahmed emerging as the new president of the TFG. Al-Shabaab began to attack the ARS for joining the TFG. The Somali government had lost almost all of the territory recovered by the TFG in 2007.[20]

After the death of Aden Hashi Ayro in an American airstrike during May 2008, Ahmed Godane ascended to leadership. Godane pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden and took a Pan-Islamist approach, unlike the nationalists in al-Shabaab.[17] After the Ethiopian withdrawal in January 2009, the public support that al-Shabaab had previously enjoyed as a resistance faction had significantly diminished.[16] After al-Shabaab allied with Al-Qaeda, Anwar al-Awlaki encouraged jihadists to migrate to Somalia in support of al-Shabaab. Osama bin Laden also released a statement in support of al-Shabaab in Somalia. Al-Shabaab significantly grew in power and size.[21]

By 2009–10, al-Shabaab controlled most of central and southern Somalia south of Puntland, and it had formed administrative structures to govern territories under its control.[22][23][24]

During the Battle of Mogadishu, al-Shabaab suffered heavy losses.[22] By August 2011, al-Shabaab withdrew from Mogadishu, although it continues to influence the city and launch attacks from nearby cities.[23] In December 2011, al-Shabaab established a Shura for the Islamic Emirate of Somalia.[25] In October and November 2011, local groups with the support of Kenya and Ethiopia launched offensives against al-Shabaab, with Kenya approaching from the south and Ethiopia approaching from the west. Al-Shabaab lost territory to both armies, notably losing Baidoa to Ethiopia in February 2012 and losing Kismayo to Kenya in October 2012.[26][23]

Under Godane, the authoritarian style of al-Shabaab governance, and use of violence, caused the group to lose support.[22] In 2013, the internal disagreements led to internecine violence as Godane purged his critics.[24] The Pan-Islamist, pro-Al-Qaeda faction of Godane clashed with more nationalist factions.[27]

Al-Shabaab took significant damage in 2013. Following its territorial losses, al-Shabaab reverted to asymmetric warfare and guerrilla attacks.[22][23] While the group no longer had governmental and military authority over substantial territory, it retained a sporadic presence, and therefore significant influence, in many places.[28][29]

However, in 2016, al-Shabaab remained weakened by the military campaign against it.[28][30] An American drone strike killed Godane on September 1, 2014,[31] and he was succeeded by Ahmad Diriye.[32] The group reverted to its Somali nationalism.[33] Al-Shabaab won more military operations against the government.[34] It had also expanded its operations in Puntland.[35][36] The Islamic State – Somalia Province challenged al-Shabaab and its Islamic Emirate of Somalia.[37] On 20 July 2022, al-Shabaab launched a failed invasion into Ethiopia with the motives of annexing the Somali Region.[38]

Governance

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In the Islamic Emirate of Somalia, al-Shabaab implemented strict Sharia. The Islamic Emirate of Somalia had dispute resolution through Sharia-based courts, which were sometimes seen as better than those in government-held territories Some Somalis travelled to the Islamic Emirate just for its dispute resolution system. Al-Shabaab claimed some credit for Somalia's crop yield in early 2010, stating that Somali grain production had flourished due to al-Shabaab's reduction of food imports, and that the policy had redistributed income to poor, rural Somali farmers.[39][40] Its media also included Shahada News Agency and Radio al-Andalus. The group also committed human rights abuses in its territories, including through a brutal interpretation and application of Islamic jurisprudence on hudud.[41]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Cocodia, Jude (2021-04-03). "Rejecting African Solutions to African Problems: The African Union and the Islamic Courts Union in Somalia". African Security. 14 (2): 110–131. doi:10.1080/19392206.2021.1922026. ISSN 1939-2206.
  2. ^ a b International Crisis Group. "Considering Political Engagement with Al-Shabaab in Somalia". Africa Report. 309. Archived from the original on September 12, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  3. ^ a b "The Domestication of Al-Shabaab". The Journal of the Middle East and Africa. 10 (3): 279–305. doi:10.1080/21520844.2019.1658986. ISSN 2152-0844. S2CID 211466646. Bacon, Trisha. Muibu, Daisy. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  4. ^ "The Evolution of East African Salafi-jihadism". Barnett, James (2020-05-28). Report of the Hudson Institute. Archived from the original on September 11, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  5. ^ a b Vidino, Lorenzo; Pantucci, Raffaello; Kohlmann, Evan (2010). "Bringing Global Jihad to the Horn of Africa: al Shabaab, Western Fighters, and the Sacralization of the Somali Conflict". African Security. 3 (4): 216–238. doi:10.1080/19392206.2010.533071. ISSN 1939-2206. S2CID 144501155. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  6. ^ Schaefer, Alan (2011). "Clan and Conflict in Somalia: Al-Shabaab and the Myth of 'Transcending Clan Politics'". Jamestown Foundation Terrorism Monitor. 9 (40). Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
  7. ^ Senate Hearing 111–678: Violent Islamic Extremism—2009 Archived November 9, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. Hearing of the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. U.S. Government Printing Office. 2009.
  8. ^ Solomon, Hussein (2014). "Somalia's al-Shabaab: Clans vs Islamist nationalism". South African Journal of International Affairs. 21 (3): 351–366. doi:10.1080/10220461.2014.967286. ISSN 1022-0461. S2CID 153592166. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  9. ^ Petrich, Katharine (2022). "Cows, Charcoal, and Cocaine: Al-Shabaab's Criminal Activities in the Horn of Africa". Studies in Conflict & Terrorism. 45 (5–6): 479–500. doi:10.1080/1057610X.2019.1678873. ISSN 1057-610X. S2CID 208835514. Archived from the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  10. ^ Allen, William; Gakuo Mwangi, Oscar (25 March 2021). "Al-Shabaab". Oxford Research Encyclopedias: African History. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780190277734.013.785. ISBN 978-0-19-027773-4. Archived from the original on 29 December 2022.
  11. ^ Doctor, Austin C. (2020-08-18). "The Looming Influx of Foreign Fighters in Sub-Saharan Africa". War on the Rocks. Archived from the original on September 8, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
  12. ^ Khalif, Abdulkadir (2012-02-22). "Al-Shabaab Wants Girls to Join Warfront Against Govt". allAfrica. Archived from the original on February 26, 2012. Retrieved 2022-09-12.
  13. ^ McKay, Hollie (2020-01-08). "Who is the FBI's most wanted American terrorist? Meet Jehad Serwan Mostafa". Fox News. Retrieved 2025-02-26.
  14. ^ "Rapping American jihadi killed: reports". Sydney Morning Herald. 12 September 2013. Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2013.
  15. ^ Ibrahim, Mukhtar M. (2015-12-07). "Minn. al-Shabab fighter surrenders in Somalia". MPR News. Archived from the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  16. ^ a b Hassan, Abdulahi (March 2008). "Inside Look at the Fighting Between Al-Shabab and Ahlu-Sunna wal-Jama" (PDF). CTC Sentinel. 2 (3). Archived (PDF) from the original on December 27, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  17. ^ a b c d Mueller, Jason C. (2018-01-02). "The Evolution of Political Violence: The Case of Somalia's Al-Shabaab". Terrorism and Political Violence. 30 (1): 116–141. doi:10.1080/09546553.2016.1165213. ISSN 0954-6553. S2CID 148494845. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  18. ^ Cook, Joana; Maher, Shiraz, eds. (2023). The Rule Is For None But Allah. Oxford University Press. p. 111. ISBN 978-0-19-769039-0. Archived from the original on December 28, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  19. ^ Hummel, Kristina (2024-04-30). "The Somali National Army Versus al-Shabaab: A Net Assessment". Combating Terrorism Center at West Point. Retrieved 2024-06-30.
  20. ^ "Al-Shabaab and Boko Haram: Guerrilla Insurgency Or Strategic Terrorism?", John Maszka, 2017, pp. 76. ISBN: 9781786344007, 1786344009
  21. ^ After Bin Laden: Al Qaeda, the Next Generation, Abdel Bari Atwan, 2013, pp. 115-116, ISBN: 9781595588999, 159558899X
  22. ^ a b c d Bacon, Tricia; Muibu, Daisy (2019b). "The Domestication of Al-Shabaab". The Journal of the Middle East and Africa. 10 (3): 279–305. doi:10.1080/21520844.2019.1658986. ISSN 2152-0844. S2CID 211466646. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  23. ^ a b c d Anzalone, Christopher (2013). "Al-Shabab's Tactical and Media Strategies in the Wake of its Battlefield Setbacks". CTC Sentinel. 6 (3). Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
  24. ^ a b Bryden, Matt (2014). "The Reinvention of Al-Shabaab: A Strategy of Choice or Necessity?"(PDF). Report of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 8, 2022. Retrieved September 8, 2022.
  25. ^ "Al-Shabaab and Boko Haram: Guerrilla Insurgency Or Strategic Terrorism?", John Maszka, 2017, pp. 81-82. ISBN: 9781786344007, 1786344009
  26. ^ Will Ross (2012-02-22). "Somalia al-Shabab militant base of Baidoa captured". BBC News. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved 2012-08-04.
  27. ^ Tisdall, Simon (22 September 2013). "Kenya attack is product of brutal power struggle within al-Shabaab". The Guardian. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
  28. ^ a b Hansen, Stig Jarle (2016-10-17). "Has Shabaab been weakened for good? The answer is 'yes' and 'no'". The Conversation. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  29. ^ Doboš, Bohumil (2016). "Shapeshifter of Somalia: Evolution of the Political Territoriality of Al-Shabaab". Small Wars & Insurgencies. 27 (5): 937–957. doi:10.1080/09592318.2016.1208282. ISSN 0959-2318. S2CID 147834973. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
  30. ^ Jones, Seth G.; Liepman, Andrew; Chandler, Nathan (2016-09-13). "Counterterrorism and Counterinsurgency in Somalia: Assessing the Campaign Against al-Shabaab". Report of the Rand Corporation. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved September 9,2022.
  31. ^ Martinez, Michael (2014-09-05). "Top Somali militant killed in U.S. operation, Pentagon says". CNN. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  32. ^ "Al-Shabab names new leader after Godane death in US strike". BBC News. 2014-09-06. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  33. ^ Petrich, Katharine (2022). "Cows, Charcoal, and Cocaine: Al-Shabaab's Criminal Activities in the Horn of Africa". Studies in Conflict & Terrorism. 45 (5–6): 479–500. doi:10.1080/1057610X.2019.1678873. ISSN 1057-610X. S2CID 208835514. Archived from the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  34. ^ "Al Shabaab attacks Somali military base, recaptures central town". Reuters. 2021-08-24. Archived from the original on September 9, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  35. ^ Horton, Michael (2017-03-10). "Al-Shabaab: Why Somalia's al-Qaeda Affiliate Wants Puntland". Jamestown. Jamestown Foundation Briefing. Archived from the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  36. ^ Felbab-Brown, Vanda (2017-06-19). "Puntland's problems". Brookings Institution. Archivedfrom the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  37. ^ Global Interagency Security Forum (2016-03-23). "The Resurgence of al-Shabaab in Somalia and Implications for the Humanitarian Sector". Global Interagency Security Forum Briefing. Archived from the original on October 28, 2018. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
  38. ^ Caleb Weiss; Ryan O'Farrell (25 July 2022). "Analysis: Shabaab's multi-day incursion into Ethiopia". Long War Journal. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  39. ^ Skjelderup, Michael (2020). "Jihadi Governance and Traditional Authority Structures: al-Shabaab and Clan Elders in Southern Somalia, 2008–2012". Small Wars & Insurgencies. 31 (6): 1174–1195. doi:10.1080/09592318.2020.1780686. hdl:11250/2823605. ISSN 0959-2318. S2CID 221158513
  40. ^ "Shabab credit for Somali food boom". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2025-02-26.
  41. ^ Skjelderup, Michael (2014). "Hudūd Punishments in the Forefront: Application of Islamic Criminal Law by Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen". Journal of Law and Religion. 29 (2): 317–329. doi:10.1017/jlr.2014.11. ISSN 0748-0814. JSTOR 24739145. Archived from the original on January 5, 2024. Retrieved September 11, 2022.

Works cited

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