Two Somali soldiers were executed on Monday after being sentenced to death for conspiring with the extremist group Al-Shabaab to assassinate a commander.
The impoverished Horn of Africa nation is currently witnessing a troubling rise in attacks by the Al-Qaeda-linked militia, fueling widespread concerns about a jihadist resurgence. The extremist group has recently seized dozens of towns and villages, effectively reversing nearly all army gains made during 2022 and 2023.
A military court in the nation’s capital of Mogadishu had sentenced the two soldiers to death last August for killing their battalion commander in July. According to court records, one soldier received the explosive device while the second placed it under their commander’s bed before it was remotely detonated.
Prosecutor Hassan Siyad Mohamed confirmed the executions, stating they were carried out for their direct involvement in the assassination of Commander Aided Mohamed Ali. Liban Ali Yarrow, chairman of the supreme military court, warned that anyone with links to the Kharijites, his term for Al-Shabaab, would also one day be executed.
He further cautioned that anyone found with proven ties to the militant group would be exposed by God and executed by a firing squad. The executions followed last week’s verdict where three Al-Shabaab members were also found guilty of killing people in Mogadishu and executed by firing squad.