Resisting the Purge of Foreign Fighters: Maalim Salman’s Struggle for Survival in al-Shabaab

Resisting the Purge of Foreign Fighters: Maalim Salman’s Struggle for Survival in al-Shabaab

The al-Shabaab terrorist attack on the upscale Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi in 2013 sent a shockwave through the Kenyan security establishment and instilled fear in Kenyan citizens. Widely covered in both the domestic and international press, the attack left 67 people dead and nearly 200 injured (Daily Nation, January 25, 2014).

It later emerged that the man behind the attack was Maalim Salman, now a mid-level commander in charge of African foreign fighters within the al-Qaeda affiliate in East Africa. [1] Though information about the commander and his activities is limited, reports suggest that the 38-year-old militant leader’s influence is rising. As the leader of a brigade of foreign fighters, Salman’s position within al-Shabaab has been challenged as the group continues to purge its foreign fighters. However, while Salman’s position in the group may be under threat, his influence with the foreign fighters under his command grows as other al-Shabaab leadership continues to target them. [2]

Background

Born in 1979, Maalim Salman (a.k.a. Ameer Salman; Maalim Selman Ali; Mualem Suleiman) is from Nairobi’s Eastleigh neighborhood, where al-Shabaab began its early recruitment of Kenyan fighters, though he is believed to be of Somali descent. Evidence suggests that Salman began his jihadist career during the period between 2005 and 2008 when al-Shabaab increased its recruitment. It is during this period that he travelled to Somalia for training. [3] There he would likely have been recruited to Jaysh al Ayman, which was responsible for most of the Kenyan foreign fighter recruitment during that time. Reportedly formed in Mombasa in 2001, the al-Shabaab aligned group drew inspiration from the late Islamist leaders Shaykh Aboud Rogo and Shaykh Sherif Abubakar (a.k.a. Makaburi) (The Standard [Nairobi], June 21, 2015).

Once in Somalia, Shaykh Ahmed Abdi Godane, the late al-Shabaab leader, saw Salman’s potential and selected him to be the commander of al-Shabaab’s Africans foreign fighters (United Nations, September 23). As a commander, Salman has focused his efforts on operations outside Somalia, particularly in Kenya and Ethiopia. However, reports suggest that he resides in southern Somalia, where other al-Shabaab leaders are based. Their stay in the region is strategic: the jungle of southern Somalia is hard to police, providing them with cover. There Salman is also able live side-by-side with other militant leaders, creating a network that helps support operational planning and execution. It is here where he trains his African foreign fighters before sending them out onto the battlefield. Some of his key operations have involved targeting tourist destinations, entertainment establishments and churches (The Standard, November 11, 2015).

Both Kenyan and international security agencies have fingered Salman as the mastermind behind the terrorist attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi in September 2013. However, some experts believe that he may also have been involved in the Garissa University College attack. This al-Shabaab siege, more deadly than the Westgate mall attack, claimed the lives of 147 people — most of them were Christian students. While his link to the Garissa University College attack is yet to be confirmed, the U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice Program has recognized him as a key leader within al-Shabaab. Indeed, the U.S. government placed a $3 million bounty on his head for information leading to his apprehension (Somali Focus, November 11, 2015; The Standard, November 11, 2015).

Leadership Dispute

Recently, Salman has found himself at loggerheads with the group, as al-Shabaab’s top leadership has begun randomly killing militants under Salman’s command. According to reports, the killings are fueled by a mistrust of foreign fighters that Somali members of al-Shabaab have developed over the years. This suspicion is an expression of broader tensions within al-Shabaab that are driving parts of the group to break off into differing factions. These offshoots — including those who maintain allegiance to al-Qaeda, those who have pledged support for Islamic State (IS) and those keen to preserve the nationalist terrorist group — are now engaged in an intra-group battle for supremacy (GundHing, September 23).

Those targeted most recently are Kenyan foreign fighters (The Star, May 4). These killings are carried out publicly by firing squad — the goal apparently being to deter future “defectors.” Al-Shabaab has also set up secret prisons where the suspects are tortured before being killed. In 2017 alone, more than seven fighters have been executed in this manner (Kenyans [Nairobi], September 24). In September, the militant group executed three Kenyan fighters in the town of Jilib — all three were accused of spying. On March 27, the group killed two Kenyan militants whom it accused of spying. Ahmed Yusuf Hassan, 26, and Ahmed Nur Abdi Osoble, 20, were executed by firing squad in Buq Aqable in Somalia’s Hiiran region (Hiiran Online, February 27).

The killings have forced a large number of Kenyan militants to flee Somalia (The Standard, April 2). As al-Shabaab leadership continues to purge the men under his command, an angry Salman is said to have criticized the executions. This has put him on a collision course with the group’s current leader, Shaykh Ahmad Umar Abu Ubaidah, who appears to be using this tactic to control his fighters and prevent revolt. Salman is alleged to have confronted Umar and demanded to know why his men are being killed. Meanwhile, the militants have started to suspect that Salman himself is an agent of the Kenyan government (The Standard, September 24).

Salman is known to support the of defection foreign fighters within al-Shabaab, many of whom have been contemplating fleeing due to the growing tensions within the group. One of the key leaders allegedly considering such a move is Shakyh Ahmed Iman Ali, another al-Shabaab leader of Kenyan origin. Like Salman, Ali has $3 million bounty on his head. Reports indicate that Salman gave his support to Ali upon hearing Ali’s his plans to defect to Kenya (The Standard, September, 6).

Conclusion

With the ongoing removal of foreign fighters who are suspected of being spies, it is only a matter of time before Salman becomes a target. Other foreign fighters are already on the run or are at least considering fleeing the Somali jungle. Those contemplating fleeing face a choice between joining other factions or turning themselves over to the Kenyan government. For Maalim Salman, however, his choices are limited due to the bounty on his head and the blood of the Westgate shopping mall attack on his hands. One possible option for him is to move secretly into Kenya to join other home-grown jihadist groups — many fighters have reportedly found sanctuary in the coastal region of Lamu and northern counties of Garissa and Mandera. His departure or removal would have a significant impact on al-Shabaab, which is still in need foreign fighters. The group continues to struggle with serious internal divisions and has been forced out of strategic cities, towns and regions by the internationally backed African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) troops. The same tensions and divisions that threaten Salman may also threaten the long-term prospects for al-Shabaab as a whole.

NOTES

[1] https://rewardsforjustice.net/english/maalim_salman.html

[2] Author interview with Nairobi-based analyst (September 2017).

[3] Ibid.