Ahmad Diriye
Ahmad Diriye | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Image of Diriye taken from U.S. State Department | |
| Born | Ahmad Umar 1972 (age 51–52)[1] |
| Other names | Sheikh Ahmad Umar Abu Ubaidah, Sheikh Omar Abu Ubaidaha, Sheikh Ahmed Umar, Sheikh Mahad Omar Abdikarim, Abu Ubaidah, Abu Diriye, Diriye |
| Known for | Leader of Al-Shabaab |
Ahmad Diriye (Somali: Axmed Diriye, Arabic: أحمد ديري; born 1972), also known as Ahmad Umar or Abu Ubaidah al-Somali, is the Emir of Somalia’s Islamist group Al-Shabaab.
Diriye became head of the organization following the death of the Al-Shabaab's leader Ahmed Godane in 2014. The following year he was listed by the U.S. State Department as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist and currently offers up to 10 million USD for information regarding him.[1]
History
[edit]Ahmad Diriye was born in 1972 in El Buur, Somalia (formerly the Somali Democratic Republic).[2] He is believed to be in his fifties and is a member of the Bijamal subclan of the Dir clan from the Kismayo region of Somalia.[1] According to Africa Confidential he is a cousin of Ahmed Abdi Godane.[3]
Diriye served in several positions within al-Shabaab following the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia in 2006. He was the 'founding father' of the groups intelligence service, Amniyat.[3] During 2008, he served as the deputy governor of Lower Juba region, and al-Shabaab's governor of Bay and Bakool regions in 2009. By 2013, he was a senior adviser to Godane and served in al-Shabaab's "Interior Department," where he oversaw the group's domestic activity. According to the U.S. State Department, he shares Godane's vision for al-Shabaab's terrorist attacks in Somalia as an element of al-Qa’ida's greater global aspirations.[4]
Emir of Al-Shabaab (2014–present)
[edit]Diriye was named Al-Shabaab leader in September 2014, after Godane was killed by a U.S. airstrike.[5] Though picked by Godane loyalists, Diriye immediately reached out to insurgent leaders who had been alienated by his leadership, such as Fuad Qalaf and released dozens of Shabaab commanders who had been previously imprisoned under Godane.[3] He began an internal reconciliation process in an attempt to bridge serious divisions that occurred in the previous years.[6] Abdukadir Mohamed Abdukadir unsuccessfully pressured Diriye to switch the groups allegiance from Al-Qaeda to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria during the latter groups rapid rise in 2014. Following his accession to emir, Diriye reiterated the al-Shabaabs allegiance to Al-Qaeda. [3]
In early November 2024, Diriye released a 45-minute speech condemning Ethiopia’s push for naval access to Somalia’s coast and claimed that Ethiopia is in the final stages of preparing to seize Somalia’s waters. He called for the removal of Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and other regional leaders, accusing them of welcoming Ethiopia in Mogadishu, Baidoa, Garowe, and Hargeisa. Diriye stated these leaders had also recognized the Somali Region (Ogaden) as Ethiopian territory. Finally he called on young people across the Horn of Africa to take up arms with Al-Shabaab against Ethiopia.[7]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Abu Ubaidah (Direye) - Wanted". Rewards for Justice. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
- ^ Goldman, David (20 June 2016). "Sheikh Ahmed Umar Abu Ubaidah Aka Ahmed Diriye; Al-Shabaab's Indifferent Takfiri Emir". Strategic Intelligence. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Al Shabaab shake-up". Africa Confidential. 55 (19): 4–5. 25 September 2014.
- ^ "Terrorist Designations of Ahmed Diriye and Mahad Karate". U.S. Department of State. 21 April 2015. Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
- ^ "Somalia Extremist Group Names New Leader". Associated Press. 6 September 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
- ^ "The federation tango". Africa Confidential. 56 (2): 3–5. 23 January 2015.
- ^ Warsame, A (6 November 2024). "Somalia: Al-Shabab's top leader calls for war on Ethiopia". Mareeg. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
