The Somali based Al-Qaeda affiliated Al-Shabaab militant group has in the past few days executed at least 24 people for alleged espionage activities on the group.
Those executed have been accused of spying for Kenyan, Somalian and US intelligence.
Most of the recent executions have taken place in the southern regions of Somalia, where Al-Shabaab militants enjoy control of territories.
The executions are also carried out in public spaces in order to intimidate local residents besides instilling them with fear not to collaborate with government and partner forces.
Al-Shabaab often has executed even its own fighters on basis of spying and passing intelligence to the Somali forces and subsequently leading to precision airstrikes targeting these commanders by AFRICOM assets in country’s southern region.
Military intelligence reports from Somalia have confirmed of instances of violent skirmishes in Jiliib, Al-Shabaab’s headquarters where group’s commanders have accused each other on successful AFRICOM airstrikes targeting top intelligence and military commanders in the groups’ bastions, specifically southern and central Somalia.
There is an imminent rift within Al-Shabaab top leadership. One group (the Amniyaat, the intelligence wing of A-lShabaab) has reportedly accused the other of covertly meeting with representatives of President Farmaajo in an effort to negotiate for a political truce and subsequent de-escalation by the terror group.
Military intelligence reports indicate that in the past few months, Al-Shabaab’s activities especially in the capital Mogadishu and its outskirts have significantly declined. This is after Amniyaat accused the other group of sharing locations of terrorist safe-houses, weaponry safes and groups operations around the Mogadishu, an outcome that has crippled the groups capability to mount large scale attacks.
This suspicion within the high-ranking field and intelligence commanders of the terror group will possibly lead to violent confrontations in the coming days besides a rift within the topmost governing organ; Shura Council.
The suspicions and violent confrontations further will possibly culminate into divisions at the governing council and subsequent morphing to a whole different extremist outfit.
