Al Shabab

Shabab was founded as a Sharia militia in Mogadishu in the 1990s and was then a powerful force in southern Somalia. This short-lived Islamic court confederation briefly controlled the capital until Ethiopian forces invaded in December 2006. It operated as an extremist unit. It was a small but effective fighting force whose leaders included dedicated jihadists who had served with the Mujahideen in Afghanistan. Until the Ethiopian occupation, the group was under the command of Hassan Dahir Aweiz, a key figure in the Union of Islamic Courts.

The group is currently the most powerful and best-funded in Somalia, controlling the largest area in the south of the country. The movement is led by Somalian Ahmed Abdi Godane and supported by a 10-member shura (council). However, the autonomy of individual cells allows regional leaders to pursue their strategies. The organization maintains two branches: a military wing, Jaysh al-Usra (Army of Toughness), and a law and order wing, Jaysh al-Hesba (Army of Morale). Although foreign fighters also participate, Shabaab's vision of jihad is regional rather than global, reminiscent of al-Ittihad in the 1990s.

Shabaab uses Salafi Wahhabism in areas it controls as a means of "social change" to overcome local clan divisions. Similar to his ICU in 2006, this organization has provided some level of service to the local population and provided justice through Sharia courts. In Baidoa, the seat of the TFG parliament, Shabaab also met with local community leaders, held a public meeting, and negotiated a peaceful takeover with local elders. Following Ethiopia's intervention in December 2006, the Union of Islamic Courts was successfully expelled and the country's governing bodies relocated to Eritrea. The settlement of Shabab merged with Somalia's interior but was quickly restructured. This group became the primary resistance to Ethiopian rule. In this way, the Shabaab has evolved from a militancy of political leaders running on a militia to an autonomous, organized militia acting as the central unit of an armed liberation struggle.

Some of Shabaab's younger and emerging leaders were more interested in al-Qaeda than their traditional allegiances. The group evolved into a more radical Islamist movement and enjoyed widespread support among the Somali population during this period, with many Somalis appalled by its harsh interpretation of Islam and ties to groups such as al-Qaeda. It gained support even among people. With the backing of a vast majority of Somalis, Shabaabs took advantage of his position as the leader of an anti-Muslim uprising against Ethiopia's military occupation. Why is it important to distinguish between populist militias and terrorist organizations?

With the rise of Shabaab, Somalia was reportedly at risk of becoming an "alarming location" for Al-Qaeda in 2009. This matter is significant because we are back. This assumption is questionable, but its prevalence itself is fueling ongoing conflict. The term "terrorism" absolutizes the conflict between the parties in Somalia and precludes any possibility of reconciliation. This polarization contrasts with the successful Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) negotiations in Sudan between the Khartoum government and the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in 2003, in which international mediators treated both the government and the rebels as entities with legitimate political grievances.