NISA: Missing spy agent Ikran Tahlil abducted and killed by Al-Shabaab

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The National Intelligence and Security Agency [NISA] has confirmed the death of one of its agents, bringing to an end a dramatic search that has lasted for almost three months, a case that further tarnished FGS credibility.

In a statement, the spy agency under the leadership of Fahad Yasin announced that missing cyber security employee Ikran Tahlil is dead, adding that she had been abdicated by Al-Shabaab militants before being murdered in an undisclosed location in the country.

The spy agency did not give details on how Ikran Tahlil found herself in the hands of Al-Shabaab on the fateful day of June 26, 2021. No further details were given on where her body was recovered or even whether it actually found the body.

According to NISA, after a period of follow-up by a number of spies, they obtained a report that showed that she was handed over to the ruthless Al-Shabaab terrorists, then killed. It did not explain the circumstances behind the abduction.

The spy agency, NISA says it has already handed over the details of the Ikran case to the relevant authorities for further investigations and actions. The agency said it has also shared information with the family of the deceased agent.

But in what could complicate the case, her mother, Qali Mohamud, said she doesn't believe that her daughter was in the hands of Al-Shabaab. She said Ikran was kept in a secret location in Mogadishu since her disappearance by her colleagues in NISA.

Early this week, the mother had requested Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble to update the family about the matter, as she accused Fahad Yasin and his team of "doing little" to explain to the family what might have happened or even searching for her.

Footage posted on social media showed Ikran riding a car said to be owned by NISA from her house near NISA headquarters in the evening of June 26 at around 8:00 PM, where she stayed since returning from the UK.

Questions have been asked on her disappearance, key among them on how the abductors accused the highly protected area. The deceased used to stay almost near the headquarters mounted with CCTV cameras.

Opposition presidential Candidate Abdirahman Abdishakur described the reported abduction of a NISA officer by Al-Shabaab inside the spy agency's HQs as an "unbelievable story", saying it showed co-operation between the two sides.

Throughout all this time, neither the agency nor government bureaucrats have spoken about her whereabouts until today. In fact, the family kept camping that various government headquarters pushing for justice for their missing daughter.

After joining NISA in 2017, Ikran also worked as an assistant to late Mogadishu Mayor Eng Yarisow who was killed in a suicide attack in his office by a blind female suicide bomber. The deceased Mayor was popular in Somalia.

Multiple sources also claimed that she had explosive information about thousands of Somali young soldiers who were recruited and taken to Eritrea for training. The government only admitted that the soldiers were in Asmara following pressure from their parents and opposition leaders.

Also, the United Nations Special Rapporteur to Eritrea confirmed the presence of Somali soldiers in Eritrea, adding that there were reports that some crossed over to Ethiopia where they fought in Tigray. These claims were denied by Addis Ababa, Asmara, and Mogadishu.

Her disappearance and subsequent death could expose the government further, despite the latest reports linking Al-Shabaab to the incident. The family insists Al-Shabaab has nothing to do with the death of the cyber security expert in NISA.

GAROWE ONLINE