Somalia: US reveals Al-Shabaab's weapons trafficking network

NAIROBI, Kenya - After exposing a number of Al-Shabaab financiers, the US Department of Treasury has revealed tactics used by the Al-Qaeda-linked group to traffic weapons, in what could assist Somalia and neighboring countries to tame the militants, who control large swathes of rural central and southern Somalia.

According to the department, investigations indicate that one Mohamed Hussein Salad, Ahmed Hasan Ali Sulaiman Mataan, and Mohamed Ali Badaas are part of an al-Shabaab smuggling and weapons trafficking network in Yemen, a country which is also undergoing turbulent moments.

The network members, the department noted in detailed explanation, have served as representatives for terrorists, criminals, and weapons dealers from Somalia, some of whom were middlemen. It's from these middlemen that the weapons are delivered to desired destinations.

Records revealed by the department of treasury show that in early 2018, Salad received payment for a shipment of weapons for al-Shabaab that included 15 PK machine guns, about 80 AK-47s, and nearly a dozen boxes of grenades, ammunition, and military uniforms used by the Somali security forces.

Al-Shabaab intended to use the uniforms to confuse people and facilitate entry into guarded installations. Mataan was the owner of the vessel used for the shipment, the department claimed, in the shocking revelation which comes at the time Somalia has heightened the fight against Al-Shabaab.

Between 2017 and 2020, Mataan owned dhows — sailboats used for regional trade and capable of carrying heavy loads — that took supplies for al-Shabaab militants to Somalia. In 2017, Mataan and al-Shabaab reached an agreement to transport weapons, improvised explosive device [IED] equipment, and ammunition and small arms to Somalia.

Mataan was a Somali businessman who primarily profited from trafficking weapons and facilitating criminal groups. Mataan operated a fleet of more than half a dozen boats and a single shipment paid approximately $15,000.

As of late 2021, al-Shabaab placed an order with Mataan for weapons and IED materials from Yemen. Mataan procured the weapons from a Yemeni weapons dealer and, in preparation for the shipment, a boat owned by Mataan arrived in Somalia to carry illegal seafood, including fish and lobster, to Yemen.

As of early 2022, a dhow owned by Mataan departed Yemen with a shipment of weapons intended for al-Shabaab members in central Somalia. Salad was involved with facilitating the weapons shipment to Somalia, the report by the department averred.

Mataan and Salad were business partners who jointly owned a boat used in a shipment for al­Shabaab. The shipment carried weapons, including AK-47s and shoulder-fired missiles, ammunition, and food and military uniforms typically worn by the Somali military.

On his part, Salad has also been in contact with at least two companies that engage in illegal, unreported, and unregulated [IUU] fishing. These companies were part of a forced labor fishing operation, and the contact with a prominent arms trafficker may provide a preliminary nexus between IUU fishing and arms trafficking networks.

Over the course of five years, Salad received more than $700,000 in remittances from Puntland-based arms importers. Salad is a key intermediary in facilitating the transport of arms consignments from Yemeni suppliers to Puntland purchasers.

As of late 2018, Salad owned a boat transporting a shipment of weapons, including AK-47s, hand grenades, pistols, ammunition, and materials for making IEDs, for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant branch in Somalia (ISIS-Somalia). The supplies for this shipment were purchased through Badaas. In mid-2019, Mataan also sold a weapons shipment to ISIS-Somalia.

Badaas is an al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula [AQAP[ member and is part of an al-Shabaab smuggling and weapons trafficking network in Yemen. Badaas has facilitated a shipment of ammunition from Yemen for al-Shabaab militants.

In 2018, Badaas purchased a weapons consignment for al-Shabaab that included more than 30 anti-vehicle land mines, a dozen rocket-propelled grenades [RPG]-9s, RPG-7s, nearly 50 AK-47s, several PK machine guns, sniper rifles, Makarov pistols, rifle silencers, and rifle scopes.

As of 2017, Badaas was one of the most important AQAP commanders in the Shabwah region of Yemen. Badaas was responsible for monitoring personnel movements, smuggling operations, and managing AQAP members. Since at least 2015, Badaas has been a road guide for AQAP and facilitated travel for AQAP leaders throughout Shabwah, Yemen.

Salad, Mataan, and Badaas are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, al-Shabaab.

Concurrent with Treasury’s designations, the U.S. Department of State designated the following individuals who hold leadership roles within al-Shabaab: Mohamed Mire, Yasir Jiis, Yusuf Ahmed Hajji Nurow, Mustaf ‘Ato, and Mohamoud Abdi Aden pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended.

The latest report also comes at the time Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has warned businesses against parting the money with Al-Shabaab, noting that those found culpable will have their business licenses canceled. The country has made steady victories against the group in recent months.

GAROWE ONLINE