Somalia: A university don Nageye Ali Khalif defected to Al-Shabaab

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Authorities in Somalia are investigating a university don over allegations that he defected to Al-Shabaab militants recently, at the time the country is fighting the group from various frontlines with assistance from the US Africa Command and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS].

Nageye Ali Khalif, a lecturer at the Somali National University, is said to have joined the Al-Shabaab militants and has been cooperating with them for a while now. Following the tip about his move, investigations are being undertaken to establish the claims.

The lecturer is also a renowned poet and a promoter of the Somali language in the literary world for a while now. According to multiple sources, Khalif is also a trainer of the media, shaping journalists and media practitioners from the national university in Mogadishu.

For some days now, sources said, Khalif has been missing from his home, and throughout his absence, his phones have remained switched off quite uncharacteristic of him. In the coming days, security teams will give an update on the claims.

On the situation of Khalif, his employer; the Somali National University, has declined to give updates on his whereabouts. Al-Shabaab, which recruits professionals and scholars, has also not committed over the latest matter, which is a blow in the fight against violent extremism.

Security analysts in the Horn of Africa believe that Khalif had admired al-Shabab ideology in his recently published book, "Dibadwareeg." In this literature, Khalif revealed visiting areas controlled by al-Shabab, where he claimed to have been warmly ushered in by group members.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has often targeted religious leaders and scholars as one of his strategies to fight Al-Shabaab militants. He says opinion leaders and scholars matter a lot in preaching against violent extremism and religious fundamentalism.

GAROWE ONLINE