US offers $5 million for Al-Shabaab bomb expert and media wing head

MOGADISHU, Somalia -  The United States has stepped up in pursuing top Al-Shabaab leaders, with the latest being the group's media coordinator, who is tasked with the generation and dissemination of propaganda, a tool effectively used to mislead and misinform members of the public.

For decades, the group has been using al-kataib, the media wing when communicating to the public, often giving periodical updates on raids carried across the country, with most being manufactured propaganda for the benefit of Al-Shabaab's operations across the country.

State Department designated Abdullahi Osman Mohamed alias Engineer Ismail, who is also the group's head of explosives [Improvised Explosive Devices [IEDs] and the special advisor to Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Umar alias Abu Ubaidah, the man who is also on trial by the US.

"Abdullahi Osman Mohamed alias Engineer Ismail is the senior explosives expert for the Al-Shabaab terrorists. He is also the leader of the group's media wing, al-kataib, and special advisor for the group's leader Ahmed Umar alias Abu Ubaidah," the State Department said.

Whoever will help with information leading to the arrest of the militant, the United States added, will receive a $5 million bounty, which is given by the Department of State. Engineer Ismail becomes one of the many Al-Shabaab leaders who have a bounty on their heads and are yet to be located.

For instance, the US doubled the bounty on Ahmed Umar Abu Ubaidah to $10 million after it emerged that he was still the defacto group leader. His assistant and the group's Finance Controller Mahad Karate is also being sought, but despite a concerted effort to have them arrested, they still remain at large.

Al-Shabaab has been carrying out attacks on members of the public, security forces, and innocent civilians with the latest being a target at Pearl Hotel, which left at least nine people dead. A few weeks ago, the militants also attacked the Uganda People's Defense Forces [UPDF] Forward Operating Base in Bulo Marer killing 54 soldiers.

In 2014, a US-coordinated airstrike left the then Al-Shabaab leader Ahmed Godan dead, and for several years, Washington has been executing airstrikes in the country, including the most recent at Bulo Marer and Jilib towns respectively. The US is also a seasoned partner of the federal government of Somalia in the Al-Shabaab crackdown.

Al-Shabaab has been fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia for several years but combined military operations against the group have yielded fruits, including but not limited to the liberation of strategic towns and ancient villages in the country. The Horn of Africa nation is scheduled for the second phase of operations against the Al-Shabaab. 

GAROWE ONLINE