In Somali capital, a jihadist bombing tests a survivor鈥檚 limits
| MOGADISHU, Somalia
When the explosions hit, Abdirahman Abdillahi Qassim, a street seller of gum, sweets, and cigarettes, was being assisted by his 11-year-old son, Ibrahim, near the Ministry of Education in Mogadishu.
The double suicide car bombing on Oct. 29, carried out by the jihadist Al Shabab, claimed more than 130 lives, so Mr. Abdirahman, pulled alive from the rubble, might be considered a fortunate man. Perhaps even more so because, remarkably, he also survived a massive truck bombing at the same Mogadishu market intersection in October 2017.
Yet that prior Al Shabab attack, which killed nearly 500 people, also took the lives of his wife, Faiza Ali Qassim, and their 14-year-old daughter, Amina. And it cost him a leg.
Why We Wrote This
A story focused onNot one suicide bombing, but two. That is what one Somali man survived, remarkably. But his losses have been profound, testing his and Somalia鈥檚 resilience in the face of sustained attacks by Al Shabab jihadis.
This second attack took still more, robbing Mr. Abdirahman of his remaining leg 鈥� and his son.
His brother, Mohamed Abdillahi Qassim, tends to his wounded sibling night and day in a Mogadishu hospital. Tears come to his eyes and his voice cracks when he explains that he has not yet brought himself to tell his brother that Ibrahim did not survive.
Even by the grim standard of Somalia, which has endured 15 years of a heavy-handed and often brutal Al Shabab presence over swaths of its territory 鈥� including numerous lethal attacks against civilians 鈥� the tragedy experienced by Mr. Abdirahman and his family stands out as an especially horrific example of the costs to those living under the prolonged threat of jihadist violence. It is a national and personal saga that has played out while the world has been distracted by other more visible and accessible crises.
Survival has required personal resilience, but the events this family has endured 鈥� alongside the legions of other Somalis whose lives have been violated by the jihadis 鈥撀燼re testing that resilience.
Al Shabab on the defensive
Indeed, one of the few things this Somali family says bring them a measure of happiness anymore is news that Al Shabab 鈥� often considered Al Qaeda鈥檚 most effective local franchise 鈥撀爄s facing increasing losses on the battlefield in central Somalia, as the government vows 鈥渢otal war鈥� and presses a new offensive.
Al Shabab has lost more territory in the past four months than in the previous five years, by some estimates, grimly raising expectations of yet more revenge attacks in the capital. On Sunday, for example, Al Shabab gunmen armed with explosives stormed the Villa Rose hotel, prompting overnight gunbattles and a daylong standoff at the downtown hotel frequented by government officials.
鈥淎nything can happen, at any time,鈥� says Mr. Mohamed, a well-known Somali singer with his own Al Shabab tale to tell. 鈥淎l Shabab are everywhere. They can be sitting with you like a friend,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey can be inside your family.鈥�
The latest attack added to the abhorrence Mr. Abdirahman鈥檚 family feels toward Al Shabab, which has compounded Somalia鈥檚 worst drought in 40 years by destroying water sources and crops in affected areas. The United Nations warns that Somalia is on the cusp of famine, with 1.5 million Somalis facing 鈥渁cute malnutrition.鈥�
Al Shabab claimed responsibility for the deadly bombing, saying the Education Ministry was at the center of a 鈥渨ar on minds鈥� that taught Somali children with a 海角大神-based syllabus, Reuters reported.
Now Mr. Abdirahman spends every day in a hospital bed, weeping as he recovers, his leg stumps bandaged.
鈥淗e has nothing left,鈥� Mr. Mohamed says. 鈥淲hen he lost his wife and daughter, he tried to live again 鈥� and has now lost his son. ... The worst thing is that we can鈥檛 do anything for our brother.鈥�
Jihadis鈥� indiscriminate 鈥渢ools鈥�
In June, a senior Al Shabab leader, Mahad Karate, a former Somali intelligence officer, was asked by U.K. Channel Four鈥檚 Jamal Osman how the group justified killing Somali Muslims while claiming to fight for Islam.
鈥淲e are battling an enemy and killing each other,鈥� he replied. 鈥淏ut due to the tools we are using to kill, there will be consequences not just for our targets, but for others, who are not our targets.鈥�
The result on the ground is that more civilians have died in Al Shabab attacks so far this year than in any year since 2017, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.
鈥淎l Shabab are bad people who know nothing about humanity,鈥� says Mr. Mohamed, adding that the family would leave Somalia 鈥渇orever,鈥� if the chance arose.
In fact, leaving the country for a time was a path already taken by the singer, who today wears a red 鈥淏OSS鈥� baseball hat and a silver ring with a large green stone.
His own trouble with Al Shabab predates his brother鈥檚 losses from the 2017 bomb blast, when he started receiving telephone threats from the jihadis. They said his singing was against Islam.
鈥淭hey called me many times and told me, 鈥業t is haram [forbidden]. What are you doing? Stop,鈥欌�� he recalls. 鈥淪o every time I would go to work, I thought it was my last time.鈥�
That was six years ago, and Mr. Mohamed fled to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, where he stayed until early this year.
Al Shabab is watching
Then a song he made with his band about love and peace was posted on the internet, and it caught Al Shabab鈥檚 attention.
Four months ago, the singer got another call from Al Shabab.
鈥淵ou came back,鈥� the caller said. 鈥淲e know your every move.鈥�
鈥淚鈥檓 very scared,鈥� Mr. Mohamed acknowledges. He has reduced his singing engagements from five nights a week to just one. But he can鈥檛 leave Somalia because of his brother鈥檚 dire condition.
鈥淚 limit my work,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 stay in my house, because I fear for myself. I can鈥檛 afford bodyguards.鈥�
Because of the threats, Mr. Mohamed did move his wife and children to a new town. His former neighbors, he says, appeared to sympathize with Al Shabab against his singing 鈥撀燼nd may have been spying for the group.
Breaking his own safety protocol, Mr. Mohamed gave several interviews on Somali television, saying it was a risk worth taking to get support or government action for his brother鈥檚 case. In those interviews, he stated clearly that Al Shabab was responsible for the intensity of his family鈥檚 grief 鈥撀燼nd for the suffering of so many Somali citizens.
No support came from officials, he says. But neither did the recent broadcasts result in any fresh threats from Al Shabab, now preoccupied with the government鈥檚 offensive.
鈥淣ow they are busy escaping to save themselves鈥� on the battlefield, says Mr. Mohamed, who allows a flicker of a smile at the thought. 鈥淏ut they still have their eyes on you.鈥�
