Al-Shabaab

Al-Shabaab is a Somali Islamist militant organization that has fought Somalia’s federal government and its allies. It is affiliated with al-Qaeda and has controlled territory in southern and central Somalia.

Insurgency: An organized armed campaign that challenges a state’s authority through irregular warfare. Al-Shabaab uses guerrilla warfare and governance structures to contest Somali state control.
Somali Civil War: The prolonged conflict that began with the collapse of Somalia’s central government in 1991. The war created the fragmented political and security conditions in which Al-Shabaab developed.
Ahmed Abdi Godane: A Somali militant who led Al-Shabaab from 2008 until his death in a 2014 US airstrike. His leadership strengthened central command and secured the group’s public al-Qaeda allegiance.
Mogadishu attacks: Bombings and armed assaults carried out in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, by militant groups. Al-Shabaab has repeatedly attacked government sites, hotels, and other targets in the capital.
Somali refugee crisis: The displacement of Somalis within their country and across international borders by conflict, drought, and other crises. Al-Shabaab’s violence and military campaigns contribute to insecurity and displacement.
Jihadist insurgency: An insurgency whose armed groups justify political violence through militant interpretations of jihad. Al-Shabaab frames its campaign as jihad against Somalia’s government and foreign forces.
Islamic Courts Union: A coalition of Somali Islamic courts that gained control of Mogadishu and much of southern Somalia in 2006. Al-Shabaab grew from the ICU’s armed wing after Ethiopian intervention shattered the coalition’s rule.
Ahmed Umar: A Somali militant, also known as Abu Ubaidah, who became Al-Shabaab’s emir in 2014. He succeeded Godane and has led the organization through changing military pressure.
Westgate shopping mall attack: The 2013 Al-Shabaab attack on Nairobi’s Westgate shopping mall, which killed 67 people. The attack demonstrated the group’s capacity to strike beyond Somalia.
Internally displaced people in Somalia: People forced to leave their homes but who remain within Somalia’s borders. Conflict involving Al-Shabaab has driven repeated displacement inside Somalia.

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