Somalia’s semi-autonomous state Puntland on Saturday killed 10 fighters of the Islamist militant group al Shabaab.Al-Shabab, an al-Qaeda-affiliated Islamist militant group, emerged in the early 2000s to establish an Islamic state in Somalia. Somalia has been plagued by instability for more than two decades, lacking a functional national government and seeing widespread conflict.
The execution by firing squad in Galkayo in the Mudug region of the state followed the trial of the fighters in a military court where they were sentenced to death for their involvement in killings and bombings at several places in Galkayo.
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The killed fighters “had previously been sentenced to death by the supreme court of the armed forces after they were found guilty of carrying out killings in the town of Galkayo,” AFP quoted police as saying.
Al-Shabab initially won support by promising to provide security to the population. However, its reputation suffered a major blow when it refused Western food aid during the devastating drought and famine of 2011, further exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in the country.
Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgents have been fighting for nearly two decades with the aim of overthrowing Somalia’s central government and establishing their own rule based on the group’s strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law.
Al-Shabab suicide bombers and gunmen attacked a busy beach in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Saturday, killing 37 people and wounding many more, officials said, in one of the deadliest attacks in the east African country in recent months.
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Last month in June, five people were killed in a powerful car bomb blast at a cafe in the capital.In March, militants killed three people and wounded 27 in an hours-long siege of another hotel in Mogadishu, bringing a relative lull in the fighting.
