Al-Shabaab executes two men by firing squad in southern Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Somalia-based Al-Shabaab militants on Tuesday executed two people in Lower Jubba, in the latest killings targeted people believed to be against their divisive agenda aimed at taking over the Horn of Africa nation.

The execution took place at Jamame District in Lower Jubba, where the militants have almost absolute control. The two men, reports indicate, were accused by the militants of being sorcerers, and or, serving in government, a claim that could not be established.

The two, Mohamed Mowlid Aden and Abdullahi Hassan Omar, were accused of being government soldiers and sorcerers respectively by the Al-Qaida linked group. Witnesses say they were executed in front of at least 100 locals from the region.

According to reports, both men have lived in Jamame, a farming community some 70 km [43 miles] north of Kismayo, the interim administrative capital of Jubaland. Kismayo was one time an Al-Shabaab stronghold before being liberated by AMISOM troops in 2012.

This is not an isolated incident given that Al-Shabaab has in the past executed several men in the past, either by beheading or firing squad, in districts across the south and central Somalia where it has absolute control.

For almost 14 years, both the Somali National Army [SNA] and AMISOM troops have been fighting to dislodge the militant insurgency group from parts of Somalia's fertile areas. The group uses strategic regions to extort taxes from locals.

Usually, Al-Shabaab does not give victims access to their legal counsels and instead, it tries and executes them without being heard. It's this strategy that has led to the death of dozens of people who are condemned unheard.

GAROWE ONLINE