Al-Shabab, which means “the youth” in Arabic, has been banned by Somalia‘s ministry of religious affairs. Instead, the public is asked to refer to the militant group as “Khawarij,” a term that denotes a heretical sect.
The ministry forbade clergy from communicating with or meeting with the militants affiliated with al-Qaeda in a statement.
It was to be referred to as “Khawarij,” according to the authorities, as part of the campaign against the organisation. The Somali government had referred to al-Shabab under several names before.
The militant group was to be referred to as “Ugus” in 2015, which is a Somali acronym for “the group that butchers the Somali people.”
Al-Shabab has responded by threatening to punish anyone who followed government orders or used the phrase, including journalists. Recall that the Somali Government banned local media outlets last month from covering al-Shabab actions.
This development comes after at least five people were killed and 11 others wounded when a suicide bomber detonated explosives at the front gate of a military training camp in Mogadishu on Saturday evening.
The al-Shabab militants group claimed responsibility for the attack at the camp that has been targeted multiple times in the past.
Between 2011 and 2013, a coalition which mostly consisted of East African forces, led by the Somali government, wrested a significant amount of territory from al-Shabaab, including the capital city, Mogadishu.
During the same period, the group was plagued by internal conflicts over its leadership and ideological direction, which intensified when, in February 2012, al-Shabaab’s leadership pledged allegiance to al-Qaeda. It suffered further military losses in 2014, as a result of Operation Indian Ocean, and the killing of its emir, Ahmed Abdi Godane, in an American drone strike, as well as the killing of other leaders.
For several years thereafter, al-Shabaab retreated from the major cities, but it remained influential in many rural areas, and it prioritised guerrilla and terror attacks over territorial acquisitions.