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Al-Shabaab

Location:

Somalia
Type:

Foreign Terrorist Organization
Formation:

2006

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Al-Shabaab (also known as Harakat Shabaab al-Mujahidin) is a Somali terrorist group with connections to Al-Qaeda. Al-Shabaab is responsible for several large terrorist attacks across Somalia, Kenya, and Djibouti, including the 2013 Westgate Mall Attack, a 2014 attack in Djibouti at the La Chaumière restaurant, and the 2015 Garissa Massacre in Kenya. 1

Al-Shabaab has a history of recruiting United States citizens, with reports suggesting that between 30 and 40 American citizens have fought for the terrorist group in Africa including 15 who died while fighting with Al-Shabaab. 2  3 The U.S. State Department designated Al-Shabaab as a foreign terrorist organization in 2008. 1 In 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury joined the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC) in designating 15 individuals as terrorists belonging to Al-Shabaab. 4

Several American citizens have been convicted of providing material support for Al-Shabaab or recruiting members for the organization. 5  6

Background

Al-Shabaab is the militant wing of the Somali Council of Islamic Courts that took over most of southern Somalia in 2006. Despite the group’s defeat by Somali and Ethiopian forces in 2007, Al-Shabaab has continued insurgent terrorist activities in southern and central Somalia. The group has exerted temporary and sustained control over strategic locations in those areas by recruiting regional terrorist clans and their militias, using guerrilla warfare and terrorist tactics against the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS), African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) peacekeepers, and nongovernmental aid organizations. Since 2011, pressure from AMISOM and Ethiopian forces has decreased Al-Shabaab’s control, especially in Mogadishu, and conflict among senior leadership has fragmented the mission and activity of the group. In 2013, Al-Shabaab leadership rivalries culminated in a major purge of opponents of now-deceased group leader Ahmed Abdi Aw-Mohamed. 1

According to the U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Al-Shabaab is not a centralized terrorist organization with one established goal. Rather, the group recruits members from different clans across Somalia, which makes the group susceptible to internal division and shifting allegiances. Many of its fighters are more interested in controlling Somalia and waging battle against the FGS and do not support the call to global jihad. Al-Shabaab’s senior leaders remain affiliated with Al-Qaeda. The collaboration between the two groups was publicly announced in February 2012 by the amir of Al-Shabaab and Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Al-Qaeda. DNI reported in 2025 that since losing four of its central leaders since September 2014, Al-Shabaab has likely decreased its level of communication with Al-Qaeda leadership. 1

Terrorist Activities

In addition to its insurgency against the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) since its formation in 2006, Al-Shabaab has also claimed responsibility for many bombings, including various types of suicide attacks, in Mogadishu and in central and northern Somalia, typically targeting Somali government officials, African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) peacekeepers, and perceived allies of the FGS. Since 2013, Al-Shabaab has also launched high-profile operations in neighboring countries. 1 Since 2007, Al-Shabaab has carried out nearly 550 terrorist attacks, killing more than 1,600 and wounding more than 2,100. 7 In 2023, the United Nations Security Council imposed a number of sanctions against Al-Shabaab for its terrorism. 8

2013 Westgate Mall Attack

On September 21, 2013, several gunmen attacked the Westgate Mall in Nairobi, Kenya. After a four-day standoff, Kenyan officials indicated that the site of the attack was secured by Kenyan armed forces. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack which killed 67 Kenyan and non-Kenyan nationals, and wounded over 100. 7  1

Al-Shabaab has maintained an active social media presence throughout its history and livestreamed the Westgate Mall attack on its Twitter account. During the attack, one of the gunmen shouted from the mall rooftop, “In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. We’ve come to kill you Christians and Kenyans for what you are doing in Somalia.” 9

2014 Djibouti Attack

On May 24, 2014, a Somali terrorist and his female companion detonated suicide vests hidden under their clothes while dining at La Chaumière, a restaurant in Djibouti’s capital popular with tourists and Western military personnel. The attack killed a Turkish national and wounded eleven international soldiers. The attack injured 20 people. Three days later, Al-Shabaab claimed credit for the attack, explaining that it “targeted a restaurant frequented predominantly by French Crusaders and their NATO allies from the U.S., Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.” This attack constituted the first suicide bombing in Djibouti’s history. 10  11

2015 Garissa Massacre

On April 2nd, 2015, several gunmen and suicide bombers attacked Garissa University in eastern Kenya, near the border with Somalia. The terrorists killed 147 and injured 79 before detonating suicide vests when cornered by security. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack. The Garissa attack killed mainly Christian students. 12  1

Other Terrorist Activities

Al-Shabaab is responsible for the assassination of Somali peace activists, international aid workers, numerous civil society figures, and journalists, and for blocking the delivery of aid from some Western relief agencies during the 2011 famine that killed tens of thousands of Somalis.” 1

Activity in the United States

Recruitment of U.S. Citizens

In addition to its recruitment of regional members, Al-Shabaab also has a history of recruiting United States citizens to its terrorist activities. In 2011, the United States House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security reported that more than 40 Americans and 20 Canadians had fought with Al-Shabaab, and that at least 15 of those volunteers had been killed in Somalia. 13 Later that year, a U.S. military official told the New York Times that about 30 U.S. citizens were Al-Shabaab fighters. 14

Terrorist Designation and Sanctions

In March 2008, the U.S. State Department designated Al-Shabaab as a foreign terrorist organization, citing that many of the group’s senior leaders, explosives experts, operations plotters, and Kenya-based cell leaders were already Specially Designated Global Terrorists. 1

In 2011, the U.S. Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on Somali humanitarian relief organizations for their support of Al-Shabaab. The Treasury published a frequently asked questions sheet advising American citizens on how to avoid their charitable donations ending up in the hands of Al-Shabaab. 15

In 2025, the United States Department of the Treasury joined the Terrorist Financing Targeting Center (TFTC) in designating 15 individuals as terrorists belonging to Al-Shabaab. The list included Al-Shabaab commanders, operatives, and financial facilitators. The Treasury announced the designation to enhance international cooperation against terrorist financing between the United States and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member nations of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. 4

Convictions

In 2011, two Somali Americans in Minnesota were convicted of illegally financing Al-Shabaab. 5

In 2013, Mohamed Ibrahim Ahmed was sentenced to 111 months in federal prison for conspiring to provide material support to, and receiving military-type training from Al-Shabaab. 16 In 2019, Ahmed was convicted of additional crimes, including attempting to provide material support to ISIS, a designated foreign terrorist organization, and making a false statement to the FBI. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Ahmed recruited at least five inmates to join ISIS and to conduct terrorist acts in the United States after their release from federal custody, telling them that he was aligned with ISIS and supported Al-Shabaab and Al-Qaeda. 6

In 2025, Minnesotan Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan pled guilty to attempting to provide material support and resources to the Islamic State and Al-Shabaab. 17

U.S. Strikes

In 2008, the United States carried out a missile strike against Al-Shabaab, killing the group’s leader, Aden Hashi Ayro. 18

In September 2025, the United States Africa Command conducted a drone strike in Badhan, Somalia targeting Al-Shabaab coordinated with the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS). The United States claimed the strike killed a prominent Al-Shabaab weapons dealer, a claim that Al-Shabaab denied. Al-Shabaab claimed the attack was one in a line of U.S. attacks against Somalians, including a 2016 drone strike the U.S. initially claimed killed 13 Al-Shabaab members. It was later revealed that the victims were pro-Somalian government forces. 19  20

References

  1. “AL-SHABAAB.” Director of National Intelligence, Counterterrorism Guide. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.dni.gov/nctc/groups/al_shabaab.html
  2. Pelofsky, Jeremy. “Al Shabaab recruited dozens of Americans: U.S. report.” Reuters. July 27, 2011. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-security-somalia-idUSTRE76Q58M20110727/
  3. Ibrahim, Mohamed and Kron, Josh. “African Union Peacekeepers Killed in Somalia Battle.” New York Times. October 22, 2011. Accessed Spetember 30, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/22/world/africa/african-union-takes-casualties-in-somalia-but-numbers-vary.html
  4. “Terrorist Financing Targeting Center Designates Al-Shabaab Networks in Somalia.” U.S. Department of the Treasury. April 14, 2025. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0084
  5. Sterman, David. “Al-Shabaab backed by money from US.” The Herald. September 30, 2013. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.heraldonline.co.zw/al-shabaab-backed-by-money-from-us/
  6. “Federal Inmate Convicted of Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS.” U.S. Department of Justice. December 13, 2019. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/federal-inmate-convicted-attempting-provide-material-support-isis
  7. “Background Report: Al-Shabaab Attack on Westgate Mall in Kenya.” START. September 2013. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.start.umd.edu/sites/default/files/publications/local_attachments/STARTBackgroundReport_alShabaabKenya_Sept2013.pdf
  8. “Security Council Committee pursuant to resolution 2713 (2023) concerning Al-Shabaab.” United Nations Security Council. 2023. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/sanctions/2713
  9. Fassrainer, Victoria. “Tweeting Terror Live Al-Shabaab’s Use of Twitter during the Westgate Attack and Implications for Counterterrorism Communications.” Army University Press, Military Review. March/April 2020. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.armyupress.army.mil/Journals/Military-Review/English-Edition-Archives/March-April-2020/Fassrainer-Tweet-Terror/
  10. Appel, Henry and Gartenstein-Ross, Daveed.“Al-Shabaab Strikes in Djibouti.” War on the Rocks. June 3, 2014 https://warontherocks.com/2014/06/al-shabaab-strikes-in-djibouti/
  11. “Chapter 2. Country Reports: Africa Overview.” U.S. Department of State. 2014. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/ct/rls/crt/2014/239404.htm
  12. “Al-Shabaab Attack on Garissa University in Kenya.” START. 2015. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.start.umd.edu/publication/al-shabaab-attack-garissa-university-kenya
  13. Pelofsky, Jeremy. “Al Shabaab recruited dozens of Americans: U.S. report.” Reuters. July 27, 2011. Accessed September 28, 2025. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-security-somalia-idUSTRE76Q58M20110727/
  14. Ibrahim, Mohamed and Kron, Josh. “African Union Peacekeepers Killed in Somalia Battle.” New York Times. October 22, 2011. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/22/world/africa/african-union-takes-casualties-in-somalia-but-numbers-vary.html
  15. “Somalia Sanctions.” U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control. August 4, 2011. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://ofac.treasury.gov/faqs/topic/1561
  16. “Al Shabaab Operative Sentenced In Manhattan Federal Court To 111 Months In Prison For Conspiring To Support And Receive Military-Type Training From A Foreign Terrorist Organization.” March 27, 2013. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/al-shabaab-operative-sentenced-manhattan-federal-court-111-months-prison-conspiring
  17. Karnowski, Steve. “Minnesota man pleads guilty to attempting to join Islamic State group.” ABC News. September 29, 2025. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/minnesota-man-pleads-guilty-attempting-join-islamic-state-126052287
  18. “Al Shabaab (Terrorist Group in Somalia).” EBSCO. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/political-science/al-shabaab-terrorist-group-somalia
  19. “U.S. Forces Conduct Strike Targeting al Shabaab.” United States Africa Command. September 13, 2025. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.africom.mil/pressrelease/35995/us-forces-conduct-strike-targeting-al-shabaab
  20. “Al-Shabaab dismisses US claim of killing weapons dealer in Somolia drone strike.” Somali Guardian. September 18, 2025. Accessed September 30, 2025. https://www.somaliguardian.com/news/somalia-news/al-shabaab-dismisses-us-claim-of-killing-weapons-dealer-in-somalia-drone-strike/
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