MOGADISHU, Somalia – Somali Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre has called on business owners to arm themselves in order to protect their businesses from the extortion money collected by Al Shabab.
Prime Minister Barre said the money flowing to Al Shabab is a direct threat to Somalia’s security, religious values, and governance. It fuels the violence that continues to take innocent lives in Mogadishu and beyond.
Barre urged businesspeople to purchase government-licensed weapons, instead of paying extortion money, to defend their properties from Al Shabab.
“Businesspeople are being forced to pay money to terrorist groups out of fear for their businesses and lives,” Barre said. “These funds are used to finance terrorism, which only endangers our security.”
He emphasized that financing extremist groups is a serious crime, and anyone found guilty must face legal consequences.
“It’s time for our conscience to be awakened, time to move beyond oppression. We must stop the extremists. The people must rise up and truly free themselves from the enemy,” he said.
Barre also called on the public to support the government in eradicating extremists and their financiers, urging businesspeople not to contribute to the harm of the Somali people.
He condemned those funding terrorists, demanding they overcome their fear and put an end to the financing of extremism.
Al Shabab, an al-Qaeda-linked group, generates as much revenue as the Somali government, according to a report from the Mogadishu-based Hiraal Institute
The group collects revenue through both direct and indirect methods, with businesspeople, government employees, and others paying money out of fear, the Institute said.
Those who refuse are either killed, forced to shut down their businesses, or flee Somalia.
Hiraal adds that the only way to stop funding Al Shabab is by improving the security situation, allowing businesses to operate without interference from the group.
Despite being driven out of Mogadishu in 2011, Al Shabab continues to carry out deadly attacks. For over a decade, they’ve waged war to impose a hardline interpretation of Sharia law in Somalia.
The group still controls significant areas in southern and central Somalia, from where it is reported to launch attacks on military bases and the capital, Mogadishu.
