The Islamist militia had earlier shown defiance by convening a large conference which its commander Abu Ubaydah addressed even though such gatherings normally invite attack by United States drones...
Abu Ubaydah gave a 35-minute video interview to Al Kataib the group's media outlet confirming the organisation was ready throughout the region for any offensive...
US sources claimed that Nadir was number two to current Al Shabaab leader Abu Ubaydah...
Other sources told Africa Confidential that Nadir was probably not Abu Ubaydah's immediate deputy but was certainly very close to him...
Those two Al Qaida affiliates played a major role in helping consolidate the power of Ahmed Godane the previous Shabaab leader – killed by the US in 2014 – and current leader Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' (AC Vol 58 No 18 The split that never was)...
Al Shabaab leader Abu Ubaydah could not countenance the merest questioning of his leadership let alone a split...
Al Shabaab's leader Abu Ubaydah made a major speech on jihadist broadcast media on 18 May marking the beginning of Ramadan and setting out his political stall scotching rumours of his death...
Abu Ubaydah's speech offers an update on his style of leadership of the Al Qaeda-affiliate and Al Shabaab's strategy...
Analysts suggest that although Abu Ubaydah is known as a Koranic teacher he could not have written the speech by himself because he is not thought to have enough Islamic academic expertise to be able to comment as he did on Ibn Taymiyyah a medieval scholar revered by modern Salafists...
Abu Ubaydah declared that Ramadan was not only time for worshipping but also time for Jihad a point made by all Jihadists...
Heavy priceAlthough the US's Africa Command and the Somali government claim that Al Shabaab was severely weakened Abu Ubaydah reminded that over the last few months his movement had been able to kill over 100 African Mission in Somalia (Amisom) and Somali soldiers which is believed to be true...
Abu Ubaydah had predictable words for President Mohamed Abdullah Mohamed 'Farmajo' repeating Farmajo's own admission that the Somali National Army does not know what it is fighting for...
Abu Ubaydah made another important point to support his anti-government stance: he described the diaspora politicians who populate Parliament and the government as mere mercenaries...
The main strategy of the Somali government today is to force militants to choose between Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' the Al Shabaab leader who took over from Godane in September 2014 and President Farmajo...
The main strategy of the Somali government today is to force militants to choose between Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' the Al Shabaab leader who took over from Godane in September 2014 and President Farmajo...
The main strategy of the Somali government today is to force militants to choose between Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' the Al Shabaab leader who took over from Godane in September 2014 and President Farmajo...
The concentration of attacks in Lower Juba may owe much to the fact that Al Shabaab's leader Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' (Dir/Bajamal) is from the area...
The concentration of attacks in Lower Juba may owe much to the fact that Al Shabaab's leader Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' (Dir/Bajamal) is from the area...
The concentration of attacks in Lower Juba may owe much to the fact that Al Shabaab's leader Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' (Dir/Bajamal) is from the area...
Shabaab – weak and not weakThe internal reconciliation process undertaken by the new leader of Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' aka Mahad Omar Abdikarim went nowhere and his failure to reintegrate key cadres in the movement proves that his leadership is not accepted by some of the old guard...
Shabaab – weak and not weakThe internal reconciliation process undertaken by the new leader of Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' aka Mahad Omar Abdikarim went nowhere and his failure to reintegrate key cadres in the movement proves that his leadership is not accepted by some of the old guard...
Shabaab – weak and not weakThe internal reconciliation process undertaken by the new leader of Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' aka Mahad Omar Abdikarim went nowhere and his failure to reintegrate key cadres in the movement proves that his leadership is not accepted by some of the old guard...
Shabaab – weak and not weakThe internal reconciliation process undertaken by the new leader of Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen Ahmed Omar Diriye 'Abu Obeida' aka Mahad Omar Abdikarim went nowhere and his failure to reintegrate key cadres in the movement proves that his leadership is not accepted by some of the old guard...
While in some areas its activities are less prominent than last year Al Shabaab seems to be focusing on Jubaland because that is Abu Obeida's homeland and because the cost of intervening is increasingly high for Kenya (despite the business deals made by some of its politicians and officers in Kismayo)...
Also at the Hamas-Iran Coordination Meeting are Usama Hamdan Hamas Secretary for International Relations who is based in Lebanon and Abu Obeida Mohamed listed as Hamas Representative in Sudan...
This must be Omar Abu Obeida says an intelligence source: born in Khan Yunis Gaza he was for years Hamas representative in Yemen although he lived in Sudan before that...
Abu Obeida (sometimes spelled Ebada or Abada) is a nom de guerre another intelligence source told us...
The online Sudanese newspaper Sudan Tribune wrote in February 2004 that Omar Abu Obeida had arrived in Khartoum as the 'new representative' of Hamas a month earlier 'but could not start work until he presented his credentials to' President Omer...
Godane's loyalists quickly chose the new Emir Mahad Omar Abdikarim aka Ahmed Omar Abu Obeida...
Godane's loyalists quickly chose the new Emir Mahad Omar Abdikarim aka Ahmed Omar Abu Obeida...
Abu Obeida a cousin and close advisor of Godane was a founding father of the Amniyat and was also instrumental in Godane's purges of dissenting Shabaab leaders...
Within days of Godane's death Abu Obeida had met and made up with Fuad Mohamed Khalaf 'Shongole' a ruthless Shabaab warlord whose loyalty to Godane was tested when the former Emir captured Sheikh Hassan Dahir 'Aweys' who had been the Islamist militia's spiritual leader...
Abu Obeida also released about 30 mid-level commanders and foreign fighters from Al Shabaab dungeons in the coastal town of Barawe...
Ikrima who was targeted by US Navy Seals in a failed strike in Barawe last year is understood to be pressuring Abu Obeida to shift his allegiance from Al Qaida's Egyptian leader Ayman al Zawahiri to Ibrahim ibn Awad al Samarrai aka Abu Bakr al Baghdadi of IS...
After Abu Obeida's elevation Al Shabaab re-affirmed its links to Al Qaida but it is likely that Ikrima and his allies may already be operating a separate internationalist network within Al Shabaab...
It may not be under Abu Obeida's control...
