# Inside Al-Shabaab (2018) by Harun Maruf and Dan Joseph: the history of the movement

> Harun Maruf and Dan Joseph's Inside Al-Shabaab (2018): who wrote it, its sources, what it covers from 2006 on, and what academic reviewers said.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/books/inside-al-shabaab-maruf/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## The book

**Inside Al-Shabaab: The Secret History of Al-Qaeda's Most Powerful Ally** was published by Indiana University Press in October 2018 ([Abbey's](https://www.abbeys.com.au/book/inside-al-shabaab-the-secret-history-of-al-qaedas-most-powerful-ally.do); [QBD](https://www.qbd.com.au/inside-al-shabaab/dan-joseph/9780253037497)). Its authors are **[Harun Maruf](/en/people/harun-maruf/)**, a Somali journalist and senior editor at the Voice of America (VOA) Somali Service, and **Dan Joseph**, head of VOA's Africa desk ([Abbey's](https://www.abbeys.com.au/book/inside-al-shabaab-the-secret-history-of-al-qaedas-most-powerful-ally.do)).

## About the authors

Harun Maruf was born in Somalia and reported from there for the Associated Press and the [BBC Somali Service](/en/society/bbc-somali/) before joining VOA, where he became a senior editor of the Somali Service ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harun_Maruf)). He holds a master's degree in international journalism from City, University of [London](/en/diaspora/london/). In 2020 Somalia's [National Intelligence and Security Agency](/en/institutions/nisa/) publicly accused him of security links; Amnesty International and the US Embassy in Somalia criticised the agency's statement ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harun_Maruf); [Garowe Online](https://garoweonline.com/en/news/somalia/somalias-spy-agency-nisa-targets-voa-reporter-terms-him-danger-to-national-security)).

## What it covers

The book traces al-Shabaab from its beginnings through its rise, decline and resurgence, and examines its links with al-Qaeda ([Abbey's](https://www.abbeys.com.au/book/inside-al-shabaab-the-secret-history-of-al-qaedas-most-powerful-ally.do)). It covers the 2006 Ethiopian intervention in Somalia, which was backed by the United States ([Akademika](https://www.akademika.no/inside-al-shabaab/9780253037510)). The movement's own history is on [Al-Shabaab](/en/history/al-shabaab/) and the events of 2006 on [The Islamic Courts Union, 2006](/en/history/islamic-courts-union-2006/).

## Its sources

The authors draw on US diplomatic cables, letters taken from Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, prosecution files from cases against Americans who joined the group, and interviews with officials and former fighters ([Everand, publisher description](https://www.everand.com/book/390453533/Inside-Al-Shabaab-The-Secret-History-of-Al-Qaeda-s-Most-Powerful-Ally)).

## How it was received

- Markus Hoehne, in the journal Africa Spectrum (2018), called it an insightful and very readable account that places al-Shabaab within the wider history of political Islam in Somalia, and wrote that more engagement with existing academic literature would have given it more scholarly weight ([Africa Spectrum, via SSOAR](https://www.ssoar.info/ssoar/bitstream/handle/document/61198/ssoar-afrspe-2018-3-rez-hohne.pdf?sequence=1)).
- A review in African Affairs called it very informative and partly thrilling, with details new even to Somalia specialists ([Abbey's, quoting African Affairs](https://www.abbeys.com.au/book/inside-al-shabaab-the-secret-history-of-al-qaedas-most-powerful-ally.do)).
- Kenneth Christie, in International Dialogue, described the authors as first-rate journalists ([World of Books, quoting the review](https://www.wob.com/en-us/books/dan-joseph/inside-al-shabaab/9780253037497)).

## Where to read it

- In a library: [WorldCat](https://search.worldcat.org/search?q=Inside+Al-Shabaab+Maruf)

## Related pages

- [Al-Shabaab in Somalia (2013), Stig Jarle Hansen](/en/books/al-shabaab-in-somalia-hansen/)
- [Al-Shabaab](/en/history/al-shabaab/)

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