# Al-Qaeda's East Africa cell and Somalia, 1998 to 2011 > Al-Qaeda's East Africa cell and its ties to Somalia: the 1998 embassy bombings, the 2002 Mombasa attacks, and the deaths of Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan in 2009 and Fazul Abdullah Mohammed in 2011. Source page: https://calankii.com/en/history/al-qaeda-east-africa-cell-somalia/ Last checked: 2026-11-12 Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com) ## In short A small al-Qaeda network in East Africa carried out major attacks in Kenya and [Tanzania](/en/diaspora/tanzania/), and some of its members later sheltered in Somalia and worked with [al-Shabaab](/en/history/al-shabaab/). This page records what the sources report about that network's links to Somalia. Other attacks in the region are covered in [Al-Shabaab's attacks in Uganda and Kenya, 2010 to 2019](/en/history/al-shabaab-attacks-kenya-uganda-2010-2019/), and US operations in [The United States military in Somalia](/en/institutions/us-military-in-somalia/). ## The embassy bombings, 1998, and Mombasa, 2002 On 7 August 1998 bombs struck the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, killing more than 220 people and injuring about 5,000. The FBI held the Comoros-born Fazul Abdullah Mohammed responsible for planning them, listed him among its most wanted, and offered a reward of US$5 million ([Al Jazeera, 11 June 2011](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2011/6/11/east-africa-al-qaeda-chief-killed-in-somalia)). In November 2002 an Israeli-owned hotel near Mombasa was bombed and a missile attack on an Israeli airliner at the city's airport missed; Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan was later linked to both ([Jonathan Adams, *Christian Science Monitor*, 15 September 2009](https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2009/0915/us-raid-in-somalia-kills-al-qaeda-chief)). ## Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, killed 2009 Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan was born in Mombasa in 1979 and was wanted by the FBI and Kenya over the 1998 bombings and the 2002 Mombasa attacks; he was believed to head an al-Qaeda cell in Mombasa. On Monday 14 September 2009 US forces struck a convoy in southern Somalia. Fox News, citing two senior US military officials, reported that Navy SEALs took part with at least two AH-6 helicopters flown from a US Navy ship off the coast, and media reports said Nabhan and three others were killed (*Christian Science Monitor*, 2009). Wikipedia records that the raid took place near Baraawe ([Wikipedia, Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saleh_Ali_Saleh_Nabhan)). ## Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, killed 2011 In June 2011 Fazul Abdullah Mohammed was killed at a police checkpoint in Mogadishu's southern suburbs. A security officer, [Halima Aden](/en/people/halima-aden/), said his driver "accidentally drove up to the checkpoint" around midnight on a Tuesday; officials said he carried a false South African passport, thousands of dollars, a laptop and a modified AK-47, and identified him from photographs: "We had his pictures and so we cross-checked with his face." US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called his death "a significant blow to al-Qaeda and its extremist allies and its operations in East Africa." The analyst David Shinn described him as "the leader of Al-Qaeda in East Africa for the last 10 years or so" (Al Jazeera, 2011). ## Sources differ - **Day of Fazul's death.** Around midnight on Tuesday (Somali security officer); "last Wednesday" (an al-Shabaab commander), as reported by Al Jazeera. - **Whether Nabhan's death was confirmed.** ABC News reported that it "has not yet been officially confirmed" but that his body was in US custody (*Christian Science Monitor*, 2009); Wikipedia records him as killed in the raid. ## Read the primary sources yourself - Al Jazeera, "East Africa al-Qaeda chief killed in Somalia" (2011): [article](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2011/6/11/east-africa-al-qaeda-chief-killed-in-somalia). - *Christian Science Monitor*, "US raid in Somalia kills Al Qaeda chief" (2009): [article](https://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2009/0915/us-raid-in-somalia-kills-al-qaeda-chief). --- I want to help with this: email hello@calankii.com. Fix this page: email hello@calankii.com with the page link and your source.