Military and armed-group figures
Fuad Mohamed Khalaf (Fuad Shongole)
Fuad Mohamed Khalaf, known as Fuad Shongole, is a senior figure in al-Shabaab. He took asylum in Sweden in 1992 and returned to Somalia in 2004 to fight with the Islamic Courts. The UN Security Council placed him under sanctions on 12 April 2010, and the US offered a reward of up to US$5 million for information on his location in June 2012. Analysts at the American Enterprise Institute's Critical Threats project described him as a member of al-Shabaab's shura council.
Fuad Mohamed KhalafFuad Qalaf · Fuad Mohamed Qalaf
- Known as one of
- Military and armed-group figures
- Era
- Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 4 sources
In short
Fuad Mohamed Khalaf is a senior figure in al-Shabaab. This page records what sanctions lists, the US government and researchers report about him. The group's structure is set out in Al-Shabaab: how it is organised, and who has led it.
Sweden and return to Somalia
He took asylum in Sweden in 1992 and returned to Somalia in 2004 to fight with the Islamic Courts Union (Critical Threats, American Enterprise Institute, profile, 2011, updated 2013). Wikipedia describes him as a Somali-Swedish militant (Wikipedia, Fuad Qalaf).
Role in al-Shabaab
Critical Threats described him as a senior member with a seat on al-Shabaab's shura council, believed to be in charge of its operations in Puntland, and recorded that he appeared with Hassan Dahir Aweys at the rally that announced the merger of al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam (Critical Threats).
Public statements
Critical Threats recorded several of his public statements:
- In May 2009, in Marka, he called on fighters to hunt down members of the news outlet Waaga Cusub.
- On 25 April 2010 he accused the editors of Voice of America and the BBC of treason to Islam.
- On 27 December 2010 he said: "We tell the American President Barack Obama to embrace Islam before we come to his country."
- In late January 2011 he urged restraint towards the transitional government and called suicide bombing unlawful.
Sanctions and reward
The UN Security Council's Somalia sanctions committee listed him on 12 April 2010 (UN reference SOi.005), and the United Kingdom applied the listing from 28 April 2010, recording a dozen spellings of his name (UK Sanctions List, Somalia regime, 2023). The Swiss version of the list states that he facilitated money for al-Shabaab, including fundraising at mosques in Kismayo in May 2008 (SECO, Somalia sanctions list, 2024). On 7 June 2012 the US State Department offered up to US$5 million under its Rewards for Justice programme for information on his location, citing his operational and fundraising role (Critical Threats).
Sources differ
- His name. Written Khalaf, Kalaf, Khalif or Qalaf, with the nickname Shongole, Shangole or Shongale (UK Sanctions List).
Read the primary sources yourself
Sources
- Critical Threats, American Enterprise Institute, profile, 2011, updated 2013 · criticalthreats.org
- Wikipedia, Fuad Qalaf · en.wikipedia.org
- UK Sanctions List, Somalia regime, 2023 · assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
- SECO, Somalia sanctions list, 2024 · seco.admin.ch
Fuad Mohamed KhalafFuad Qalaf · Fuad Mohamed Qalaf
- Known as one of
- Military and armed-group figures
- Era
- Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 4 sources
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