Thursday, June 09, 2011
Somali government forces says they have killed a Canadian member of the al-Shabab terrorist group.
Photos posted to state-run radio’s website Thursday showed a young man who had been shot through the chest by soldiers after his SUV had allegedly tried to run a roadblock.
Ottawa officials are looking into the case. “At this time, we are unable to confirm media reports of a Canadian national having been killed in the Jubba region while involved in insurgent activities,” said Claude Rochon, a spokeswoman for Foreign Affairs.
Soldiers in Somalia identified the dead man to local media as “Muhan Jeans,” who they said was militant who went by the nom de guerre “Abdelrahman the Canadian.” They said they seized a Canadian passport, but did not show it.
“According to what we’re getting from Mogadishu, and what we know, the guy is a Somali-Canadian,” said Omar Jamal, a Somali living in Minnesota. He serves as a spokesman for the Transitional Federal Government’s mission to the United Nations.
In North America, concern is mounting about young radicals recruited to become jihadi warriors in Somalia. Just last month, a Somali-American from Minneapolis was killed as he tried to launch a suicide attack against government forces.
In Canada, counterterrorism agents have stepped up investigations into cases of young men and women who have suddenly departed Canada for Somalia. A few suspects have turned up as dead militants. Several have not been heard from.
This spring, one man was arrested at Toronto’s Pearson Airport and charged with terrorism offences, as police accused him of travelling abroad with the intent of joining al-Shabab.
Source: The Globe and Mail