Everything about Sharif Ahmed totally explained
Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed (;
; born
July 25,
1964) is a member of the
Islamic Court Union (ICU), which controlled
Somalia's capital of
Mogadishu and much of south and central Somalia until the
war in Somalia. Ahmed was born in
Shabeellaha Dhexe province, Somalia, and studied at
Libyan and
Sudanese universities. He is from the
Abgaal branch of the
Hawiye clan. He has also worked as a secondary school teacher of
geography,
Arabic, and religious studies. He speaks Arabic, Somali, and English.
Islamic Courts Union
He first became involved in the ICU when he was elected to head a small local court in
Jowhar. A few years later, a local gang in Mogadishu kidnapped a young student and demanded a ransom from his family in return for releasing their son. This incident was one of countless other kidnappings and killings perpetrated by armed groups in the Somali capital who exploited the disintegration of the central government. This event marked a turning point in the life of Sheikh Sharif Ahmad and his further involvement in the ICU.
In 2004, Sheikh Sharif became one the leading figures in the Islamic courts in the capital. His closest friends and allies include
Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, one of the founders of Islamic courts in Somalia and
Aden Hashi Farah "Eyrow" whom Washington blames for having connection with
Al-Qaeda network and fought in
Afghanistan in 2001.
On
September 9 2006, Sharif and several colleagues were in
Sirte,
Libya for an AU ceremony marking the seventh anniversary of a summit of African leaders. In an interview with
Reuters and the
BBC, he suggested his delegation would seek the help of
Libya and other African nations to bring about a rapprochement between the
Islamists and the Somali
Transitional Federal Government (TFG). He said Ethiopia had been hostile to Somalia for more than 500 years and reiterated a longstanding Islamist accusation that Ethiopian forces were intervening in Somalia. Ethiopia denied any of its troops were fighting in Somalia. However, arrangements for an
Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD)-led peacekeeping force didn't materialize.
ICU falls
On
December 28,
2006, after the defeat of the ICU's army, he committed himself to fighting the Ethopian forces in Somalia. After the ICU's defeat in the
Battle of Jilib and their
abandonment of Kismayo, he fled towards the
Kenyan border.
He was detained, with three other Somalis, by Kenyan police on
January 21,
2007 near the Hulugo border. He met the US Ambassador to Kenya for talks regarding cooperation with the TFG. He is currently under the protection of Kenyan authorities and staying at a hotel in
Nairobi.
Capture of American soldiers
On
February 1,
2007, the captured ICU leader Sharif Ahmed was released from Kenyan police authorities. He also was reported to have met with
Michael Ranneberger, U.S. Envoy to Kenya and Somalia, allegedly to arrange for the release of the captured U.S. troops. By
February 8, Sheikh Sharif Sheik Ahmed had gone to
Yemen where other ICU members are thought to have also gone. On that day, reports in the Yememi Arabic newspaper Al-nedaa stated Sharif Ahmed's release was the first conditional step to arrange the release of varying reports of 11 or, now, 15
United States Marines allegedly captured during fighting in southern Somalia at the
Battle of Ras Kamboni. Four Marines were also alleged to have been wounded in the fighting. However, while these stories of captured American soldiers were prevalent in Somali media, they received little or no attention in the Western media. The capture of U.S. troops had been reported earlier on
January 21 by the ICU's
Qaadisiya.com
site, but denied as "utterly bogus" by Michael Ranneberger.
Family
Before fleeing Sheikh Sharif lived with his wife and two children, Ahmad, aged 9 and Abdullah, who is a toddler, in a modest house in Mogadishu .
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