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.
