Profile of a Suicide Bomber
By AWEYS CADDE, MOHAMED ODOWA 10/05/2011
In an effort to understand the mind of a suicide bomber, Somalia Report interviewed a close friend of Bishaar Abdullahi Nur, a 20 year old Somali, who was responsible for murdering over 70 people this week during his suicide truck bomb attack in the heart of Mogadishu.
Where is Bishaar from?
He was born in 1991 and grew up in Gubta village of Daynille district of Mogadishu. He attended Amiir Nuur primary school, which is one of the largest schools in Mogadishu.
Where did you meet each other?
We were classmate all the way up to class eight when he left school.
Why did he quit school?
He was very upset because he failed his standard eight examinations. That was the biggest reason why he dropped out. I and our other friends tried many times to persuade him to come back to school but he refused and chose to stay at home. His parents tried many times to force him to go back to school but it was in vain.
Can you remember when joined al-Shabaab?
Yes, when Ethiopian troops entered Somalia in 2007 he always used to tell me how he would like to join the jihad against the Ethiopian troops. He tried to join many times, but it not possible. Then in 2009 he disappeared once and he could not be found anywhere. After 4 months he returned to Mogadishu and said that he had been training in one of the Somali regions and that he joined the al-Shabab fighters. At one point in 2010 he was badly injured during a battle, but since recovered.
During his time as member of al-Shabaab did you ever meet him?
Although during the fighting I fled Gubta village and moved to Madina district, which is controlled by the government, we met several times in Bakara Market. Every time we met he tried to persuade me to join al-Shabaab but I was not convinced. Instead I asked him to quit the group and return to his normal life. He told me that if that is how I felt then our friendship was over. He said were are too different and that was the last time we I saw him.
When you learned that Bishar killed more than 70 people and killed himself, how did you feel?
In the name of Allah, it was very sad and shocking news to me. It was unexpected from him. It was very frustrating and sad moment to hear someone you knew very well killed so many innocent people.
Now what do you believe about Bishaar?
I believe he is sinner, a criminal who committed sins against everybody living on earth specially Somali people. There will come a day whereby everybody will be accountable for his own deeds. I’m sure that al-Shabaab leaders misled him and sent him to die.
As an individual what was Bishaar's personality?
Before he joined al-Shabaab he was a very calm and passionate person who loved playing football so much, which we used to play together. He also liked to see youths coming together to tell stories and jokes but he was not in good terms of education.
Transcript of Bomber's Confession
Meanwhile, Bishaar recorded an interview with al-Shabaab journalist Jabril Yusuf Nur before he committed the attack. On the tape, his voice sounded very young.
"My name is Bishar Abdullahi Nur. I want to remind all the Mujahedeen brothers in the world to fight against the infidels and the enemies of Allah wherever they stay like Iraq, Palestine, Afghanistan and Somalia until Islamic emirate established throughout the world.
Many brothers have been thinking the ways to devastate the enemy of Allah. To defeat that enemy inside Somalia, some of the Muslims have been engaged to pay money, blood and sacrifice their life for the holy war of Jihad.
As I had already prepared my soul to be sacrificed for the sake of Allah and I would also like to thank to those who decided to help us with this truck which we would use to devastate the enemy.
As many of you know there were many brothers who made such actions. Example Mohamed Adaa was the Amir or the leader of the 19 brothers who attacked the World Trade Center in the United States of America. It was 11 September 2001. Their primarily target was not money but to defeat the enemy.
There are a lot of secret documents stored at the government building near Km4 Junction where I would like to target. There are also TFG officials there and include high profile ministries, troop’s officials who are working daily at that place.
I hope they will meet a serious loses and casualties which they would never forget. Many of the infidels include ministries would be dead after the attack. For that I would like to congratulate all the brothers around Somali and the globe.
These days the Muslim brothers and the sisters, the students of Mogadishu have been harassing for their religion at the Halane base and around the presidential palace Villa-Somalia by the so-called Somali government. It works for the infidels. The students must forget to think about the formal education instead they have to seek to learn Islamic lessons for joining the holy war of Jihad.
Some of the infidels start to take students to colleges for entertaining and meaningless things then that kind of student will be selfish one for his personal interests. It is totally against Muslims."
Al-Shabaab Vows More Attacks
Meanwhile al-Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage denied reports that innocent civilian were killed and vowed that suicide attacks will continue.
“There are some people saying civilians were killed in the explosion. Those are liars because we know where we are targeting. We don’t just target anyone. No students were killed or injured in the explosion,” he said in a press conference in Mogadishu on Tuesday.
“Attacks like this will continue until we eradicate the infidels and their workers who attacked our country and as far as the Mujahedeen are here our country will not be easily colonized,” he added.
Various Somali leaders have condemned the attack.
The spokesman of the pro-government militias of Ahlusunna Waljamaa (ASWJ) in southern regions, Sheikh Mohamed Hussein, spoke to Somalia Report and said that his fighters will seek revenge for the Somali civilians who were killed.
“The response will be immediate so we are requesting the Somali people to take their weapons and fight, there is no others solution except fighting,” he said.
The president of Somalia, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, declared three days of mourning for the victims.
http://www.somaliareport.com/index.php/post/1709
