Somalia and the al-Shabaab terrorist entity are battling a war within a war — a constant fight to prop up and take down websites and social media narratives that spread extremist propaganda and disinformation.
Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency has advanced its actions by creating teams that explore the internet and alert tech companies to withdraw extremist content. “It was a difficult task when we began; it needed knowledge, skills and a lot of work,” Deputy Information Minister Abdirahman Yusuf al-Adala told Voice of America this year. “We taught people with the necessary skills; special offices have been created, equipment has been made unrestricted and legislation has been enacted by the parliament. “More than a year later, we are in a suitable position, we acknowledge we have achieved many of our targets.”
Al-Adala and Minister of Information Daud Aweis recently declared an offensive against misinformation and provocation of violence. “Together, we can overwhelm this dangerous menace that risks tearing us apart,” Aweis declared in a speech after a two-day forum on June 5 in Mogadishu. “Together, we can create a society founded on trust, respect and understanding. Let us stand united against fake news and misinformation, for the sake of our country and the well-being of our people.”
Mohamed Gulaid, an internet trust and safety investigator who previously worked with Facebook’s parent organisation, Meta, stated that al-Shabaab relies laboriously on outlets such as Telegram and WhatsApp, where scope restraint is more challenging because of encryption.
“Al-Shabaab invariably engages in misinformation, often overstating their operational impact and stretching their influence or control,” Gulaid informed VOA. “When it comes to disinformation, al-Shabaab often exploits broader themes such as nationalism and the absence of service delivery by the Somali government to promote their agenda. They describe themselves as more practical and a nationalist force safeguarding Somalia’s sovereignty.”
Adam Hadley, executive director of the nonprofit Tech Against Terrorism, stated that al-Shabaab is among the most refined of the malign actors that his association works to disrupt online.
“Much of this content is fairly subtle and subtle, and it takes quite a lot of time to prove that this type of material is misinformation or phoney news,” he told VOA. “In one special case, we found a complete news website that had suspicious attention of material that was pro-al-Shabaab and pro-al-Qaida. … At no point did we encounter any obvious graphic or damaging material on this site. It was almost acting to provide a news service.”
Al-Shabaab works with several online and radio platforms that target Somali and Kenyan audiences. Shahada News Agency is a major messenger that purports to be an organization “interested in East Africa and Somalia news.” Shahada typically publishes on Chirpwire, a platform with no content-moderation procedures. But it also uses accounts on mainstream venues Facebook and X to replicate and disseminate its content.
Al-Kataib is another al-Shabaab media forum that operates mostly on Telegram with multiple channels in numerous languages. Code for Africa, a nonprofit with teams and associates in 21 countries on the continent, specified a connection between Al-Kataib and Shahada News Agency in a 2023 investigation. “The intricate interplay between these media components sheds light on the depth of al-Shabaab’s digital reach and the complexity of its propaganda machinery,” the report said. “Decoding the processes of Al-Kataib and Shahada News Agency is key to disassembling al-Shabaab’s web of extremist influence.”
