Somalia’s Deputy Minister of information, Abdirahman Adaala, who spoke to the media on Saturday notes that the government suspended Twitter alleged to have links with Al-Shabab.
“The government suspended 40 Twitter accounts spreading the propaganda of Al-Shabab”, says Adaala without publicly disclosing the names of the alleged Twitter accounts for the public interest.
Al-Shabab had an official Twitter account called Somali Memo which disseminates reports of its terror attacks and assassinations targeting civilians and gov officials. It’s not yet clear whether this account was under the government’s scrutiny but Somali Memo remains active and continues its daily reports.
“The law will punish those media reporting Al-Shabab’s propaganda and serving as a tool disseminating the group’s extremist ideology” Min Adaala further notes.
Former Al-Shabab leader and die-hard supporter of the terrorist group, Hassan Dahir Aways, who is under house arrest near Villa Somalia, was spreading sympathetic messages supporting the group’s brutal acts as his son was recently killed by a US airstrike in southern Somalia.
Despite his arrest, Hassan continues to enjoy privileges and use all social media platforms to disseminate his messages. It is not yet clear whether Min Adaala’s order will implicate Hassan Dahir.
The Federal Government of Somalia has recently initiated a national war aimed at eradicating Al-Shabab, an al-Qaida affiliate group, which threatens the stability of Somalia and the greater Horn of Africa region.
Source: Horn Sentinel
