al-shabab

A woman holds her hand over her face and clutches the arm of a man next to her as they walk through the destroyed shopping district in Mogadishu.

Minnesota’s Somali immigrants feel ‘holes’ left after deadly Mogadishu attack

Conflict

One Minnesota man was in Mogadishu for a job interview. Another was about to meet members of his family. Then Somalia’s deadliest terrorist attack happened.

Somali government forces evacuate an injured colleague from the scene of an explosion at Kilometer 4 street in the Hodan district of Mogadishu, Somalia, on Oct. 14, 2017.

A big truck bomb strikes outside a hotel in Somalia’s capital

Conflict
A Somali soldier patrols a street following a suicide car bomb and gun attack.

The death of a Navy SEAL reveals US mission creep in Somalia

Books
An internally displaced woman from drought-hit area at a makeshift settlement area in Dolow, Somalia, April 4, 2017.

Somalis walk for days searching for food and water while al-Shabab blocks aid

Conflict
Wooden crosses are placed on the ground, symbolising the 147 people killed during an attack by gunmen at the Garissa University College.

Kenyans take to the streets and social media to honor the victims of last week’s attack

Conflict
A woman holding a rose prays during a Nairobi memorial vigil following an attack by gunmen at Kenya's Garissa University College.

Targeting the militants of al-Shabab with airstrikes is easier said than done

Conflict

Here’s why the ragtag al-Shabab fighters are so hard to vanquish

A Kenyan security officer searches a boy for weapons before an Easter Sunday service at a Catholic church in Garissa, Kenya, on April 5, 2015. Somali Kenyans fear a crackdown following a massacre at the Garissa Univeristy by Somali militants.

Somalis in Kenya brace for a backlash

Conflict

Somalis living in neighboring Kenya are bracing for the worst after the massacre at Garissa University carried out by al-Shabab. One Somali Kenyan says that while nothing has happened yet, history suggests that Somalis will be targeted by police and Kenyan citizens alike.

A Kenya Defense Force soldier runs for cover during al-Shabab's attack on a university compound in Garissa on April 2, 2015.

Al-Shabab are masters of terror — and masters of the media

Conflict

Extremists behind the siege at a university in Kenya boast a “pioneering” media strategy that has paved the way for other media-savvy terrorists like ISIS. But it’s still a chilling experience to get a call from al-Shabad amid a terror attack.

Abdirizak Bihi, who directs the Somali Education and Social Advocacy Center in Minnesota, testifies at a congressional hearing on radicalization in Washington. Bihi's nephew left Minnesota to fight with al-Shabab in 2008.

In Minnesota, ISIS may be building on the recruiting networks once used by other terror groups

Conflict

This Somali American was devastated when his teenage nephew traveled from Minneapolis to Mogadishu to join the extremists of al-Shabab. Now ISIS seems to be using the same recruiting networks to lure American teens to Syria and Iraq.

Mohammed Ahamed waits at a money-transfer business in Minneapolis to send money to his ex-wife in Somalia. About 40 percent of all Somali families rely on remittances from another country.

Somali Americans fight to save their lifeline of cash for relatives back home

Economics

It’s getting more complicated to send money to Somalia, and that’s a big deal in places like Minnesota where some Somali Americans have been wiring cash home for decades. Somali immigrants say the move is cutting off a vital lifeline — and may actually harm the fight against terror.