MOGADISHU -- A wanted Al Shabaab official Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys who has been in custody over the past six months was put under house arrest in Mogadishu on Wednesday evening, Garowe Online reports.| Unfortunate since he could have been put under mortuary arrest... |
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud previously described Aweys a ‘stubborn person' who isn't willing to renounce violence but political analysts say the latest move succumbed him to abide by his clan elders' suggestions.
| For now... |
Speaking to the media in Mogadishu, Mohamed Osman Arus former spokesman of the defunct insurgent group Hisbul Islam said that Aweys is still in detention.
"This means he was released from custody and again placed in another detention," added Arus.
Following bitter feud and violent dispute within Al Shabaab ranks, Sheikh Aweys escaped from Barawe coastal town of Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia, after Al Shabaab chief Ahmed Godane dispatched Al Shabaab death squads to Aweys and other officials including his deputy Ibrahim Haji Jama Micad (Ibrahim Afghani), who had made allegations against Godane.
Sheikh Aweys was transported by plane from Adado district in Galgadud region of central Somalia, where he reportedly "surrendered" to Himan and Heeb local administration, which later transferred to Federal Government in Mogadishu in June 2013.