By Asha Elmi - Reporter
Somalia, 18 August 2026 – An Ethiopian fighter who spent more than four years with Al Shabaab has surrendered to local forces in Quracjoome, Bakool region, the Ministry of Defence said on Tuesday.
The ministry said the fighter, who identified himself as Mufti, surrendered in Quracjoome district where he had been operating as one of the group’s foreign fighters.
He said he was given the name Omar after entering Somalia and had been with Al Shabaab for four years and one month, according to the statement.
The ministry said the fighter renounced the group’s ideology after concluding it exploited and distorted Islam, and that its views contradicted both Islamic teachings and Somali social values.
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“He decided to leave after concluding that its objectives differed from what it claimed,” the ministry said.
Government and local forces are conducting operations in parts of Bakool, where al-Shabaab remains active.
The federal government has in recent months urged members of the group to take advantage of its amnesty programme and surrender to authorities.