Somalia’s President has stated that Al-Shabaab evades monitoring by using civilian bank accounts.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said that the militants have opted to use mobile money accounts belonging to their relatives.
“Al-Shabaab members use mobile money accounts that belong to their relatives to raise and collect taxes that fund their operations,” said the President recently.
According to the President, most relatives who open such accounts are not aware that they are doing so for the benefit of Al-Shabaab.
This tactic allows the militant group to conduct financial transactions and sustain their operations while avoiding detection by authorities.
The use of civilian accounts complicates efforts to track and disrupt the group’s financial networks, highlighting the challenges faced in countering their activities.