On Friday evening, Al-Shabaab killed a senior immigration official outside a Puntland mosque. It was the latest raid by the Al-Qaeda linked extremist group in the relatively safe region.
Authorities identified the slain official as Osman Hussein Haji Farey.
His killing in Somalia’s northeastern semi-autonomous state could complicate the cries for peace by various stakeholders in a region that has known nothing but conflicts for decades.
Consequently, the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) could be forced back to the drawing board to work on a new peace plan to ensure that security does not deteriorate.
At the time of his death, Farey worked at Galkayo airstrip, which is among Puntland’s most prominent income-generating sites.
According to security officials, investigations into his untimely killing are now underway. The officials have also secured the scene of crime and hope to apprehend the perpetrators soon.