VZCZCXRO9287
RR RUEHROV RUEHTRO
DE RUEHNR #2505/01 3511519
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 171519Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY NAIROBI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0155
INFO SOMALIA COLLECTIVE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/CDR USAFRICOM STUTTGART GE
RHMFIUU/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEILB/NCTC WASHINGTON DC
RUEPADJ/CJTF-HOA J2X CAMP LEMONIER DJ

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 NAIROBI 002505 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR AF/E, AF/RSA AND A/S CARSON 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV SO PTER
SUBJECT: SOMALIA - CONTINUED EXPRESSIONS OF OUTRAGE OVER DECEMBER 3 
BOMBING 
 
REF: NAIROBI 2444 
 
Summary 
 
------- 
 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) The December 3 suicide bombing that killed government 
ministers, medical students, and teachers sparked protests across 
Somalia's regions and around the globe. Somalis and their diaspora 
brethren have publicly condemned the attack at conferences, in 
marches, and on live national and international media. While 
al-Shabaab has denied involvement, it is generally believed to have 
been behind the attack, and it has borne the brunt of the public 
criticism. At least one Shabaab commander publicly regretted the 
death of students, possibly reflecting the sentiment of Shabaab's 
rank and file. Whether the TFG can capitalize on the public's 
outrage remains to be seen. End Summary. 
 
 
 
cid:image006.png@01CA7F45.581C96A0 
 
Figure 1: A TFG Minister, a victim of the December 3 bombing, is 
laid to rest in Mogadishu. 
 
Somalis React Angrily 
 
--------------------- 
 
 
 
¶2. (U) On December 3, a suicide bomber detonated himself in a 
medical school graduation ceremony in Mogadishu. The blast killed 
22 people, including three TFG ministers, students, teachers and 
journalists (reftel). Scores were wounded.  The world has reacted 
to the blast with outrage. Islamist group al-Shabaab is widely 
credited with the attack. 
 
 
 
¶3. (U) Our contacts say al-Shabaab may have underestimated the 
bombing's carnage and the public's indignation at the murders of 
particularly apolitical students and doctors. A Shabaab spokesman 
has subsequently denied responsibility for the attack, though 
observers say it clearly bears their hallmarks. At least one 
self-proclaimed senior Shabaab commander, Sheikh Abdifatah, likely 
sensing the public backlash, qualified the attack in the media, 
saying "We did not target the students - our target was the TFG." 
 
 
 
¶4. (U) Just hours after the blast, the Somali government and 
international community reacted with outrage. Ordinary Somalis at 
home and abroad,stunned and in mourning, began venting their anger 
several days later. On December 7 and 8, Mogadishu residents and 
those in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps outside Mogadishu 
staged street protests against al- Shabaab, burning the Islamic 
group's black flags and decrying the attack. According to Salat Ali 
Jelle, a TFG MP, the protests in the IDP camps, which are 
al-Shabaab strongholds, were a particularly bold public show of 
defiance. 
 
 
 
cid:image008.png@01CA7F45.581C96A0 
 
Figure 2:  Somalis burn al-Shabaab's black flags to protest the 
December 3 suicide bombing. 
 
¶5. (U) Abdi Mahad, a civil society activist who organized the 
Mogadishu demonstration on December 7 was quoted in media vowing to 
organize more demonstrations against al-Shabaab. Mahad termed the 
December 3 attack a "wake up call for all." He said al-Shabaab's 
oft-repeated claim to be fighting foreigners is bankrupt. "They are 
killing our best and brightest. They are the enemy, " he said. 
 
cid:image009.png@01CA7F45.581C96A0 
 
NAIROBI 00002505  002 OF 003 
 
 
Figure 3:  Mogadishu residents march in protest over the December 3 
suicide attack. 
 
 
 
¶6. (U) Citizens of Ahlu Sunna Wal Jamaa-controled towns in the 
Galgaduud region also protested. On December 4, hundreds of 
demonstrators marched in Dhusamareb and Guriel to protest Shabaab's 
violence and express solidarity with those affected by the blast. 
 
 
 
Diaspora and Civil 
 
Society Expresses Shock 
 
----------------------- 
 
 
 
¶7. (U) Somalis in the Diaspora also expressed shock over the 
suicide attack. In Washington D.C., Minneapolis, Denmark, 
Switzerland and Kenya, Somalis expressed sympathy for the victims 
and condemned al-Shabaab, according to media reports. Somali 
students in Minneapolis organized a well attended demonstration. 
Hundreds braved the freezing cold to march and hear speakers, 
including Somali clerics, condemn the attack offer prayers for the 
victims. 
 
 
 
¶8. (U) On December 13 Somalis in Washington, D.C. also protested 
the bombing. They noted the attack claimed the lives of current and 
future doctors, further devastating Mogadishu's already 
overburdened medical community. Silver Spring, Maryland mosque Imam 
Mohamed Abdulle declared the December 3 incident a national 
disaster. He said suicide killings have no basis in Somali or 
Islamic culture. Successive speakers eulogized TFG Minister of 
Higher Education Ibrahim Adow, a U.S. citizen and former professor 
at Washington's American University, who was killed in the blast. 
 
 
 
¶9. (U) Participants of a Somali civil society conference held in 
Mombasa, Kenya on December 10 bemoaned the tragic loss of lives in 
the suicide attack. They released a communiquC) at the end of the 
conference that read in part "...the participants condemn the 
December 3 tragic incident in which high-profile Somalis, including 
government ministers, university professors, journalists, 
graduating students and their parents were massacred." Conference 
participants termed such attacks as alien to Somali culture and 
called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice. 
 
 
 
Condemnation in the Media 
 
------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶10.    (U) Callers into Somali-language radio programs expressed 
outrage at the attacks. One international radio program hosted 
Prime MinisterOmar Sharmarke, Kenyan Deputy Speaker of Parliament 
Farah Maalim and Prof. Abdi Ismail Samatar of the University of 
Minnesota. PM Sharmarke describedthe deaths of the ministers, 
doctors, and students as a loss to the entire Somali nation. Maalim 
described the suicide incident as an "unprecedented act of horror." 
Professor Samatar described the attack as shocking and unexpected, 
and praised the courage of Mogadishu's students who routinely brave 
violence to further their education. He challenged the TFG to draw 
up a comprehensive security plan to address violence in the 
country. 
 
 
 
¶11.    (U) Other callers to the radio program included Somali 
medical doctors and Somali student leaders. Mohamed Abdirahman, a 
 
NAIROBI 00002505  003 OF 003 
 
 
doctor at Mogadishu's Madina Hospital, expressed sadness at the 
loss of the three ministers, whom he knew and respected. He 
lamented that their dedication and selfless service to the 
community was rewarded with a suicide attack. Elders from the 
Hawiye, Biyamal and Rahanweyne clans also called to publicly 
condemned the bombing. 
 
 
 
Comment 
 
------- 
 
 
 
¶12.    (SBU) Comment: Somalis at home and abroad have reacted with 
shock and fury to the December 3 suicide attack. Despite belated 
denials, it is generally accepted that al-Shabaab conducted this 
particularly gruesome bombing. Given the aforementioned Shabaab 
commander's misgivings about the murdered students, Shabaab's rank 
and file may also be questioning the attack. Certainly the bombing 
has further damaged Shabaab's already battered public image among 
the Somalis, though it is unclear how this will manifest itself and 
whether the TFG has the strength and strategic capability to 
capitalize on it. End Comment. 
RANNEBERGER