SOMALIA: PUNTLAND COURT ISSUES DEATH SENTENCES FOR ISLAMIC MUFTI'S KILLERS
May 23, 2013: The Puntland military court in northern Somalia has convicted 7 persons of committing acts of terrorism and has sentenced them to death, Garowe Online reports.
The Puntland military court for Nugal, Mudug, Sool, and Ayn regions convened the case in Garowe and listened to the case of the killing of Sheikh Abdulkadir Nur Farah, the Mufti of Puntland was gunned down brutally inside Badr Mosque in Garowe on February 15, 2013.
Two persons - Abdirahman Hussein Jama Bile and Abdullahi Osman Ahmed - were brought in front of the Puntland military court with prosecutors and defense lawyers present, witnesses tell Garowe Online, as the independent media was banned from recording the court proceedings.
The military court also convicted five other individuals to death sentences in absentia for their involvement in Sheikh Abdulkadir's killing, namely: Mohamed Abdullahi Ilkase; Mowlid Mohamed; Hassan Haybe; Buni Mohamed; and an individual named Shine.
The courthouse and its surrounding was under heavy security during the proceedings.
Al Shabaab spokesman Ali Dheere Mohamud Rage vowed to wage terrorist attacks in Puntland after the military convicted and executed 13 Al Shabaab members in Bossaso on April 30, 2013. (Sources: AllAfrica.com, 23/05/2013)
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