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Mogadishu,
September 12, 2009 – Mohamoud Hassan was a University of Minnesota
junior with a bright future that came to an abrupt and uncertain end in
his war-torn homeland.
The civil engineering major was one of at least 20 Twin Cities Somali
men who left friends and family in America to join the Somali rebel
group Al-Shabaab and defend his homeland against invading Ethiopian
troops. The U.S. government labeled Al-Shabaab a foreign terrorist group
in 2008.
The 23-year-old was killed in Mogadishu Friday evening, but details of
how he died have not been confirmed.
Those who expected Hassan to achieve his education and career goals were
disappointed when he left Minneapolis in the fall of his junior year to
fight in the war in Somalia.
Friends say Hassan's family members received the news of his death
through a phone call from Somalia. His death was confirmed at an evening
prayer at the Abu-Bakr As-Saddique Islamic Center .
According to friends, Hassan was with other Al-Shabaab members on his
way to break his daily Ramadan fast when he was attacked.
"It's weird that he's not here because he was with us last Ramadan,"
said a tearful Saida Hassan, an elementary education junior at the
University.
It is unclear how the Somali men left the Twin Cities. There has been
speculation that the Abu-Bakr As-Saddique Islamic Center was involved in
sending the men to Somalia, allegations which the mosque denies.
An FBI investigation of the mosque is pending.
Hassan's friends say he revealed no signs that he was planning to leave.
Even in the weeks before he left, Hassan worried about being late for
class and acted "normal," psychology junior Muna Mohamed said. Mohamed
noticed this was the "total opposite" of the behavior of Abdisalan Ali,
another University student who left last year to fight in Somalia.
After Hassan left, he kept minimal contact with the outside world
because "he knew he was being watched," said Saleh Ali, an agriculture
and food business management sophomore
The transformation
Friends say Hassan paid more attention to the war between Somalia and
Ethiopia as it began to escalate during his sophomore year.
"He saw people getting killed, women being raped. He couldn't bear that.
He had to help the Somali community, unite us and fight the people
killing us," Ali explained.
In an essay dated May 2007 posted on Bartamaha, a Somali Web site,
Hassan wrote, "Our people are tired of the sad state that we are in ...
Is it fair for a nation of 10 million people to be held hostage by a
handful of thugs driven by selfish interests? ... After 13 or 14 peace
conferences, a major UN intervention and a couple of previous
governments when is enough really enough?"
Hassan's friends noticed he became more religious in the spring of his
sophomore year, changing from a "hip-hop guy" donning a baggy t-shirt
and jeans to a "modest, straight brother," wearing a traditional, long
white-colored garment, Ali said. Hassan even told friends to stop
calling him by his once nickname "Snake" and went by the name "Bashir"
instead.
Saida Hassan said people used to underestimate Hassan's intellect
because he wasn't the "nerd-looking type." After the transformation,
people looked up to him, Mohamed said.
Studying the Quran and attending the mosque became a regular practice
for Hassan. He was also an organizer with the Somali Students
Association, the vice president at the Minnesota Somali Student Union
and a muadhin - the person who calls worshipers to the five daily
prayers at the mosque.
"I asked him why he changed and he said he always loved religion but he
drifted in high school," Mohamed said. "But he also kept his humor. He'd
say, 'Who said religious people can't be funny?'"
Neuroscience junior Sahra Qaxiye was a close friend of Hassan's. She
recalls his optimism even when he heard about the fatal shooting of
20-year-old Augsburg college student Ahmed Nur Ali outside the Brian
Coyle Center in September 2008. "He said, 'It's Ok, things happen,
people die. You just have to prepare yourself,'" she said. “I just can't
believe I'm using the past tense on him. I thought this would get
easier."
Besides being involved with the community, Hassan took care of his
grandmother. "He mentioned her all the time," Mohamed said. Especially
after Hassan's uncle left Minneapolis to tend to a sick relative in
Africa, Hassan would take his grandma to appointments and translate for
her.
Hassan worked at a department store as a sales cashier and as a security
guard at the University.
Despite Hassan's transformation, his friends say they don't think his
involvement with the mosque caused him to leave Minneapolis. They also
don't believe he was brainwashed.
"My brother became straight, civilized and respectful," said Ali of
Hassan.
Ali says he and Hassan attended Friday prayers, volunteered at the
mosque and went to dugsi (Islamic school) together.
"I would've known if a guy had brainwashed him. Bashir made this choice
by himself. He was a smart, independent brother," he said.
Concerns in the Somali community
There has been a division within the Somali community in deciding who is
to blame for the recruitment of the missing Somali men. The community is
also concerned that another wave of young men may leave to join Al-Shabaab,
which Hassan's friends say is impossible to prevent.
Although mosque attendance had decreased after the young men left, there
has recently been increased mosque attendance, perhaps due to Ramadan,
said Mohamed. The mosque has tried to divert the negative attention by
hosting open house community dinners and events.
Still, Qaxiye says she is disappointed in the mosque leaders. She
believes the men wouldn't have left if local mosque leaders had been
more open to discussing politics with the community.
"Somali youth are frustrated because they are confused about Al-Shabaab
and what is politics and what is religion. Nobody talks about it,"
Qaxiye said. "There's something wrong with our community, we're losing
the people who are our future."
"[Hassan] wouldn't want people to mourn for him," Qaxiye said. "He died
for something he thought was correct, and Allah always counts people's
intentions. If he was brainwashed by people, then they will be judged -
not him."
Source: Daily Planet, Sept 10, 2009
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