OVERVIEW

ISIS-Somalia flag

ISIS-Somalia was formed by a group of defectors from the al-Qa‘ida–associated terrorist group, al-Shabaab, who pledged allegiance to ISIS in October 2015 and gained recognition as an official province in 2018. ISIS-Somalia adheres to ISIS’s strict interpretation of Islamic law and aims to extend ISIS’s self-proclaimed caliphate in Africa. ISIS-Somalia’s attacks have been sporadic, consisting largely of close-quarter assassinations and IED operations. Its attack pace has slowed since the latter half of 2021 because of Puntland regional security forces’ offensives and continued al-Shabaab assaults. ISIS-Somalia generates revenue by extorting local businesses and conducting regional raids for resources.

OPERATING AREAS
Primarily in the Golis Mountains of the Bari region in Somalia’s semiautonomous Puntland state

MEMBERS
Between 100 and 400

TACTICS AND TARGETS
ISIS-Somalia uses small arms and IEDs to conduct small-scale, sporadic attacks and assassination operations against Somali Government officials and security forces, government-affiliated civilians, Puntland security forces, Africa Union Mission in Somalia peacekeepers, business owners refusing to pay extortion demands, and al-Shabaab.

FOREIGN TERRORIST GROUP DESIGNATION
The US State Department designated ISIS-Somalia as a foreign terrorist organization in February 2018. Group leader Abdulqadir Mumin was listed as a specially designated global terrorist in August 2016.

KEY LEADERS

NOTABLE ATTACKS