MOGADISHU (Kaab TV) – Al-Shabaab released a video a day ago as part of its propaganda campaign, widely believed to be aimed at recruiting new members, at a time when the group is seeking to expand despite losing some of its senior leaders.
The nearly 53-minute video was published in Somali, Arabic, and Swahili. It is believed to have been recorded days before the attack on Godka Jilicow prison on October 4, 2025.
Godka Jilicow is a high-security detention facility in Mogadishu run by Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA), holding high-risk prisoners, including Al-Shabaab members and other suspects linked to terrorism.
In the video, the group showcases seven individuals who carried out the suicide attack on Godka Jilicow prison.
Al-Shabaab spokesperson Ali Mahmoud Rage (Ali Dheere) appears in the video alongside his 20-year-old son, Abdifatah, as they speak about the suicide unit being prepared for the attack.
The group claims that Ali Dheere’s son was among those killed in the operation.
Ali Dheere repeatedly refers to alleged forced evictions, accusing President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of displacing thousands of people from their homes in Mogadishu.
“Your homes have been taken, your children were filled in the prisons,” he said.
Abdirahman Mohamed Warsame “Mahad Karate,” a senior Al-Shabaab military leader with a $10 million U.S. bounty on his head, is also heard in the video. He similarly references displacement and the demolition of homes affecting families in Mogadishu.
The footage includes scenes from parts of Mogadishu where federal government forces are seen using bulldozers to demolish houses, displacing families—mostly women and children.
Mahad Karate also addressed those affected by the evictions, sending a message to displaced civilians.
Analysts say Al-Shabaab’s use of forced evictions in its messaging reflects an attempt to gain sympathy and support among Mogadishu residents.
Sources told Kaab TV that the group has also engaged with clan elders in the capital on the issue.
“The clip is primarily a recruitment propaganda video designed to show Al-Shabaab leaders are not special, not privileged, live the life of ordinary combatants, share in the ‘burden of sacrifice’ for the jihad just like other ordinary supporters of the movement,” said Rashid Abdi, a Horn of Africa analyst.
The Godka Jilicow Prison Attack
One of the new details revealed in the video is that the attackers recorded the operation as it unfolded, sharing footage with a central hub that stored clips via livestream.
The militants who carried out the attack wore NISA uniforms and used Toyota pickup vehicles marked with the agency’s logo—raising questions about how they obtained them.
The group claimed 42 people were killed and others injured in the prison attack. It also said that some prisoners were freed, with some later joining the attackers in the fighting.