Somalia President Farmaajo redeploys spy chief amid storm

Somalia’s President Mohamed Farmaajo has redeployed the intelligence chief caught in the eye of a storm following the mysterious disappearance and death of a local spy.

President Farmaajo’s spokesman, Abdirashid M Hashi, indicated on Tuesday that the Head of State had “accepted” Mr Fahad Yasin’s resignation and redeployed him as a senior national security advisor to the President.

In his place, the President has appointed Mr Yasin Abdullahi Mohamud as acting director of the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA). He is currently the head of the agency in Banadir region which encompasses the capital Mogadishu and surrounding areas.  

The decree, however, did not mention murdered spy Ikran Tahlil, but instead argued that the president was acting in the interest of developing and stabilising the security sector.

“As such, the president accepts the resignation by Fahad Yasin and praised the immense work done by the former NISA director.”

Ms Tahlil, 25, vanished in June before the agency claimed last week that she was murdered by Al-Shabaab. The terror group, however, issued a statement saying it was not responsible for her death. Her family also rejected NISA's explanation and accused the agency of murdering her.

Later, Prime Minister Hussein Roble suspended Mr Yasin before President Farmaajo overturned the decision this week.

Now, after the resignation claim in today's statement, Mr Roble on Wednesday accused the President of jeopardising the investigation into Ms Tahlil's death.

“I welcome the move by the President in accepting the suspension (not the resignation) of Mr Yasin as director of NISA,” PM Roble said.

For months, the mysterious disappearance of the spy raised eyebrows in elite circles, but now the young woman's fate threatens to trigger a major political crisis, with the president and prime minister at loggerheads.

The Premier accused President Farmaajo of chasing after the powers on electoral processes and the related security matters that he had earlier delegated to him.

“Seeing the letters issued by Villa Somalia on 6th and 7th of September, the President is clearly after the electoral and security matters he delegated to the Prime Minister,” Roble’s letter says.