Security cameras in Somalia try to stop al Shabaab attacks, but terrorists resist

Businesses are afraid of retaliatory attacks as a result of the thousands of security cameras placed throughout the capital of Somalia to keep an eye on al Shabaab militant movements and reassure locals.

CCTV cameras, which were implemented this year as part of a local government program, officials claim have made it easier for authorities to monitor insurgent activity in Mogadishu and make sure security officers are carrying out their duties effectively.

The goal is to prevent the bombs and shootings that have afflicted the city throughout the nearly two-decade-long struggle for overthrow of the government by Islamist al Shabaab.

However, some establishments that have installed cameras have also been attacked in a place where radicals are prevalent.

Since the beginning of October, attacks on these establishments in Mogadishu’s Daynile and Hodan districts have resulted in at least three fatalities and four injuries, deputy mayor Mohamed Ahmed Diriye told Reuters.

Al Shabaab has instructed them to remove the cameras, according to a number of businesspeople who spoke to Reuters, but government officials have cautioned that doing so could have repercussions.

Following the most recent assaults, Diriye declared, “We warn them against taking orders from terrorists,” “Anyone who removes the cameras will face the law.”
Daynile shopkeeper Farah Aden claimed that entrepreneurs felt confined and vulnerable to extremist attacks.

“There is new fear due to security cameras,” he stated. “We’ve got a problem. We are torn between two conflicting orders.

However, some locals are happy with the increased monitoring. Ahmed Ibrahim, a second-year university student, claimed that the cameras provided comfort to those going about their regular lives.

“In the past, it was difficult to attend school or college,” he stated. “There used to be explosions just outside the school or university campus and when going back home.”

The 30-year-old mother of six, Samira Olow, who distributes food in front of her home, expressed her fear of getting caught in the crossfire while she is out in public.

“There is always fear in Somalia, and now fear in Mogadishu is due to security cameras,” she stated. “We go to shops to buy food and we can be at the shop when the shopkeeper is being targeted and this is dangerous.”