Two Swedes have been sentenced to four years in prison for plotting acts of terrorism in Somalia. Billie Llias Mohamed, 26, and Mohamoud Jama, 22 – both of Somali origin – were found to be part of the Islamist movement al-Shabaab after they were arrested by Swedish police in Stockholm and Gothenburg earlier this year.
“The prosecutor proved that the accused had taken it upon themselves and decided with the Somali Islamist militia al-Shabaab to commit terrorist crimes in the form of suicide attacks,” the court said.
Both men were members of al-Shabaab, a group which controls much of central and southern Somalia and which pledges allegiance to Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network. The prosecution proved that pair had been in contact with al-Shabaab leader Yassin Ismail Ahmed through taped phoned conversation, witness statements and interrogation testimony.
Mohamed and Jama were charged with plotting terrorist attacks in Somalia with the aim of killing or maiming large numbers of people. After attending an al-Shabaab training camp, Mohamed was planning to return to Somalia and become a martyr, while Jama “was preparing for a future suicide mission”.
Photo: Adam Ihse