Al-Shabaab is a jihad militant group that operates in Somalia and is considered to be affiliated with Al-Qaeda. On October 1, 2022, this tweet shared an image of a truck destroyed in what it claims to be, an attack in Wajir.
Background
Evidently, Al-Shabaab remains to carry out attacks in Somalia and the surrounding countries, despite the just concluded African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM). After close to a decade now of operation, there are still fresh attacks being carried out by the Al-Shabaab.
The Al-Shabaab control a bigger part of central and southern Somalia. The government now confirms that it has killed the group’s co-founder, Abdullahi Nadir.
Verification
The earliest this image appeared on the internet was on October 1, 2022. This reverse image search provides an article published by Hiraan Online, a Somali tabloid. From this article, members of the Al-Shabaab attacked Gariley village, between Bardhere and Eelwak districts, South of Somalia.
Gariley village borders Wajir to the South West. The militants are accused of killing 12 civilians who were drilling a well in this area. The article further adds that this militant group has been carrying out attacks in different areas of central and southern Somalia.
Another similar result shows that these killings happened on Friday, a day before this image went up on the internet. As a scorched earth tactic, the Al-Shabaab are known to destroy resources beneficial to the areas they have lost. For the drought -stricken Gariley, it is the wells that are currently being dug.
Four of the ten casualties were Kenyans working in Gariley. The bodies of these four were preserved in Wajir County Referral Hospital before being ferried to Nairobi.
Verdict
This image does NOT show an attack in Wajir County.
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