NISA Officer Tells Court He Intervened as a Mediator and Did Not Know the Weapon Was Loaded

MOGADISHU (WDN) — An extraordinary case unfolding before Somalia’s Military Court has offered a striking glimpse into the difficult and sometimes dangerous situations faced by the country’s security personnel, after a seemingly ordinary dispute over a mobile phone allegedly ended in two deaths and another person being wounded.

Military Court Chairman General Hassan Nur Shuute and his panel have completed hearings in the case, which has presented the court with sharply conflicting accounts of how a confrontation involving security personnel and civilians escalated into deadly violence.

The prosecution has accused NISA officer Dahir Abdi Dahir of killing two people and wounding a third during the incident.

But Dahir has strongly disputed the prosecution’s account, telling the court that he intervened only to calm a confrontation between another soldier and a civilian and that the fatal shooting was accidental.

According to the case presented before the court, the dispute began after government soldier Sadiq Abdirahman Hashi was accused of taking a mobile phone from a civilian. When an argument subsequently developed, Dahir allegedly intervened after being called upon to assist.

The prosecution maintains that Dahir went beyond his assigned duties and became involved in the confrontation, ultimately firing a burst from a weapon that killed two people and injured another.

Dahir, however, gave the court a markedly different account.

He said he entered the confrontation as a humanitarian intervention and did not even know the other soldier involved. He further testified that the firearm had been handed to him without his knowledge that it contained ammunition.

According to his testimony, the deceased civilian later identified as Abdullahi Hassan Socdaal grabbed or struggled with the weapon, resulting in the fatal discharge.

The case concerns the deaths of Socdaal and a Haramcad police officer, Hassan Kuusow, as well as injuries sustained by Mohamed Ahmed Hussein.

The conflicting accounts have placed the court before a difficult legal question: whether the deaths resulted from deliberate use of force, negligence, an accidental discharge during a struggle, or a combination of circumstances surrounding the confrontation.

The prosecution has argued that Dahir failed in his professional responsibilities and improperly intervened in the dispute, with the confrontation ultimately producing fatal consequences.

The defence position, meanwhile, portrays the officer as a security professional attempting to prevent a civilian-soldier confrontation from escalating, only for the situation to spiral beyond his control.

The case has now entered a decisive stage, with General Shuute and the military court panel expected to consider the testimony and evidence before issuing their ruling.

The proceedings underscore the enormous responsibility carried by Somali security personnel, whose decisions in tense situations can have immediate and irreversible consequences.

For the court, the central task is now to separate competing claims from established facts and determine responsibility under Somali law.

With the hearings concluded, attention turns to the verdict — a decision expected to clarify what happened during the extraordinary confrontation and whether the fatal shooting was an intentional act, negligence or a tragic accident.

WardheerNews