Doolow Strike Raises Dangerous Questions Over Turkey’s Military Role in Somalia
Who controls Somalia’s foreign-supplied military power? The disputed Doolow strike has pushed that question to the center of the country’s political crisis.
Turkey’s involvement remains unproven — but if counterterrorism capabilities are being redirected against political rivals, Somalia has entered a far more dangerous phase.
Doolow Strike Raises Questions Over Turkey’s Military Role in Somalia
MOGADISHU — A disputed strike on the home of former Somali Correctional Service commander Gen. Mahad Abdirahman Aden, known as Mahad Shub, has opened a potentially explosive question: are military capabilities supplied or operated by Somalia’s foreign partners being drawn into the country’s internal political conflicts?
Former South West State president Abdiaziz Laftagareen alleged that two Turkish nationals and one Somali were involved in the September 3 attack in Doolow, Gedo region. He described the incident as an attempted assassination and accused President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s administration of using military power against political opponents. The allegations have not been independently verified.
Jubaland has separately accused Turkey of involvement, saying two missiles struck the area and injured Mahad Shub and several civilians. Mogadishu strongly denies responsibility, saying preliminary security information indicated that explosives being prepared inside the residence caused the blast. The federal government has promised a fact-finding investigation.
Those radically different accounts make independent verification essential.
Why the Turkey Allegation Matters
Turkey is no ordinary foreign partner in Somalia.
Ankara has trained Somali forces, built military infrastructure and significantly expanded its security presence. Turkish F-16 fighter jets were publicly confirmed operating from Somalia earlier this year, while Somali authorities subsequently said Turkish F-16s had participated in strikes against Al-Shabaab targets.
There is currently no independently verified evidence connecting those aircraft to the Doolow incident.
But that existing military footprint makes the allegation politically serious.
Foreign military assistance to Somalia has largely been justified by one overriding objective: strengthening the Somali state against Al-Shabaab and other security threats.
If such capabilities were ever used instead to settle domestic political disputes, it would fundamentally alter how federal states, opposition groups and international partners view foreign security assistance.
Somalia’s Political Conflict Is Becoming Militarized
The Doolow incident also cannot be separated from the wider confrontation between Mogadishu and forces aligned with Laftagareen.
Federal forces took control of Baidoa in March after a prolonged constitutional and electoral confrontation. Laftagareen resigned but later continued challenging the political transition, while armed clashes between his supporters and federal-aligned forces have repeatedly erupted around Baidoa. Fighting on September 3 left scores wounded, including civilians.
Doolow therefore represents something potentially more dangerous than another local confrontation.
If political disputes that once centered on elections, constitutions and federal authority are increasingly settled through air power and advanced weapons, Somalia risks entering a new phase of internal conflict.
Turkey Faces a Credibility Test
Ankara has spent years presenting itself as one of Somalia’s closest strategic partners.
That relationship gives Turkey influence — but also responsibility.
The accusations against it remain unproven. Ankara should therefore have every interest in establishing what happened quickly and transparently.
An unresolved perception that Turkish military assets are being used on one side of Somalia’s political disputes could damage Türkiye’s standing not only in Gedo and Jubaland, but across the wider Somali federal system.
Protests have already been reported in Doolow and Garbahaarrey over the alleged Turkish role.
WARYATV Assessment
The immediate question is who attacked Mahad Shub’s residence.
The larger question is more consequential:
Who controls Somalia’s increasingly sophisticated military capabilities, and under what rules can they be used?
Mogadishu says there was no airstrike. Laftagareen and Jubaland say there was. Turkey has been accused but its role has not been independently established.
That uncertainty itself demands a credible investigation.
Somalia’s partners supplied advanced military capabilities primarily to fight terrorism and strengthen national security. They were not intended to become instruments in disputes between Villa Somalia, federal states and political opponents.
If evidence ultimately shows foreign-supported military assets were used against a political rival, the consequences could extend far beyond Doolow.
It would raise questions about command authority, foreign military oversight and whether international security assistance is strengthening Somalia’s state — or becoming another weapon in its political fragmentation.
WARYATV Bottom Line
The Doolow incident must be independently investigated.
Until evidence establishes what happened, Turkey’s involvement remains an allegation.
But one principle should already be clear:
Weapons supplied to defeat Al-Shabaab cannot be allowed to become weapons for settling Somalia’s political disputes.
