The man behind one of the country's deadliest attacks has been killed by firing squad, exactly a year after the tragedy. Five hundred people were killed in the truck bomb blamed on al-Shabab.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F.A. Warsameh
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Somalia on Sunday executed a man thought to have orchestrated one of the world's deadliest attacks since 9/11.
Hundreds of people, meanwhile, gathered at a ceremony to remember those killed in the attack, which was blamed on the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab group.
Memories of the bombing are still raw. A truck packed with explosives blew up at a busy intersection, destroying some 20 buildings in an apocalyptic scene.
The attack was so devastating, the extremist group never claimed responsibility.
Isak was the driver of a vehicle parked near an airport checkpoint shortly after the truck went off, and was arrested for suspicious behavior. The target of his attack was unclear and there were no casualties in the second blast.
Advanced warning
Security officials have admitted they had advance warning about an attack but had no idea about the large amount of explosives it carried.
We had been trailing the car bomb before it was detonated but it sped through a traffic jam and unfortunately reached the site," said Abdullahi Sanbalolshe, Somalia's former intelligence chief.
Reconstruction of the area has begun but many buildings in the area still lie in ruins. A memorial tower has been erected in the middle of the intersection.
"In my mind, it feels like it happened just yesterday," said Sadiya Mohamed, a 49-year-old who lost her eldest son. He is among hundreds of people still missing. "I can barely get sleep since that dark day. He was everything for us," she said.
Omar Haji Mohamed, a disabled father who lost two children in the blast, urged the government to keep on top of security.
"I don't think commemoration would bring them back to me, but I hope nothing like the October tragedy happens again."
The United States has targeted the extremist group with dozens of airstrikes and increased its military presence in Somalia since early 2017 to about 500 personnel.
Mogadishu — city of extremes
Somalia's capital is both - a city of dispair and hope. Mogadishu has been ravaged by nearly 30 years of civil war but is now at the helm of rebuilding a failed state.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/M. Abdiwahab
In the face of terror
The truck was loaded with explosives and detonated at a busy junction in the heart of Mogadishu in the afternoon of September 14, 2017. The explosion of the bomb killed at least 276 people and injured hundreds more. It was the worst terror attack in the history of Somalia. Nearly three decades of civil war and terror have also robbed the population of its resilience to drought.
Image: Reuters/F. Omar
Fighting starvation - a Somali reality
Xamdi is a child of Somali nomads and has been in the nutrition ward of Mogadishu's Banadir Hospital since the beginning of August. Her mother feeds her with the peanut-based 'Plumpy’Nut' paste to avoid severe acute malnutrition. Xamdi is three years old and only weighs seven kilograms. Most kids in Germany in the same age group weigh twice as much. About 800,000 Somalis are facing starvation.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Collapsed health system - even in the capital
This boy recovers in the bed next to Xamdi. He is fighting pneumonia, one of the all too common infections caused by chronic malnutrition and overcrowded conditions in Mogadishu's refugee camps. His hands are wrapped in paper to prevent him from pulling out his feeding tube. Banadir Hospital is the biggest public clinic in the capital, but even here the collapse of the health system is visible.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Mogadishu - city of refugees
Mogadishu is full of makeshift homes. Many nomads and countryside dwellers are determined to stay. They have fled civil war, terror, violence and hunger. The city's population has swollen to nearly 2.5 million. At least 600,000 are officially regarded as 'internally displaced people'.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Camp life takes a heavy toll
The congested and unhygienic living conditions in the camps are a health hazard. Acute respiratory tract infections and diarrhea are common diseases among Mogadishu's internally displaced population. Life in the makeshift camps is a daily struggle for the next meal and the next bucket of water.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Life in waiting
There is not much to do inside the camps but to sit and wait. Many children don't have access to education. Most makeshift camps lack playgrounds or other recreational spaces.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
City of ruins
There is much hardship outside the camps, too. The old part of Mogadishu is particularly pockmarked by nearly three decades of internal conflict. But there are also signs of new beginnings.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Selfie time
Early September 2017: These youngsters are having a good time in Mogadishu's Peace Park. All of them are students, all of them express faith in the new government of western-backed President Mohamed. One of them wants to become a civil aviation engineer. He says: "It is much safer here than five years ago." Five years ago al-Shabab ruled the capital. Today the extremists send suicide bombers.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
No hand grenades
Right at the entrance to Peace Park, visitors are reminded to leave behind Kalashnikovs, knives, hand grenades and pistols.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
The happening place
Liido beach draws huge crowds especially after Friday prayers. People meet to dance and play soccer. Soccer is hugely popular in Somalia. Young lovers meet to court each other. Mogadishu's Liido beach was deserted under al-Shabab's brief rule of the capital.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Reconstruction in full swing
The international community has started to invest in rebuilding Somalia's shattered state. Reconstruction is most visible in the capital. This new street was built with Turkish help. Turkey has also set up a huge military base in Mogadishu to train Somali soldiers.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Walls and fences
New villas spring up throughout town. Somalia's returning diaspora invests in Mogadishu's booming property market. So do politicians and other strongmen. Many of the new buildings are surrounded by high blast walls and concertina wire to fend off terrorists, criminals and rivals.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Green Zone
The airport region has become the expats' hub. Like Baghdad and Kabul, Mogadishu has a green zone. The United Nations and most of the returning diplomatic missions live and work in the vast compound which has developed around Mogadishu's International Airport. It is fenced off and guarded by African Union troops.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
City of murals
Most of Mogadishu's shopfronts sport hand-painted murals which add some much-needed color to a city slowly rising from its ruins.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Online shopping
Modern billboards are also conquering the streets, advertising online shopping for Arab fashion or application details for private educational institutions.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Not for all
The city's new attractions are out of reach for the many displaced people and the poor. Somalia's progress and stability will depend on the state's ability to win the trust of its people. Right now nearly seven million people, which is about half the country's population, depend on humanitarian aid.
Image: DW/S. Petersmann
Youth bulge
More than half of Somalia's population is under 18. The majority of citizens were born after the overthrow of Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 — the pivotal event that caused the country to become a failed state. The capital's youth, if not engaged meaningfully, often feel disenfranchised, adding to Somalia's continued vulnerability.
