Ali Mahdi Muhammad

Ali Mahdi Muhammad (Somali: Cali Mahdi Muxammad, Arabic: علي مهدي محمد‎) (born 1938) was president of Somalia from January 1991 to November 1991. He rose to power when Mohamed Farrah Aidid forced then president Mohamed Siad Barre out of office. Muhammad, however, was not able in that time to exert control over the country. Following this, the nation fell into anarchy, with only local warlords and separatist groups wielding real power.^[1]

Career

United Somali Congress (USC)

Muhammad was a leading member of the Abgaal clan elements within the USC. Early in the Somali Civil War, he and Mohammed Farah Aidid worked together to oust Siad Barre. But no sooner had Barre been ousted than Ali Mahdi Muhammad unilaterally declared himself Barre's successor as interim President. The shock of the news caused an irreparable sundering of the USC between those who followed Ali Mahdi ("USC Mahdi", mainly members of the Abgaal clan) and those who followed Aidid (who, in turn, went on to create the Somali National Alliance or "USC/SNA").

The warring between these two leaders continued on through the 1992–95 UN missions to Somalia (UNOSOM I, UNOSOM II, and UNITAF). During 1995, Mohammed Farah Aidid claimed the title of the President of Somalia. However, his precedency was short-lived as he died less than a year later 1996. Nevertheless, the intense rivalry continued on even after his death, as SNA leadership was passed on to Aidid's son, Hussein Mohammed Farah Aidid, who also claimed the Presidency of Somalia.

On December 17, 1996, Ali Mahdi Mohamed attacked Hussein Aidid's headquarters after five days of fighting that left 135 dead in Mogadishu.^[2]

On December 22, 1997, Hussein Aidid relinquished the disputed title of President by signing the Cairo Declaration, in Cairo, Egypt following a peace process between the Salbalar administration and the Soodare Group. Thereafter, neither Aidid nor Ali Mahdi would have the claim to the Presidency. It was the first major step towards reconciliation since 1991.^[3]

On March 30, 1998, Ali Mahdi Mohamed and Hussein Aidid put together a peace plan, which saw them sharing power over Mogadishu, effectively marking the end of a period of seven years of unmitigated fighting since the ouster of Siad Barre in 1991.^[2]

Transitional National Government (TNG)

In November 2002, as a member of parliament of the Transitional National Government (TNG), the predecessor to the present Transitional Federal Government (TFG), Ali Mahdi Muhammad blamed Ethiopia for interfering in the meetings. He left the Eldoret conference in Kenya to return to Mogadishu, stating that the conference was a waste of time.^[4]

References