Abdullah Mohamed Fadil (, ,

Osmanya Osmanya (, ), known in Somali as ''Far Soomaali'' (, "Somali writing") and in Arabic as ''al-kitābah al-ʿuthmānīyah'' (; "Osman writing"), is an alphabetic script created to transcribe the Somali language. It was invented by Osman Yusuf Ke ...

: 𐒖𐒁𐒆𐒖𐒐𐒐𐒖 𐒑𐒝𐒔𐒖𐒑𐒑𐒗𐒆 𐒍𐒖𐒆𐒘𐒐; born 1930's - died January 1991), was a very senior Somali,

Military Officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent c ...

Strategist A strategist is a person with responsibility for the formulation and implementation of a strategy. Strategy generally involves setting goals, determining actions to achieve the goals, and mobilizing resources to execute the actions. A strategy ...

Politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and a

Revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

Biography

Fadil was the son of a

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

musketeer A musketeer ( ) was a type of soldier equipped with a musket. Musketeers were an important part of early modern warfare, particularly in Europe, as they normally comprised the majority of their infantry. The musketeer was a precursor to the rifl ...

from Taiz governorate with the Sultanate of Hobyo and a Majeerteen mother of the Nuh Jabrail family. Both parents served under Sultan Ali Yusuf Kenadid, heir to Sultan Yusuf Ali Kenadid. Fadil was the first Joint Chiefs of Staff and Commander of the Somali Armed Forces (SAF), and was a senior member of the Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC). A Major General in the military, he would also hold number of portfolios as a Minister, including as the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Minister of Health, Minister of Ports and Marine Transport, during the

Siad Barre Mohammed Siad Barre (, Osmanya script: , ''Muhammad Ziād Barīy''; 6 October 1919 – 2 January 1995) was a Somali military officer, politician, and revolutionary who served as the third president of Somalia from 21 October 1969 to 26 Janu ...

administration. In the 1970s Abdullah Mohamed Fadil and Muhammad Ali Samatar advised President Barre to select top Frunze graduates to lead the campaign in Ogaden against Ethiopia to liberate Somali territories and restore the greater Somalia. This was part of a broader effort to unite all of the Somali-inhabited territories in the Horn region into a

Greater Somalia Greater Somalia, also known as Greater Somaliland (; ), is the geographic location comprising the regions in the Horn of Africa in which ethnic Somalis live and have historically inhabited.During the Scramble for Africa at the end of the 19th cent ...

(''Soomaaliweyn'').

Ogaden War

A distinguished graduate of the M. V. Frunze Military Academy General Fadil co-managed with General Samantar Somalia's military strategy. They selected the top military leaders from Frunze known as "Frunzites" preferring the Frunzites over the Italian trained Modena graduates . Fadil and Samnatar trusted their college mates, the top graduates of Frunze Military Academy in Moscow (Военнаяакадемия им М. В. Фрунзе), an elite Soviet institution reserved for the most qualified officers of the Warsaw Pact armies and their allies to lead the Ogaden Campaign. Fadil and Samantar selected the following: Col.

Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed (, ‎; 15 December 1934 – 23 March 2012), was a Somali politician and former military official who served as the first President of Puntland from 1998 to 2004. He also played a key role in establishing the Transitional ...

commanded SNA in Negellie Front. Col.

Abdullahi Ahmed Irro Abdullahi Ahmed Irro (; - ), Abdullahi Ahmed Yusuf Irro,''ARR: Arab report and record'', (Economic Features, ltd.: 1978), p.602. was a prominent Somali military professor and late general. He helped establish the National Academy for Strategy. ...

commanded SNA in the Godey Front. Col. Ali Hussein commanded SNA in Qabri Dahare Front. (Later chosen to support Harar campaign) Col. Farah Handulle commanded SNA in the Warder Front. General Yussuf Salhan Jigjiga Front General Mohamed Nur Galaal assisted by Col. Mohamud Sh. Abdullahi Geelqaad commanded Dirir-Dewa. The SNA retreated from Dirir-Dewa. ( Galaal became Minister of Public Works and Leading member of the ruling Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party) Col. Ali Isamil and Col. Abdulrahman Aare Degeh-Bur Front. (Later chosen to reinforce the Harar campaign)

Assassination in January 1991

Top Somali officials, Fadil, Samantar, among others were targeted for clan reasons as documented by Sica and Kapteijns. Following the outbreak of the

civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

in 1991 and the collapse of the Barre regime, Mario Sica, then Italian ambassador to Mogadishu, documented that although the

United Somali Congress The United Somali Congress (USC, ) was one of the major rebel organizations in Somalia. Formed in 1989, it played a leading role in the ouster of the government of Siad Barre in 1991. Following infighting, the USC later splintered into two win ...

(USC) professed that it was fighting against the Barre regime as a whole and not engaged in a clan-based struggle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fadil, Abdullah Mohamed 20th-century Somalian military personnel Ethnic Somali people Somalian generals Year of birth missing 1991 deaths Frunze Military Academy alumni

Biography

Ogaden War

Assassination in January 1991

See also

References