A Kenyan court has sentenced two men to 30 years in prison for aiding al-Shabab fighters who were behind a deadly attack in Nairobi that left 21 people dead in 2019.
On Thursday, Judge Diana Kavedza Mochache ruled that Hussein Mohammed Abdile and Mohamed Abdi Ali played a critical role by helping two of the attackers escape from a refugee camp using fake identity cards. The pair also provided financial assistance to the group.
“Without financiers, facilitators and sympathisers, terrorists cannot actualise their activities,” the judge said during sentencing, stressing that their support made the attack possible.
“The convicts may not have physically wielded the weapons that caused harm to the victims, but their facilitation directly enabled attackers who were heavily armed with guns, grenades and suicide vests,” Kavedza said.
“This was not a crime with isolated harm; 21 lives were lost,” she added, acknowledging statements from survivors about their ongoing psychological struggles.
“The emotional scars of the attack run deep,” she said.
Abdile and Ali were convicted last month for facilitating and conspiring to commit a “terrorist” act. Both men denied the charges and now have 14 days to appeal.
Background to attacks
The assault on the upmarket DusitD2 complex in the Kenyan capital began on January 15, 2019, when gunmen stormed the compound and opened fire.
Security forces launched an operation that lasted more than 12 hours. The government later announced that all the attackers had been killed.
Al-Shabab, an armed group linked to al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility, saying the assault was in retaliation for then-United States President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
The siege was the first major attack in Nairobi since the 2013 Westgate mall massacre, which killed 67. In 2015, al-Shabab also attacked Garissa University, killing 148 people.
Since Westgate, high-end venues in the capital have ramped up security, including vehicle and pedestrian checks.
The DusitD2 complex, like Westgate, catered to wealthy Kenyans and foreign nationals, groups often targeted by al-Shabab.
The Somalia-based group has repeatedly struck inside Kenya, aiming to force the withdrawal of Kenyan troops from Somalia, where they are part of a regional force battling the rebellion.
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