He was once his driver. Then he became the man General Mahad Abdirahman Aden says was sent to track him and ultimately help those who wanted him dead. General Mahad Abdirahman Aden, better known as Commander Shub, is the former commander of Somalia’s Custodial Corps.
Earlier this month, his home in Doolow, Gedo region, was hit in an attack that left him and his wife injured and caused extensive damage to the house. The attack took place on 3 September 2026, according to reports published after the incident. Mahad survived. But in the days that followed, he began describing what he believes was a much wider operation, one that allegedly involved a man who had once been trusted to drive him.
In an interview with Somali Stream, Mahad accused recently elected House of the People member Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur, Somalia’s intelligence leadership and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s administration of involvement in the alleged plot. The allegations have not been independently established. The warnings “He used to be my driver in the capital, Mogadishu,” Mahad said. He said he was repeatedly warned that the man could eventually pose a danger to his life. Mahad initially ignored the warnings.
He released the driver and travelled to Doolow, where he bought his own vehicle and drove himself for a period. His former aide, meanwhile, travelled to Baidoa and later Mogadishu. Despite the earlier warnings, Mahad eventually decided to bring him back. “I was never worried about him as a potential danger to me,” he said. “The worst he could do to me was just share gossip and spread information.” But the warnings did not stop. Mahad said several people later approached him and again told him that the man remained a potential threat.
Between Baidoa and Mogadishu
At one point, the former aide called Mahad claiming he was stranded. Mahad said he later discovered that the man was alive and in Baidoa. According to Mahad, the man was subsequently moved between Baidoa and Mogadishu. Another detail began to trouble the former commander. Mahad said the salaries of other officers he had recruited and who had served under him were withdrawn. But, he alleged, the former aide continued receiving his salary. Mahad also said he was informed that the man was seen repeatedly appearing in the vehicle of Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur Jama. He eventually called him back to Doolow. The man arrived by air after the local airport reopened. Then came another warning. ‘He is coming to kill you’ Mahad said members of his security team told him that the former aide had come to Doolow to kill him.
Despite the warning, Mahad allowed him into his home. He was given a room. Soon afterwards, workers repairing the house allegedly began noticing unusual behaviour. Mahad said they told him that the man was repeatedly photographing the property. Then came an incident involving the lights. A few days before the attack, Mahad instructed a woman working at the house to switch off the lights. When she went to the former aide’s room, he told her he was still working. “Switch off the lights. I can stay and work in the dark,” Mahad recalled him saying.
Mahad said the man was constantly on his phone.
He eventually came to believe that the former aide was communicating with people in Baidoa and passing information about his location and movements. Then, on the night of 3 September, the attack came. The night the house was hit The house was struck, causing heavy damage. Mahad was injured. His wife was also injured in the attack.
Mahad later described seeing an aircraft over the house before what he said were two missiles struck the building. The precise circumstances surrounding the attack, including responsibility for it, remain disputed. In the aftermath, Mahad said, the Governor of Doolow ordered the former aide to be taken into custody. The alleged link between the man inside the house and the attack is now at the centre of Mahad’s account.
The man inside the house
For Mahad, years of warnings, unexplained movements and suspicious behaviour suddenly appeared to form a single pattern. The former aide had known where he lived. He had access to the house. He had allegedly photographed the property. And, Mahad believes, he was communicating with people outside Doolow about his whereabouts. The former commander maintains that the man was not acting alone. He has pointed towards senior political and intelligence figures whom he alleges were behind the operation. The man he once trusted to drive him through Mogadishu, he now believes, became the man who helped those seeking his death find him. And when the attack finally came, the alleged threat was no longer somewhere beyond the walls. It was, Mahad says, already inside his home.