Radio al-Furqan

Radio al-Furqan
  • Kunya Barrow
  • Somalia
Frequency87.8 MHz[1]
Ownership
OwnerAl-Kataib Media Foundation[2]

Radio al-Furqan (Somali: Idaacadda al-Furqaan) is a Somali radio station and media outlet owned and controlled by the terrorist group al-Shabaab.[3] It serves as a primary propaganda arm for the group, broadcasting extremist jihadist ideology, incitement to violence, and terrorist recruitment messages.[4]

History

Radio al-Furqan was created by the al-Shabaab terrorist organization in 2009 in order to disseminate radical jihadist propaganda, extremist religious teachings, and audio messages glorifying terrorism and calling for attacks, alongside Radio al-Andalus.[5]

Radio al-Furqan hosts a Somali language website that functions as a platform for al-Shabaab's terrorist propaganda. It features videos and photo releases by al-Kataib Media Foundation that showcase attacks and militant operations. Its style is similar to Amaq News Agency as it attempts to masquerade as an independent media source while actually serving as a propaganda and radicalization tool for the terrorist group.[6]

Normally, Radio al-Furqan posts reports on terrorist operations—including photo reports from attack sites—before any other organization, including Shahada News Agency.[7]

In 2013, al-Shabaab operated Radio al-Furqan through an FM radio station under the alias Al-Ihsan local FM radio in Mogadishu before being shut down by Somali security forces on March 2, 2013, as part of efforts to disrupt the terrorist group's communications and propaganda networks. The station then relocated operations to Adado District in Adado.[8]

On December 31, 2020, the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) conducted airstrikes in southern Somalia, launching at least four missiles targeting al-Shabaab terrorist infrastructure. According to initial reports, the strikes were intended to target Al-Shabaab's Radio Andalus; however, later confirmations indicated that Al-Furqan radio, located on the outskirts of Kunya Barrow, was hit instead, striking a blow to the group's propaganda capabilities.[9]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Radio al-Furqan and other Al-Shabaab media outlets spread hateful and exploitative propaganda by attempting to portray the pandemic as divine punishment against the "kuffar" (infidels). This was a deliberate effort to exploit global fear and suffering in order to radicalize listeners, justify the group's terrorist campaign, and undermine legitimate authorities.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Full Issue". Africa Research Bulletin: Political, Social and Cultural Series. 61 (3). 2024-04-08. doi:10.1111/j.1467-825X.2024.11498.x. ISSN 0001-9844.
  2. ↑ Hafez, Mohammed; Misra, Angela; Paul, Cruickshank; Colin, Clarke; Smyth, Phillip; McGregor, Andrew; Warner, Jason; Weiss, Caleb; Muibu, Daisy; Nickels, Benjamin (2017). "Why Jihadis Lose" (PDF). CTC Sentinel. 10 (10): 33 – via Combating Terrorism Center.
  3. ↑ "Suicide bombing kills two at Turkish military base in Somalia". The New Arab. 2020-06-23. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  4. ↑ Anzalone, Christopher (2016). "Continuity and Change the Evolution and Resilience of Al-Shabab's Media Insurgency, 2006-2016" (PDF). Hate Speech International. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-01-01. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  5. ↑ Alshawi, Abeer Salim; Alghaithi, Salim Ali; Alrayssi, Jabir Ali; Alsuwaidi, Abdallah EbrahimnMohammed Ebrahim; Hamzah, Abd. Rahman Bin Hj. (2022-04-01). "The impact of the use of digital media in the radio on the dissemination of Islamic culture". International Journal of Health Sciences: 651–658. doi:10.53730/ijhs.v6nS3.5407. ISSN 2550-696X.
  6. ↑ Anzalone, Christopher (2016). "Continuity and Change the Evolution and Resilience of Al-Shabab's Media Insurgency, 2006-2016" (PDF). Hate Speech International. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  7. ↑ Weiss, Caleb (2018-07-24). "Shabaab releases photos from inside joint US-Somali-Kenyan base". FDD's Long War Journal. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  8. ↑ Sook, Kim (2013-07-12). "Letter dated 12 July 2013 from the Chair of the Security Council Committee pursuant to resolutions 751 (1992) and 1907 (2009) concerning Somalia and Eritrea addressed to the President of the Security Council" (PDF). United Nations Security Council. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
  9. ↑ "US drone strikes target Al-Shabaab radio station in Somalia". Garowe Online. 2020-06-30. Retrieved 2025-03-25.
  10. ↑ West, Sunguta (2020-07-28). "Al-Shabaab Attacks Spike, as COVID-19 Grips the World". Jamestown Foundation. Retrieved 2025-03-24.

This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.