Islamic State Setback in Somalia

 The George Washington University Program on Extremism published on 2 March 2023 an analysis titled "The Death of Bilal al-Sudani and Its Impact on Islamic State Operations" by Tricia Bacon and Austin C. Doctor.

In January 2023, US forces conducted an operation in northern Somalia that killed Bilal al-Sudani, an important operative for the Islamic State.  He was a key financial facilitator for the Islamic State in Sub-Saharan Africa and beyond.  Consequently, the Islamic State in Somalia will lose some of its value as a facilitation hub for its global networks, but it will not be significantly weakened in Somalia.  

Fate of Islamic State Branch Operation in Puntland, Somalia

 The Royal United Services Institute published on 20 March 2023 an article titled "Out of Africa: Financial Networks of  Islamic State 2.0" by Edmund Fitton-Brown.  

An Islamic State (IS) branch office located in Puntland, Somalia and headed by Bilal al-Sudani coordinated IS affiliates in Mozambique and the DRC and supplied funding to IS in Afghanistan.  In January 2023, US Special Forces killed al-Sudani and nine associates.  It remains to be seen if the operation in Puntland will regenerate.