Mohamed Yusuf Haji ( so, Maxamed Yuusuf Xaaji) (23 December 1940 – 15 February 2021) was a Kenyan politician. He was the Minister of Defence of Kenya from 2008 to 2013, and briefly served as its acting Minister of Internal Security and Provincial Affairs in 2012. He has served in the Senate of Kenya since 2013 under the jubilee party. He died on 15 February 2021.

Personal life

Haji was born on 23 December 1940 in

Garissa District Garissa County is an administrative county in Kenya. Its capital and largest urban area is Garissa. The county had a population of 841,353 at the 2019 Census, and a land area of about .2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census, Volume 2. Demog ...

in the North Eastern Province (Northern Frontier District) to an ethnic Somali family. He hails from the Abdalla subclan of the

Ogaden Ogaden (pronounced and often spelled ''Ogadēn''; so, Ogaadeen, am, ውጋዴ/ውጋዴን) is one of the historical names given to the modern Somali Region, the territory comprising the eastern portion of Ethiopia formerly part of the Harargh ...

and Borana from his mom side. For his post-secondary education, Haji earned a diploma from the University of Birmingham, where he majored in Management and Finance Control. Haji is married and has nine children (one deceased). One of Haji's son, Abdul Yusuf Haji, is a businessman. Another son, Noordin Yusuf Haji, is an undercover anti-terrorism agent and the

Director of Public Prosecutions The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the office or official charged with the prosecution of criminal offences in several criminal jurisdictions around the world. The title is used mainly in jurisdictions that are or have been members o ...

, He also worked as a deputy director of the National Intelligence Service and worked in the attorney general's office since 1999. Both of Haji's sons, Abdul and Noordin (who both of them have experience with guns since their childhood), were involved in the

Westgate shopping mall attack On 21 September 2013, four masked gunmen attacked the Westgate shopping mall, an upscale mall in Nairobi, Kenya. There are conflicting reports about the number killed in the attack, since part of the mall collapsed due to a fire that starte ...

in 2013 and they were credited with saving multiple lives despite deadly danger. Abdul was photographed helping rescue an American mother and her three daughters, providing cover with other armed rescuers by

Goran Tomasevic Goran Tomašević ( sr-cyr, Горан Томашевић; born 1969), is a Serbian photographer. Working for Reuters, he has spent more than 20 years travelling around the globe to cover the world's biggest stories. Tomašević's award-winning ...

, Reuters chief photographer for

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

. The senator died in 2021 on the morning of 15 February and after a very long time illnesses that saw him flown to Turkey for treatment and came back to the country where he died a week later at the Agha Khan hospital.

Political career

Early career

Haji began his professional career in administration and management. He joined the Provincial Administration of Kenya as a District Officer in 1960, and went on to serve as Provincial Commissioner between 1970 and 1997. He was among the eight powerful provincial commissioners who were in office during the Wagalla Massacre in February 1984. In 1998, Haji was nominated as a member of the Kenyan Parliament. He was later elected an official Member of Parliament on a Kenya African National Union (KANU) ticket. From 1998 to 2001, Haji worked as an Assistant Minister in the Office of the President. He subsequently acted as the Office's Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs in 2002. On a KANU ticket, Haji was elected to represent the

Ijara Constituency Ijara Constituency is an electoral constituency in Kenya. It is one of six constituencies in Garissa County Garissa County is an administrative county in Kenya. Its capital and largest urban area is Garissa. The county had a population of 841,35 ...

in the National Assembly of Kenya at the 2007 parliamentary elections.Members Of The 10th Parliament
. Parliament of Kenya. Accessed 19 June 2008.

Minister of Defence

On 8 January 2008, Haji was appointed Kenya's Minister of State for Defence after the 27 December 2007 general elections. On 18 October 2011, Haji and a Kenyan delegation met with Transitional Federal Government of Somalia (TFG) officials in Mogadishu to discuss security issues cooperation against the Islamist Al-Shabaab group as part of the coordinated Operation Linda Nchi. Haji and Somalia's Minister of Defence

Hussein Arab Isse Hussein Arab Isse ( so, Xuseen Carab Ciise, ar, حسين عرب عيسى), also spelled Hussein Arab Issa, is a Somali politician. He was the Minister of Defence and the Vice President of Somalia of Somalia from 20 July 2011 to 4 November 2012. ...

then signed an agreement to collaborate against the insurgent group. In early June 2012, Haji signed another agreement officially re-hatting Kenya's deployed military forces in Somalia under the

AMISOM The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) was a regional peacekeeping mission operated by the African Union with the approval of the United Nations Security Council. It was mandated to support transitional governmental structures, implem ...

general command. Haji's term as Minister of Defence ended on 26 April 2013.

Minister of Internal Security

On 18 June 2012, Haji was appointed Kenya's acting Minister of Internal Security and Provincial Affairs after the incumbent minister George Saitoti died in a helicopter crash a few days earlier. Haji had previously worked closely with Saitoti on the Linda Nchi military operation. Haji held the new position concurrently with the Minister of Defence docket until a permanent Internal Minister was appointed on 21 September 2012.

References

External links

Profile: Mohamed Yusuf Haji
{{DEFAULTSORT:Haji, Mohamed Yusuf 1940 births Living people Ethnic Somali people Kenyan Muslims Kenyan people of Somali descent Members of the Senate of Kenya Kenya African National Union politicians Members of the National Assembly (Kenya) Government ministers of Kenya Alumni of the University of Birmingham People from Garissa County Defense ministers of Kenya