Shirwa Ahmed ( 1983 – October 29, 2008) was a 26-year-old Somali-American who is the second known American suicide bomber, surpassing Andrew Kehoe. He detonated a car bomb in Somalia in October 2008, killing himself.

Life

Ahmed immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

as a child, resided in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and entered the Roosevelt High School in September 1996. He became a naturalized American citizen and went on to attend community college before dropping out and worked odd jobs. In 2004, Ahmed began associating with a new group of friends perceived as having been religious; he was "radicalized in his hometown in Minnesota" according to Robert Mueller, the director of the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

. He was one of twenty Somali-American men who departed the Minneapolis area for

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

, a trend which has been the focus of one of the larger domestic terrorism investigations since

September 11, 2001 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...

. Motivated by a mixture of politics and religion, he joined Al-Shabaab, a militant Somali group. Then, on October 29, 2008, — or the 28th — he drove a car loaded with explosives into a government compound in

Puntland Puntland ( so, Puntland, ar, أرض البنط, it, Terra di Punt or ''Paese di Punt''), officially the Puntland State of Somalia ( so, Dowlad Goboleedka Puntland ee Soomaaliya, ar, ولاية أرض البنط الصومالية), is a F ...

in the northern region of the country, and blew himself up. The FBI investigated the incident and returned Ahmed's remains to Minneapolis that November. ''

Mother Jones magazine ''Mother Jones'' (abbreviated ''MoJo'') is an American progressive magazine that focuses on news, commentary, and investigative journalism on topics including politics, environment, human rights, health and culture. Clara Jeffery serves as edi ...

'' pointed out normal elements of his American upbringing, including being a fan of

rap artist Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

Ice Cube, and enjoying

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

References

1980s births 2008 deaths Muslims from Minnesota Somalian emigrants to the United States Ethnic Somali people Islamist suicide bombers Roosevelt High School (Minnesota) alumni {{Somalia-bio-stub