Ahlu Sunna Wal Jamaa (ASWJ) leader and the former president of the regional state of Galmudug, Sheikh Mohamed Shakir Ali has called on the Somali people to unite in the fight against Alshabab militias.

The leader of the Sufi group Sheikh Shakir especially urged the people of Galmudug to quickly forge to come together and strengthen security by fighting Alshabab.

Sheikh Shakir lost his seat on 29 February after the parliament of Galmudug elected Ahmed Abdi Kariye, a former minister backed by the federal government, as president of the region.

The Sufi group has played a major role in the fight against the radical Shabab Islamists, supported by Al-Qaeda, and has controlled the main cities of Galmudug for the past 10 years.