Sheegow, the Bantu, and the cost of injustice In August 2023, government forces forcibly arrested General Sheegow Ahmed Ali, the only senior government officer who hailed from the Jareer Weyne minority, at his home in Mogadishu. Accusing Sheegow of operating a militia, four people were killed in the ensuing violence between security forces and his bodyguards, while over a dozen were also injured. The separate treatment of the popular leader proved highly controversial amongst the long-ostracised Jareer Weyne, triggering protests in both the capital and Beledweyne. Nevertheless, Sheegow was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a military court that November and has remained in jail since. But with Al-Shabaab sweeping across Lower and Middle Shabelle in recent weeks and reports of Sheegow's ill health, the importance of the former official could be returning to the fore.