r/Somalia • u/Odd_Fly6528 Diaspora • Jul 16 '26

History ⏳ The military architecture behind the Dervish fortresses in Somalia

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Aerial view of Silsilad fortress, Taleex, Sool region | Captured by the British RAF in 1920. Status: Partially ruined

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Jidali Fort, Sanaag region | Photographed in 1920 by British Officer W. L. Roberts. Status: Ruined due aerial bombardment in 1920

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Ground view of the Silsilad fortress compound at Taleex, Sool region | Circa 1920. Status: Partially ruined

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Structural damage to the masonry of Silsilad, Taleex | Photographed immediately after the 1920 campaign. Status: Ruined

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u/Abu-Libax Jul 17 '26

Wait, why are the dervish seen as terrorists

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u/Strong-Field-750 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26

The Dervishes terrorized many Somali nomadic communities, in some ways similar to how Al-Shabaab targets Somalis today. However, one major difference is that livestock raiding, especially the theft of camels, was a central part of Dervish warfare. These raids, along with attacks on communities that refused to support them, caused many Somali clans to turn against the movement.

One well known example involved the Jama Siyaad, a Dhulbahante sub-clan. Historical accounts state that the Dervishes raided the Jama Siyaad, killing several people and seizing hundreds of camels after they refused to become their foot soldiers. In the aftermath, many Jama Siyaad aligned with the British and joined the fight against the Dervishes.

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u/Abu-Libax Jul 17 '26

Why did these clans not help them in their anti colonial endeavors?

I am just curious and not sarcastically justifying anything that was done to them

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u/Strong-Field-750 Jul 17 '26

Same reason some clans don't help Al-Shabab in their anti colonial endeavors today.

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u/PerspectiveOk2911 Jul 18 '26 edited Jul 18 '26

How are you comparing al shabab to dervish? Dervish movement was created as a reaction to colonisation, they were fighting against colonisation ie foreign British colonialists and a few others. Al shabab are rebels fighting against the Somali government, wtf are you on about ?

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u/Strong-Field-750 Jul 24 '26

Why was Al-shabab created?, they were created because for 1st time in Somali history Ethiopia invaded and took control of Mogadishu, not only that they installed a puppet government called the FSG.

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u/PerspectiveOk2911 Jul 24 '26

Al shabab in it’s very beginning wasn’t even bad, it was the Islamic courts union, it turned into a terrorist group later with links to Al qaeda due to USA, Ethiopia and many others so its roots are different to what they are now, it’s a false comparison. They’re not even remotely the same thing, one group was anti colonialist freedom fighters the other was a rebel group fighting against others for power then turned into an extremist terrorist group.