Somali PM Suspends FM over Charcoal Export to Oman Breaking U.N. Sanctions

Somalia’s Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble on Tuesday suspended Foreign Minister Abdisaid Muse Ali for authorising a ship to export charcoal to Oman in violation of international sanctions.

Ten years ago, the U.N. Security Council banned such shipments to cut funding for the Islamist militant group al Shabaab, an al Qaeda franchise fighting Somalia’s central government.

Prime Minister Roble’s also ordered an audit and judicial investigation into the ministry’s authorisation of the shipment.

The shipment’s status was unclear at the time of filing this report.