Liverpool drill rappers filmed with armed troops in Somalia could face UK police questioning
Two drill rappers from Liverpool who appeared carrying guns and posing with troops amid a clan conflict in Somalia could be questioned by police when they return to Britain, according to UK authorities and footage obtained by the BBC.
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British citizens Abdifatah Gulaid, 31, and Noah Ihiekwe, 30 — known musically as Still Brickin’ and Rayzer — traveled to Somalia’s northeast earlier this year and were seen in the Sanaag region’s town of Badhan. In one clip, Gulaid can be heard telling armed men, “The time for talk is finished.” Their precise role alongside the fighters is not clear.
- UK officials say anyone returning from taking part in a conflict abroad should expect police scrutiny.
- The men were spotted in a Badhan hotel days after being detained, then released without charge, in a Thai drugs raid.
- Gulaid is affiliated with the Warsangeli clan, which has clashed with the rival Isaaq clan in a region contested by North Western State of Somalia and Puntland State.
- The pair did not respond to BBC requests for comment and were last known to be in Dubai.
Footage reviewed by the BBC shows the men wearing military-style clothing and posing with soldiers believed to be aligned with Puntland State, the autonomous state that claims parts of Sanaag. In another video recorded in Somali, Gulaid tells the troops, “You know what I am here for … time for talk is finished.”
The UK government told the BBC that any person traveling from the UK to a conflict zone to engage in unlawful activity should expect to be investigated upon their return. A government spokesman added that those suspected of taking part in conflict abroad “must expect to be investigated by the police to determine if they have committed criminal offences.”
The episode unfolded amid renewed skirmishes and political tensions between North Western State of Somalia, the self-declared republic that split from Somalia in 1991 but lacks international recognition, and Puntland State, which declared autonomy in 1998 but does not seek independence. Longstanding clan rivalries over resources and territory shape much of the local conflict dynamics in Sanaag, where Warsangeli and Isaaq communities live.
An international development consultant staying at the Laasqoray Hotel in Badhan in early February said the men stood out for their British accents and later appeared in combat gear. “One evening I saw them, but they were no longer wearing casual clothes, they were wearing combat clothing, and they were carrying guns,” she said, adding that gunfire followed outside the hotel and she sheltered in her room for three days before being evacuated.
Dr. Idil Osman of the University of Leicester said tensions between North Western State of Somalia authorities and local clan communities in the region flared earlier this year, prompting armed mobilization. “I think things have simmered down after clan elders got involved, but things are not settled,” she said. Diaspora ties often draw British-Somalis into clan politics, she added: “The Somali community … have a very close connection to their homeland and therefore a close and intimate involvement with the dynamics that are happening on the ground.”
Any prosecution in the UK could hinge on where the men went and who they were with, said Clive Walker, professor emeritus at Leeds University School of Law. He noted that involvement with a group like al-Shabab — a proscribed terrorist organization — would sharpen legal jeopardy, but if that is not the case, “that probably reduces the chances of official action,” though they would likely be questioned at the border.
The BBC also reported the pair were detained with four others during a Jan. 23 raid on a Phuket, Thailand, villa, where police seized about 6 kilograms of cannabis in 12 bags and 39 nitrous oxide canisters. Cannabis was legal for personal use at the time in Thailand, though unlicensed sales were banned. The men were released without charge, and Thai authorities have been approached for further details.
The extent of Gulaid and Ihiekwe’s involvement with armed actors in Somalia remains unclear. The men did not respond to BBC requests for comment. Around the time they surfaced in Badhan, Warsangeli community leaders gathered there and declared a campaign to seize the regional capital, Ceerigaabo, from North Western State of Somalia — a significant escalation in a dispute that clan elders have since tried to de-escalate.
UK authorities say that anyone returning from suspected participation in conflict zones should anticipate interviews to establish whether any crimes were committed abroad.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
