Letter from Mogadishu: Somalis in the US on edge as Trump frets

The Somali community in the United States is on the edge.

This follows two moves by President Donald Trump’s administration that would directly affect the community with far-reaching ramifications for those who sought refugee status in the US from both Somalia and Kenya.

The first one was a post by Trump on his preferred social media account, Truth that he was ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somalis in Minnesota specifically, alleging without evidence that “Somali gangs are terrorising the people of that great State.”

The second was his administration’s plans to review all refugees admitted to the U.S. during the Biden administration in the latest blow against a program that has for decades welcomed people fleeing war and persecution into the country.

Trump’s threat to end TPS attracted the attention of Somali community leaders in the U.S led by Representative Ilhan Omar and other Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor leaders who denounced President Trump and the Republican party’s attacks on Minnesota’s Somali-American community.

Omar who is Somali and went to the US as an immigrant, accused the president of using the lawlessness of an individual to blame a whole community.

Omar was referring to a plethora of Minnesota human services fraud cases, many of which involved Somali-Americans charged with bilking hundreds of thousands of dollars from government programs meant to feed hungry children, assist young people with autism and help people find housing.

The leader of a Minnesota nonprofit was last week convicted for her role in a scheme that stole $250 million (shs3.4 billion) from the Corona virus pandemic relief program meant to feed children.

Aimee Bock, founder and executive director of Feeding Our Future, was one of 70 people charged in the case, which federal prosecutors say is one of the USA’s largest pandemic-related frauds.

Bock's co-defendant, Salim Ahmed Said, owner of the now-defunct Safari Restaurant in Minneapolis, was also convicted following the joint six-week trial. 

Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota, Lisa Kirkpatrick said that Bock and Said falsely claimed to have served 91 million meals, for which they fraudulently received nearly $250 million in federal funds.

Should Trump go ahead and execute his plan, the status would affect 0.5% of Somalis in Minnesota. There are roughly 80,000 Somalis in the state with an estimated 41,748 residents being immigrants who were born in Somalia.

Most Somalis in Minnesota were either born there or are naturalized citizens. Many came to Minnesota as refugees following the collapse of the Siad Barre government in 1991 leaving Somalia in turmoil and in a state of civil war. Some Kenyan Somalis too exploited the situation in the neighbouring country to go to the US under the refugee program.

Temporary Protected Status for Somalia is currently scheduled to end in March.

But addressing Somalis in Minnesota protected under TPS, Omar said, “We will make sure we do everything that we can to help make sure that your status is adjusted” before then.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said in Minnesota on Sunday that her office will evaluate whether to revoke protections for Somali nationals, which would require giving 60 days’ notice, the New York Times reported.

Trump’s post came two days after an article in one of the US publications alleged that the ill-gotten gains from human services fraud are being funneled into the Al-Shabaab terror network in Somalia.

Federal prosecutors are on record saying that dollars meant to feed children instead went to buying luxury vehicles, real estate in Minnesota, Ohio, Kentucky, Kenya and Turkey, and to fund international travel.

The money was tracked to Nairobi and Diani in Kwale County where it was invested in high end mansions and swanky beach apartments.

While president Trump has accused the Somali fraudsters of funding Al Shabaab, the U.S. Attorney, which is responsible for federal terrorism charges, has not preferred any charges against anyone with financing terrorism.

On Trump’s plan to review the entry of nearly 200,000 refugees who came to the United States during the Biden years it was indicated that there will be a list of people to re-interview within three months.

Advocates of the refugee program say that refugees are generally some of the most vetted of all people coming to the United States and that they often wait years to be able to come.

The Biden administration admitted 185,640 refugees from October 2021 through September 2024. Refugee admissions topped 100,000 last year, with the largest numbers coming from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Afghanistan, Venezuela and Syria.

Back to regional matters, there was a reprieve for the nine Somalia representatives to the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) after the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) lifted an injunction barring their oath of office.

The Arusha-based court removed an injunction issued earlier after a group of Somali academics and politicians challenged the legitimacy of the election held in Mogadishu. The petitioners alleged the process was marred by political interference, exclusion of qualified candidates and violations of the East African Community protocols.

They argued that the Federal Parliament bypassed key nomination rules, favouring politically connected individuals while sidelining more qualified contenders. The dispute prompted the court to halt the swearing-in of the nine delegates pending a full review.

In its final ruling issued Friday, the court found insufficient grounds to maintain the suspension, confirming that the nine members are now eligible to assume their roles in the regional assembly.

The decision is expected to excite political debate in Mogadishu, where it is likely to renew scrutiny of transparency and fairness in Somalia's selection of representatives to regional and international institutions. Analysts say the ruling may lead to fresh calls for clearer and more uniform nomination procedures in both houses of Parliament.

This is Somalia’s inaugural batch of legislators to EALA signaling the country’s full participation in the regional body to advance the country's interests in trade, infrastructure and regional integration.

EALA plays a key role in shaping regional policy, including legislation on economic integration, security and cross-border movement. The swearing-in of the nine legislators marks another step in Somalia’s broader effort to strengthen regional ties following years of institutional rebuilding.