Ali Mahdi Muhammad (1939-2021) Somali Politician

Ali Mahdi Muhammad (1939-2021) Somali Politician
Ali Mahdi Muhammad
Birth 1 Jan 1939
Jowhar, Shabeellaha Dhexe, Somalia
Death 10 Mar 2021 (aged 82)
Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
Burial Details Unknown
Somali Statesman

He served as the 4th President of Somalia from January 26, 1991 to January 3, 1997. He began his career in business, as an entrepreneur in the capital city of Mogadishu, before entering politics in 1968.

After years of uprisings in the country, civil war broke out in 1991 and long time President Siad Barre was ousted. He, along with Mohamed Farah Aidid led rival United Somali Congress factions that battled for control of the capital. Later in 1991, he was named president by an international conference in Djibouti.

He went on to serve in this capacity until 1997 and his administration was mired by endless civil war and United Nations peacekeepers, stationed in the country, trying to keep the peace. In 2000, he tried again for the presidency, but was defeated by Siad Barre’s former Interior Minister Abdiqasim Salad Hassan.

He passed away from Covid-19.