Moktar Ali Zubeyr

Sheikh Moktar Ali Zubeyr (Mukhtaar Cali Zuubeyr, مختار علي الزبير) also known as Muktar Abdirahman "Godane", Ahmad Abdi Godane, Ahmad Abdi Aw Muhammad, Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr and Muqtar Abdurahman Abu Zubeyr, is the Emir (leader) of Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen, which currently is the most prominent insurgent group in Somalia. Godane, who received training and fought in Afghanistan, is designated by the United States as a terrorist. He succeeded Sheikh Mukhtar Robow who had held the position for several months after Sheikh Aden Ayro's death.

Early life
Muktar Abdirahman Godane was born in Hargeisa on 10 July 1977. He hails from the Isaaq tribe of north Somalia, like Ibrahim "al-Afghani" who was another key leader in Al-Shabaab before his murder by Godane loyalists in June 2013. He studied Quran in Hargeisa and is a veteran of the Afghan Jihad. While in the Somaliland region of Somalia, Godane had worked for Al-Barakat, a Somali remittance company that had been linked to terrorism. He is from the 'Arab sub-clan of the Isaaq clan family.

Islamic Courts Union
In 2006, Godane became the secretary general of the Executive Council of the Islamic Courts Union, an organization which was then lead by Sharif Ahmed who is the previous President of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia.

Al-Qaeda
In September 2009 Godane appeared in an Al-Shabaab video where he offered his services to Bin Laden. The video appeared to be a response to a Bin Laden from March 2009 in which he urged the Somalis to overthrow the newly elected President of Somalia Sharif Ahmed. In January 2010, Godane, speaking on behalf of Al-Shabaab, released a statement reiterating his support for Al-Qaeda and stated that they had "agreed to join the international jihad of al Qaeda".

Tensions within Al-Shabaab
Godane and his close friend Ibrahim Haji Jama Mee'aad (aka Ibrahim Al-Afghani) both rose to prominence within Al-Shabaab at the same time but, despite their close relationship, the two men had widely divergent views on what the future of Al-Shabaab should be. This resulted in tensions within the organization and the alienation of many of Godane's oldest friends as it became apparent that Godane's agenda was transnational.