Islamic State – Somalia Province

The Islamic State – Somalia Province or Abnaa ul-Calipha (Arabic: أبناء الخليفة) is an Islamic State–affiliated group that primarily operates in the mountainous areas of Puntland, and which has also claimed responsibility for several terrorist attacks throughout the rest of Somalia. Led by Sheikh Abdul Qadir Mumin, the group is estimated to have up to 300 active fighters. Since its formation, ISS probably managed to take control of a small, sparsely populated territory in northern Somalia's mountainous hinterland, though it was not acknowledged as official province ("Wilayat") by IS's central leadership until December 2017. Since then, it has sometimes been called Somalia Province ("Wilayat al Somal") by pro-IS media. ISS is also the declared enemy of al-Shabaab, which considers the Islamic State a significant threat to its own predominance among Jihadist factions in Somalia.