Saturday, March 04, 2006

Somali Evangelist Escapes Beheading

Evangelist Geeddi Galbe (formerly Abuukar Mohamud Hussein) escaped an attempt on his life on February 1, 2006.

An organized Muslim group attacked the evangelist with machetes in Mogadishu, the Somali capital. The group apparently tried to behead the evangelist but he escaped with a fractured skull and other bodily injuries.

Evangelist Geeddi managed to escape the would-be assassins and ran to an open pharmacy bleeding profusely. The pharmacist warded off the Muslim attackers thus saving the life of the Somali evangelist.

The evangelist had been struck several times on the head and the torso. He was admitted to a local hospital where he received marginal medical treatment.

The fearless 32 year old evangelist belongs to a house church in Southern
Mogadishu where several Christians in the area came to the Lord through his evangelistic ministry.

Evangelist Geeddi was a former influential editor of a community newspaper, Maandeeq, in the Somali capital. He accepted Christ as his only Savior in 1987.

The evangelist is an outspoken Somali Christian in Islamic Somalia where most believers keep a low profile for security reasons.

Many praise him for his courage and eloquence. The evangelist is a born communicator and a talented debater.

The now defunct Northern Mogadishu Islamic Court sentenced the evangelist to 36 lashes in 1997 after questioning the credibility of the militant Islamic court system. The evangelist was whipped in public in the presence of jeering Muslim spectators.

The Southern Mogadishu Islamic Court sentenced Evangelist Geeddi to seven months in prison in 1999 after he was accused of not observing the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. He was released after serving the entire length of the sentence.

Islamic radicals from the Islamist Kulanka Culimada kidnapped Evangelist Geeddi in June 2, 2005 and tortured him mercilessly. His hands and legs were tied behind him. He was kicked, punched and dragged around on his chest.

Evangelist Geeddi Galbe survived the torture with broken ribs and bruised kidneys.

The persecution against the Somali Church started skyrocketing in 1994 when a beloved church leader was martyred in Mogadishu. Liibaan Ibraahim Hassan fondly called “Saint Liibaan of Somalia” was shot and killed by Islamic extremists in the Somali capital.

This is a difficult time for the Somali Church but this Church is the Lord’s and he will continue protecting her (Matthew 16:18).

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