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Bimal Resistance
Part of the Scramble for Africa and the First World War (1914–1918)
Date 1896 - 1925 Location Horn of Africa, Southern Italian Somalia Result Suppression of the Bimal revolt
Belligerents
Kingdom of Italy	Bimal forces

The Bimal Resistance, Bimal Revolt, Merca Revolt or Benadir Resistance was a guerrilla war against the Italian Somaliland in southern Somalia. It was fought from the years 1896 to 1926 and largely concentrated in the Lower Shebelle, Banadir and Middle Shebelle regions.

It is usually compared to the war against the Mad Mullah in Somaliland. Named after the Bimal clan since they were the major force in the resistance against the Italians.

History

In the 1890's Italy militarily occupied Merca, the center of the Bimal. This sparked outrage among the local Bimal clan, many of whom then joined the Bimal resistance against the Italians.

When the European ‘scramble for Africa’ began in the late 19th century, the city of Merca was known to the Europeans as being hostile to the colonialists. The Dervishes were waging an anti colonial campaign in Somaliland whilst similiar campaigns were being conducted in Italian Somaliland.

An Italian general who lived in the city was assassinated in 1904 , whose name was Giacomo Trevis. In response, Italy occupied the town of Jazira, approximately 30 miles south of Mogadishu where the Bimal are the main community.

One of the Italians' fears was the spread of 'Dervishism' (which meant revolt) in Italian Somaliland where the powerful Bimal tribe of the Benadir region were already at war with the Italians, although not following the religious message nor adhering to the views of Muhammad Abdullah Hassan yet understood greatly his goal and political ambitions. Some people state that the Dervishes were supplying arms to the Bimal although it is not confirmed.

The Italians wanted to bring an end to the Bimal resistance at all costs and to prevent a Bimal-Dervish alliance, which led them to use the forces of Obbia and the Mijertein.

The governor of Italian Somaliland: Tommaso Carletti wrote on the necessity for the Italians to quickly move from nominal control of the Somali colony to actual occupation to reap the potential financial incentives from the untapped resources of Italian Somaliland. He said:

“It is necessary for the government to assert itself over the populations surrounding the Banadir stations and gradually undertake the peaceful penetration of the interior and extend our direct administration to the line of the Shabelle River.”

The resistance was spearheaded by Sheikh Abdi Gafle and Sheikh Mursal Abdi Yusuf; two of the most prominent Islamic sheikhs in Merca. The resistance, albeit clan-based, transformed in to one with a sense of fanatical fervour.

During the resistance, the city was laid siege to by the Bimal, thereby blocking all land routes to the port. Italian garrisons in Merca barely survived the harassments. Reinforcements from Mogadishu suffered considerable losses. This resistance caught the attention of Mohamed Abdulle Hassan — the charismatic Dervish leader — who sent a lengthy message to the Bimal (Risaalat al-Biyomaal) in which he commended their efforts and proclaimed the necessity of waging war against the colonialists.

The resistance came to an end in 1908 when 1500 well equipped Italian colonial troops faced 2,000 Bimal warriors. The battle, known as Dagaalkii Sabti iyo Axad (The Weekend Battle) or Fiinlow, was decisive, with the Somali side on the losing end. Roughly 1,000 Bimal warriors were killed or wounded. The Italians, boasting of their victory, renamed the site ‘Vittorio d’Africa’ — the African Victory.

The Somalis knowing that they could not match against superior Italian weaponry, ended up suing for peace with the Italian authorities, a shaky peace that endured its fragility until Somalia’s independence.

In June 1908 Governor Carletti wrote an emergency letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs:

"We cannot afford to delay our move inland, since it will be difficult to occupy the river when the rebels who left over two months ago return with guns from the Mullah Muhammad."

To give weight to his pleas for decisive government action, Carletti sent an emergency letter from the sultan of Geledi written earlier that month:

"The Bimal have abandoned their territory and the major part around 4000 are in voyage to the Mullah. Only the old men, women, and children remain. Even among the Hintire only a few remain. You must make war without any delay. Don’t remain inactive. Your enemies won’t obey your orders and say, “We will obey only Shaykh Muhammad Abdullah….” Hintire, Biimaal, Wacdaan, Jambelul, Daud, and Mobilayn amount to more than 100,000. If their messengers return with arms, they will all stand against us and the territory will be lost, since they desire only war."

While the letter almost certainly exaggerates the number who left to contact the Mullah in the north, it does give an idea of the extent to which the resistance had become pan tribal and pan regional.

The Bimal People

Between the 17th -20th centuries, the Bimal sultanate was one of the most powerful sultanates in the Horn, ruling the coast of the Benadir to the Kenyan border. During the 18th century, the Geledi clan was the second most powerful clan in Somalia and were ruling large territories in southern Somalia. The port of Mogadishu was autonomous, the Zanzibar sultans' authority, like their customs officials, came and went. The hinterland of Mogadishu was controlled by the Geledi clan whose sultans contracted alliances with many other clans in the region between the Shebelle and Juba rivers. Through much of the century, this Geledi alliance dominated trade links from Luuq on the upper Juba to Mogadishu; the Geledi sultans also collected tribute from the agricultural clans along the Bay and Bakool as far south as Bu’alle. Only the powerful Bimal clan, situated in the hinterland of Merca, succeeded in resisting the Geledi hegemony and overthrew their rulers in Mogadishu.

From the 18th to 19th centuries, the Bimal played a major role in Somali history. The Bimal opposed Italian colonial authority and severely resisted them. Thousands of Bimal warriors lost their lives. In 1895-1902, the Italian authorities attempted many times to negotiate a deal with the Bimal. In 1903, around 2000 Bimal warriors and around 800 Italian soldiers were killed when they attempted to go against Italian interests which also cost many Italian lives. Though many Bimal warriors were killed, they still fought valiantly to protect Somali territory. After a long struggle, the Italian authorities sought and made alliances with other Somali tribes to suppress the Bimal resistance.

According to the Muslim Brotherhoods in the 19th century, the Bimal clan were living between Merca and the river Shabelle. Another point of contention was continuing Italian penetration inland, which the Bimal had opposed since 1896. They had also besieged an Italian garrison at Merca in 1904 and ambushed and attacked the Italians repeatedly. From 1903 on, there was contact between the Dervish leader and the Bimal, moreover, the Salihiya had a Sufi center in Bimal territory headed by Sheikh Abdi Gafle, who could through miracles, transform men into animals and change bullets into water. The Bimal clan was finally defeated by the Italians in 1908 with the help of tens of thousands of Somali mercenaries.

The Bimal sultanate maintained armies, courts, prisons, and were highly dynamic and eager to link with global trade. They invited experts from India and around the world, to train their people in skills such as weaving, textile industry, milling and agricultural production and topographical surveys used to make irrigation canals. The massive development the Bimal were undertaking with their sultanate was sabotaged by the Italians, which was one the reasons the Bimal began their revolt.

The Bimal also engaged in pastoralism, and were also successful merchants and traders in the 19th century. The Bimal have proved in the past to be a bellicose clan, not only against their neighbours, but also against Italian colonial encroachment. The Italians undermined the Bimal Sultanate and changed the traditional structures in the South by retitling the elders "capo qabiil" and incorporating them into their administrative system. The Bimal resisted the imposition of colonialism fought against the Italian colonialists in a twenty-year war known as the Bimal revolt in which many of their warriors assassinated Italian governors.

Sheikh Abdi Abikar Gafle

Sheikh Abdi Abikar Gafle or also more famously known as Gafle, was a famous Bimaal teacher and warrior born in ‘Armadobe village in 1852. He was also a prominent figure in the Bimal Resistance against the Italians.

Gafle was a notable teacher who grew up finishing his Quranic education and studies at home, and afterwards went for higher Islamic education. He studied many subjects such as:

1. Fiqh

2. Tafsir

3. Hadith

Sheikh Abdi Gafle learned from well known sheikhs at that time like Sheikh Usman Sheikh Hassan and Sheikh Muhammad Abdalla. Gafle continued to become a well known individual in the Bimal community. In 1888, Gafle started to travel increasingly all over the Shabelle Valley preaching his ideology and teaching the public about the menace of the Italian colonizers.

Sheikh Abdi Gafle contributed heavily to the efforts and resistance against the Italians. He took part in the Igalle shir (clan council) in June 1896 and was the one who led an army against the Italians. Gafle was the pioneer behind the alliance with the Dervishes and their leader Sayid Mohamed. He died in 1922.

References

Category:Italian Somaliland Category:1920s in Somalia Category:Military operations involving Italy