Dadaab refugee camp Garissa County, Northern Kenya. Photo/Care
By Daisy Okiring
Authorities in Wajir County have confirmed the brutal killing of 17-year-old refugee Gaala Aden Abdi, just 27 days after she was forcibly married to a 55-year-old man in a remote village.
Gaala, who had been living at Dagahley refugee camp, was taken under the cover of darkness to Wara village in Habaswein—over 150 kilometers away—where she was introduced to Mohamed Kassim Tifow, the man chosen for her in an arranged marriage. She had never met him before.
According to her family, Gaala resisted the forced marriage, triggering violent retaliation from her husband and his relatives. In a distressing voice note sent to her mother before her death, she described the abuse she was enduring:
“I am being beaten every night—24 hours I am being beaten… Why is my face swollen?”
On the night of March 22, Gaala called her mother in distress, fearing for her life. Hours later, a devastating call confirmed her worst fears—she had been killed.
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“Late at night, she said, ‘They have started knifing me, and my phone is being taken away.’ Around 2 a.m., I got a call saying she was butchered and her body set on fire,” her mother, Amina Abdi Nur, recounted.
Police say Gaala’s charred body was discovered outside a rental house, placed on a mattress and burned. A Somali knife was recovered at the scene.
Medical and forensic reports confirmed she suffered extensive spinal injuries and third-degree burns. Her clothing was stained with blood and body fluids, suggesting she was murdered before being set ablaze.
The main suspect, Mohamed Kassim Tifow, has been arrested as investigations continue.
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