Editing Mogadishu (section)

==History==
===Antiquity===
{{Main|Sarapion|History of Mogadishu|Maritime history of Somalia}}
[[File:Fakr Ud Din Mosque.jpg|thumb|19th century engraving of the 13th century [[Fakr ad-Din Mosque]] built by Fakr ad-Din, the first Sultan of the [[Sultanate of Mogadishu]]]]

====Sarapion====
The ancient city of [[Sarapion]] is believed to have been the predecessor state of Mogadishu. It is mentioned in the ''[[Periplus of the Erythraean Sea]]'', a Greek travel document dating from the first century AD, as one of a series of commercial ports on the Somali littoral.{{sfn|Jama|1962|p=19}} According to the ''Periplus'', maritime trade already connected peoples in the Mogadishu area with other communities along the Indian Ocean.{{sfn|Huntingford|1980|p=94}}<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Joseph |first1=Dan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5aBxDwAAQBAJ&q=sarapion&pg=PA7 |title=Inside Al-Shabaab: The Secret History of Al-Qaeda's Most Powerful Ally |last2=Maruf |first2=Harun |date=2018-10-01 |publisher=Indiana University Press |isbn=978-0-253-03751-0 |pages=7 |language=en}}</ref>

During ancient times Mogadishu was part of the [[Somali maritime history|Somali city-states]] that engaged in a lucrative trade network connecting [[Somali people|Somali]] merchants with [[Phoenicia]], [[Ptolemaic Kingdom|Ptolemic Egypt]], Greece, [[Parthia|Parthian Persia]], [[Sabaeans]], [[Nabataea]] and the [[Roman Empire]]. Somali sailors used the ancient Somali maritime vessel known as the ''[[beden]]'' to transport their cargo.<ref name="ReferenceA">Journal of African History p.50 by John Donnelly Fage and Roland Anthony Oliver</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bellini |first1=Oscar Eugenio |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CfycEAAAQBAJ&q=sarapion&pg=PA55 |title=Innovative Approach for the Development of Sustainable Settlements in East Africa: Affordable Housing for Mogadishu |last2=Campioli |first2=Andrea |last3=Pero |first3=Claudio Del |last4=Talamo |first4=Cinzia M. L. |last5=Chiaroni |first5=Davide |last6=Guidarini |first6=Stefano |last7=Magni |first7=Camillo |date=2022-11-19 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-031-00284-7 |pages=55 |language=en |access-date=26 April 2024 |archive-date=22 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240522134644/https://books.google.com/books?id=CfycEAAAQBAJ&q=sarapion&pg=PA55#v=snippet&q=sarapion&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Foundation and origins===
The founding ethnicity of Mogadishu and its subsequent sultanate has been a topic of intrigue in [[Somali Studies]]. [[Ioan Lewis]] and [[Enrico Cerulli]] believed that the city was founded and ruled by a council of Arab and Persian families.<ref name="LewisPeoples">I.M. Lewis, ''Peoples of the Horn of Africa: Somali, Afar, and Saho, Issue 1'', (International African Institute: 1955), p. 47.</ref><ref name="LewisModern">I.M. Lewis, ''The modern history of Somaliland: from nation to state'', (Weidenfeld & Nicolson: 1965), p. 37</ref><ref>Renewers of the Age Holy Men and Social Discourse in Colonial Benaadir - Page 44</ref> However, the reference I.M Lewis and Cerulli received traces back to one 19th century text called the Kitab Al-Zunuj, which has been discredited by modern scholars as unreliable and unhistorical.<ref>H. Neville Chittick, "The East Coast, Madagascar and the Indian Ocean", in [[John Fage|J. D. Fage]] and R. Oliver (eds.), ''The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 3: From c.1050 to c. 1600'' (Cambridge University Press, 1977), pp. 183–231, at 194–195 and 198. ''The account in the [[Book of the Zanj]] of pre-Islamic immigration of Arabs from Himyar in southern Arabia, their founding of most of the more important towns of the coast from Mogadishu to Mombasa, and also Kilwa, together with their subsequent conversion to Islam, is uncorroborated by other sources and unsupported by the archaeological evidence and must be dismissed as unhistorical. The suggestion that these families must have come from Siraf to the Somali coast before the eleventh century must therefore be regarded as unproven''.</ref><ref>The Cambridge History of Africa, Volum 3 – Page 198</ref><ref>The Archaeology of Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa By Timothy Insoll – Page 62</ref><ref>Gervase Mathew, "The East African Coast until the Coming of the Portuguese", in R. Oliver and G. Mathew (eds.), ''History of East Africa'', Volume 1 (Clarendon Press, 1963), pp. 94–127, at 102.</ref> More importantly, it contradicts oral, ancient written sources and archaeological evidence on the pre-existing civilizations and communities that flourished on the Somali coast, and to which were the forefathers of Mogadishu and other coastal cities. Thus, the Persian and Arab founding "myths" are regarded as an outdated false colonialist reflection on Africans ability to create their own sophisticated states.<ref name="Jama">{{cite book |last=Jama |first=Ahmed |title=The Origins and Development of Mogadishu AD 1000 to 1850: A Study of the Urban Growth Along the Benadir Coast of Southern Somalia |year=1996 |publisher=Uppsala University |page=33 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AJsSAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA33 |volume=12 |series=Studies in African archaeology |issn=0284-5040 |isbn=9789150611236 |access-date=28 September 2023 |archive-date=28 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928111614/https://books.google.com/books?id=AJsSAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA33 |url-status=live }}</ref> It has now been widely accepted that there were already communities on the Somali coast with ethnic Somali leadership, to whom the Arab and Persian families had to ask for permission to settle in their cities. It also seems the local Somalis retained their political and numerical superiority on the coast while the Muslim immigrants would go through an assimilation process by adopting the local language and culture.<ref>Cities of the Middle East and North Africa: A Historical Encyclopedia edited by Michael Dumper, Bruce E. Stanley Page 252</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Janzen |first1=Jörg |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DZJPm2j2iz4C&dq=mogadishu+benadiri+people&pg=PA13 |title=What are Somalia's Development Perspectives?: Science Between Resignation and Hope? : Proceedings of the 6th SSIA Congress, Berlin 6-9 December 1996 |last2=Vitzthum |first2=Stella von |date=2001 |publisher=Verlag Hans Schiler |isbn=978-3-86093-230-8 |pages=13 |language=en |access-date=26 April 2024 |archive-date=22 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240522134747/https://books.google.com/books?id=DZJPm2j2iz4C&dq=mogadishu+benadiri+people&pg=PA13#v=onepage&q=mogadishu%20benadiri%20people&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>

Mogadishu along with [[Zeila]] and other Somali coastal cities was founded upon an indigenous network involving hinterland trade and that happened even before significant Arab migrations or trade with the Somali coast. That goes back approximately four thousand years and are supported by archaeological and textual evidences.<ref>{{Cite book|series=University College London Institute of Archaeology Publications|last=Mire|first=Sada|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J6nODwAAQBAJ&pg=PA129|title=Divine Fertility: The Continuity in Transformation of an Ideology of Sacred Kinship in Northeast Africa|date=2020|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-429-76924-5|page=129|access-date=6 June 2023|archive-date=6 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230606063336/https://books.google.com/books?id=J6nODwAAQBAJ&pg=PA129|url-status=live}}</ref>

This is corroborated by the first century AD Greek document the [[Periplus of the Erythraean Sea]], detailing multiple prosperous port cities in ancient Somalia, as well as the identification of ancient [[Sarapion]] with the city that would later be known as Mogadishu.<ref>Making Sense of Somali History: Volume 1 – Page 48</ref> When [[Ibn Battuta]] visited the Sultanate in the 14th century, he identified the Sultan as being of [[Barbaria (East Africa)|Barbara]] origin,<ref>The Travels of Ibn Battuta, A.D. 1325–1354: Volume II Page 375</ref> an ancient term to describe the ancestors of the [[Somali people]]. According to Ross E. Dunn neither Mogadishu, or any other city on the coast could be considered alien enclaves of Arabs or Persians, but were in-fact African towns.<ref>The Adventures of Ibn Battuta: A Muslim Traveller of the Fourteenth Century Page 124</ref>

[[Yaqut al-Hamawi]], a Muslim medieval geographer in the year 1220 describes Mogadishu as the most prominent town on the coast. Yaqut also mentioned Mogadishu as being a town inhabited by Berbers, described as "dark-skinned" and considered ancestors of modern Somalis.<ref>The History of Somalia – Page 36 by Raphael Chijioke Njoku · 2013</ref> By the thirteenth century, [[Ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi|Ibn Sa'id]] described Mogadishu, [[Merca]] and [[Barawa]] located in the Benadir coast had become Islamic and commercial centers in the [[Indian Ocean]]. He said the local people in the Benadir coast and the interior were predominantly inhabited by [[Somalis]] with a minority of Arab, Persian and Indian merchants living in the coastal towns.<ref name="Fage et al 139">{{cite book |last=Fage |first=J.D |title=The Cambridge History of Africa |year=1977 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=139 |isbn=9780521209816 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GWjxR61xAe0C&pg=PA139 |access-date=28 September 2023 |archive-date=28 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928111615/https://books.google.com/books?id=GWjxR61xAe0C&pg=PA139 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Ibn al-Mujawir]] mentions the Banu Majid who fled the Mundhiriya region in Yemen in the year 1159 and settled in Mogadishu and also traders from the port towns of Abyan and Haram.<ref>{{cite book |last=Fage |first=J.D |title=The Cambridge History of Africa |year=1977 |publisher=Cambridge University Press  |isbn=9780521209816 }}</ref>

Mogadishu is traditionally inhabited by four clans. These are the Moorshe, Iskashato, DhabarWeyne, and the Bandawow.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reese |first=Scott Steven |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fb4UYAPUhYoC&q=Ajuran+morshow |title=Renewers of the Age: Holy Men and Social Discourse in Colonial Benaadir |date=2008 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-16729-2 |pages=65 |language=en}}</ref> Moorshe is regarded the oldest group in Mogadishu and is considered to be a sub-clan of [[Ajuran (clan)|Ajuran]] who established one of the most powerful medieval kingdoms in Africa,  the [[Ajuran Sultanate]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reese |first=Scott Steven |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UeuwAAAAIAAJ&q=Amin+journey |title=Patricians of the Benaadir: Islamic Learning, Commerce and Somali Urban Identity in the Nineteenth Century |date=1996 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania |pages=176 |language=en}}</ref> The Gibil Madow (Dark Skins) faction of the Benadiri are said to hail from the Somali clan groups from inland which make up the majority of Benadiris with a small minority being Gibil Cads (Light Skins) which descend from Muslim immigrants.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=idcVAQAAIAAJ&q=gibil+madow |title=Understanding Somalia and Somaliland: Culture, History, Society By I'M Lewis |isbn=9781850658986 |access-date=5 November 2020 |archive-date=9 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309215434/https://books.google.nl/books?hl=no&id=idcVAQAAIAAJ&dq=morshe+mogadishu+oldest&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=gibil+madow |url-status=live |last1=Lewis |first1=I. M. |year=2008 |publisher=Hurst }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.landinfo.no/asset/1091/1/1091_1.pdf |title=Reer Xamar |access-date=5 November 2020 |archive-date=23 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923194540/https://www.landinfo.no/asset/1091/1/1091_1.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Medieval Period ===
====Mogadishu Sultanate====
[[File:Mogadishan currency.JPG|thumb|right|100px|[[Mogadishu currency|Mogadishan currency]]]]
The Mogadishu Sultanate was a [[History of Somalia#Medieval|medieval]] [[Somalis|Somali]] sultanate centered in southern [[Somalia]]. It rose as one of the pre-eminent powers in the [[Horn of Africa]] under the rule of Fakhr ad-Din before becoming part of the expanding [[Ajuran Sultanate|Ajuran Empire]] in the 13th century.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Abdurahman |first=Abdillahi |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X1dDDwAAQBAJ&q=mogadishu+ajuran+province&pg=PA62 |date=25 February 2003 |title=Making Sense of Somali History |volume=1 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |isbn=978-1-909112-79-7 |language=en |access-date=6 November 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041026/https://books.google.com/books?id=X1dDDwAAQBAJ&q=mogadishu+ajuran+province&pg=PA62 |url-status=live }}</ref> The Mogadishu Sultanate maintained a vast trading network, dominated the regional [[gold]] trade, minted its own [[Mogadishu currency|currency]], and left an extensive architectural legacy in present-day southern Somalia.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Jenkins |first1=Everett |title=The Muslim Diaspora (Volume 2, 1500–1799): A Comprehensive Chronolog |date=1 July 2000 |publisher=Mcfarland |page=49 |isbn=9781476608891 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kSYkCQAAQBAJ&q=military+assistance+sultanate+of+mogadishu+adal&pg=PA49 |access-date=22 January 2017 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041024/https://books.google.com/books?id=kSYkCQAAQBAJ&q=military+assistance+sultanate+of+mogadishu+adal&pg=PA49 |url-status=live }}</ref> A local city-state with much influence over the hinterland neighbouring coastal towns.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Cambridge history of Africa, volume 3 |url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgehistory03fage |access-date=7 August 2020 |via=Internet Archive |year=1975 |isbn=9780521209816 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldcivilization/chapter/the-sultanates-of-somalia/ |title=The Sultanates of Somalia {{!}} World Civilization |website=courses.lumenlearning.com |access-date=2 February 2019 |archive-date=3 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190203065252/https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldcivilization/chapter/the-sultanates-of-somalia/ |url-status=live }}</ref>[[File:Coral house mogadishu.JPG|thumb|170px|right|Entrance of a [[coral]] stone house in Mogadishu]]
For many years Mogadishu functioned as the pre-eminent city in the {{lang|ar|بلد البربر}} (''Bilad al Barbar'' – "Land of the [[Berber people|Berbers]]"), as medieval Arabic-speakers named the Somali coast.<ref>{{Cite book|editor1-last=Elfasi|editor1-first=M.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tw0Q0tg0QLoC&pg=PA600|title=Africa from the Seventh to the Eleventh Century|editor2-last=Hrbek|editor2-first=Ivan|author=Unesco International Scientific Committee for the Drafting of a General History of Africa|date=1988|publisher=UNESCO|isbn=978-92-3-101709-4|page=600|access-date=4 April 2018|archive-date=6 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230606064015/https://books.google.com/books?id=tw0Q0tg0QLoC&pg=PA600|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Sanjay Subrahmanyam, ''The Career and Legend of Vasco Da Gama'', (Cambridge University Press: 1998), p. 121.</ref><ref>J. D. Fage, Roland Oliver, Roland Anthony Oliver, ''The Cambridge History of Africa'', (Cambridge University Press: 1977), p. 190.</ref><ref>[[George Wynn Brereton Huntingford]], Agatharchides, ''The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea: With Some Extracts from Agatharkhidēs "On the Erythraean Sea"'', (Hakluyt Society: 1980), p. 83.</ref> Following his visit to the city, the 12th-century [[Syria]]n historian [[Yaqut al-Hamawi]] (a former slave of Greek origin) wrote a global history of many places he visited Mogadishu and called it the richest and most powerful city in the region and was an Islamic center across the [[Indian Ocean]].<ref>Roland Anthony Oliver, J. D. Fage, ''Journal of African history, Volume 7'', (Cambridge University Press.: 1966), p. 30.</ref><ref>I.M. Lewis, ''A modern history of Somalia: nation and state in the Horn of Africa'', 2nd edition, revised, illustrated, (Westview Press: 1988), p. 20.</ref>
[[File:Muzzaffar (Mogadishu area) flag according to 1576 Portuguese map.svg|thumb|left|Flag of the Mogadishu area according to a 1576 map by [[Fernão Vaz Dourado]]]]
[[File:Ancient-Almnara.jpg|thumb|right|Almnara Tower, Mogadishu]]

====Medieval Mogadishu====
During his travels, [[ibn Sa'id al-Maghribi]] (1213–1286) noted that Mogadishu city had already become the leading Islamic centre in the region.<ref>{{cite book |author=Michael Dumper, Bruce E. Stanley |title=Cities of the Middle East and North Africa: A Historical Encyclopedia |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2007 |location=US |page=252}}</ref> By the time of the [[Tangier]]-born traveller [[ibn Battuta]]'s appearance on the [[coastline of Somalia]] in 1331, the city was at the zenith of its prosperity. He described Mogadishu as "an exceedingly large city" with many rich merchants, which was famous for its high quality [[textile|fabric]] that it exported to [[Mamluk Sultanate]]-ruled [[Egypt]], among other places.<ref>P. L. Shinnie, ''The African Iron Age'', (Clarendon Press: 1971), p.135</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor=Helen Chapin Metz |editor-link=Helen Chapin Metz |url=https://archive.org/details/somaliacountryst00metz |title=Somalia: A Country Study |publisher=Federal Research Division, Library of Congress |year=1992 |isbn=978-0844407753 |location=US}}</ref> He also describes the hospitality of the people of Mogadishu and how locals would put travellers up in their home to help the local economy.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Battutah |first1=Ibn |title=The Travels of Ibn Battutah |date=2002 |publisher=Picador |isbn=9780330418799 |location=London |pages=88–89}}</ref> Battuta added that the city was ruled by a Somali [[sultan]], Abu Bakr ibn Shaikh 'Umar,<ref name="Versteegh">{{cite book |last=Versteegh |first=Kees |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OWQOAQAAMAAJ |title=Encyclopedia of Arabic language and linguistics, Volume 4 |publisher=Brill |year=2008 |isbn=978-9004144767 |page=276 |access-date=15 November 2015 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016014246/https://books.google.com/books?id=OWQOAQAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Laisas">David D. Laitin, Said S. Samatar, ''Somalia: Nation in Search of a State'', (Westview Press: 1987), p. 15.</ref> He noted that Sultan Abu Bakr had dark skin complexion and spoke in his native tongue (Somali) but was also fluent in Arabic.<ref name="Bulliet 313">{{cite book |last=Bulliet |first=Richard |title=The Earth and Its Peoples, Brief Edition, Complete |year=2011 |publisher=Cengage Learning |pages=313 |isbn=978-1133171102 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bec8AAAAQBAJ&q=abu+bakr+had+skin+darker+than+his+own+and+spoke+a+different+native+language+%28Somali%29&pg=PA313 |access-date=6 November 2020 |archive-date=15 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115041605/https://books.google.com/books?id=Bec8AAAAQBAJ&q=abu+bakr+had+skin+darker+than+his+own+and+spoke+a+different+native+language+(Somali)&pg=PA313 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Laisas" /><ref>Chapurukha Makokha Kusimba, ''The Rise and Fall of Swahili States'', (AltaMira Press: 1999), p.58</ref> The Sultan also had a retinue of [[vizier]]s, legal experts, commanders, royal [[eunuch]]s, and other officials at his beck and call.<ref name="Laisas" /> [[Ibn Khaldun]] (1332 to 1406) noted in his book that Mogadishu was a massive [[metropolis]]. He also claimed that the city was very populous with many wealthy [[merchants]].<ref name="Ibn Khaldun">{{cite book |last=Brett |first=Michael |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6r9mAAAAMAAJ&q=ibn+khaldun+book |title=Ibn Khaldun and the Medieval Maghrib |date=1 January 1999 |publisher=Ashgate/Variorum |isbn=9780860787723 |access-date=6 April 2018 |via=Google Books |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041025/https://books.google.com/books?id=6r9mAAAAMAAJ&q=ibn+khaldun+book |url-status=live }}</ref>

This period gave birth to notable figures like [[Abd al-Aziz of Mogadishu]]  who was described as the governor and island chief of [[Maldives]] by ibn Battuta.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Forbes |first1=Andrew |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vYffX9B0lpIC&q=aziz+mogadishu+ibn+battuta |title=The Maldives: Kingdom of a Thousand Isles |last2=Bishop |first2=Kevin |date=2004 |publisher=Odyssey |isbn=978-962-217-710-9 |language=en |access-date=20 September 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041025/https://books.google.com/books?id=vYffX9B0lpIC&q=aziz+mogadishu+ibn+battuta |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Bhatt |first=Purnima Mehta |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PucrDwAAQBAJ&q=aziz+mogadishu+ibn+battuta&pg=PT63 |title=The African Diaspora in India: Assimilation, Change and Cultural Survivals |date=5 September 2017 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-351-37365-4 |language=en |access-date=6 November 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041025/https://books.google.com/books?id=PucrDwAAQBAJ&q=aziz+mogadishu+ibn+battuta&pg=PT63 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s61AAAAAYAAJ&q=Abd+al+-+Aziz+al+-+Makdashawi |title=Kenya Past and Present |date=1980 |publisher=Kenya Museum Society |language=en |access-date=20 September 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041026/https://books.google.com/books?id=s61AAAAAYAAJ&q=Abd+al+-+Aziz+al+-+Makdashawi |url-status=live }}</ref> After him is named the Abdul-Aziz Mosque of Mogadishu, which survived for centuries.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ikL0ImjztDsC&q=aziz+mogadishu+ibn+battuta |title=The Somali Nation and Abyssinian Colonialism |date=1978 |publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Somali Democratic Republic |language=en |access-date=20 September 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041026/https://books.google.com/books?id=ikL0ImjztDsC&q=aziz+mogadishu+ibn+battuta |url-status=live }}</ref>

The island's appellation "Madagascar" is not of local origin but rather was popularized in the [[Middle Ages]] by Europeans.<ref name="Cousins">Cousins (1895), pp. 11–12</ref> The name ''Madageiscar'' was first recorded in the memoirs of 13th-century Venetian explorer [[Marco Polo]] as a corrupted transliteration of the name Mogadishu, the famous port with which Polo had confused the island.<ref name="Room 2006, p. 230">Room (2006), p. 230</ref>

[[Vasco da Gama]], who passed by Mogadishu in the 15th century, noted that it was a large city with houses of four or five storeys high and large palaces in its centre and many mosques with cylindrical minarets.<ref>{{cite book |author=E. G. Ravenstein |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AwcPInJC__gC&pg=PA88 |title=A Journal of the First Voyage of Vasco Da Gama, 1497–1499 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-108-01296-6 |page=88 |access-date=21 April 2024 }}</ref> In the 16th century, [[Duarte Barbosa]] noted that many ships from the Kingdom of [[History of Gujarat#Muslim Period|Cambaya]] sailed to Mogadishu with cloths and spices for which they in return received [[gold]], [[wax]] and [[ivory]]. Barbosa also highlighted the abundance of meat, wheat, barley, horses, and fruit on the coastal markets, which generated enormous wealth for the merchants.<ref>East Africa and its Invaders pg.38{{Full citation needed|date=October 2016}}</ref> Mogadishu, the center of a thriving weaving industry known as ''toob benadir'' (specialized for the markets in Egypt and [[Syria]]),<ref>{{cite journal |title=Gujarat and the Trade of East Africa, c. 1500–1800 |first=Edward A. |last=Alpers |journal=The International Journal of African Historical Studies |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=22–44 |date=1976 |doi=10.2307/217389 |jstor=217389}}</ref> together with [[Merca]] and [[Barawa]] also served as transit stops for [[Swahili people|Swahili]] merchants from [[Mombasa]] and [[Malindi]] and for the gold trade from [[Kilwa Kisiwani|Kilwa]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Harris |first=Nigel |title=The Return of Cosmopolitan Capital: Globalization, the State and War |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S3oyoVIIlMQC&pg=PA22 |year=2003 |publisher=I.B.Tauris |isbn=978-1-86064-786-4 |page=22 |access-date=4 April 2018 |archive-date=6 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106124754/https://books.google.com/books?id=S3oyoVIIlMQC&pg=PA22 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Jews|Jewish]] merchants from [[Ormus]] also brought their Indian textile and fruit to the Somali coast in exchange for [[grain]] and wood.<ref>{{cite book |last=Barendse |first=Rene J. |title=The Arabian Seas: The Indian Ocean World of the Seventeenth Century: The Indian Ocean World of the Seventeenth Century |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=G3ClDAAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |year=2002 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-317-45835-7 |access-date=4 April 2018 |archive-date=18 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170418005713/https://books.google.com/books?id=G3ClDAAAQBAJ&pg=PP1 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Duarte Barbosa]], the famous Portuguese traveller, wrote about Mogadishu (c 1517–1518):<ref>{{Cite book |last=Abdullahi |first=Mohamed Diriye |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Nu918tYMB8C&q=Portugees+Duarte+Barbosa+mogadishu&pg=PA18 |title=Culture and Customs of Somalia |date=2001 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-313-31333-2 |language=en |access-date=6 November 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329041026/https://books.google.com/books?id=2Nu918tYMB8C&q=Portugees+Duarte+Barbosa+mogadishu&pg=PA18 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Blockquote|It has a king over it, and is a place of great trade in merchandise. Ships come there from the kingdom of Cambay (India) and from Aden with stuffs of all kinds, and with spices. And they carry away from there much gold, ivory, beeswax, and other things upon which they make a profit. In this town there is plenty of meat, wheat, barley, and horses, and much fruit: it is a very rich place.|sign=|source=|title=}}

In 1542, the [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]] commander João de Sepúvelda led a small fleet on an [[Battle of Benadir|expedition to the Somali coast]]. During this expedition, he briefly attacked Mogadishu, capturing an Ottoman ship and firing upon the city, which compelled the sultan of Mogadishu to sign a peace treaty with the Portuguese.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Schurhammer|first1=Georg|date=1977|title=Francis Xavier: His Life, His Times. Volume II: India, 1541–1545|translator-last=Costelloe|translator-first=Joseph|location=Rome|publisher=Jesuit Historical Institute|url=https://archive.org/details/fx-schurhammer2/page/n117/mode/1up}} pp. 98–99. See also {{cite book|last1=Strandes|first1=Justus|date=1968|title=The Portuguese Period in East Africa|edition=2nd|series=Transactions of the Kenya History Society|volume=2|location=Nairobi|publisher=East African Literature Bureau|oclc=19225}} pp. 111–112.</ref>

According to the 16th-century explorer, [[Leo Africanus]] indicates that the native inhabitants of the Mogadishu polity were of the same origins as the denizens of the northern people of [[Zeila]] the capital of [[Adal Sultanate]]. They were generally tall with an olive skin complexion, some darker. They would wear traditional rich white silk wrapped around their bodies and have Islamic turbans, and coastal people only wore sarongs and wrote in [[Arabic]] as a [[lingua franca]]. Their weaponry consisted of traditional Somali weapons such as [[sword]]s, [[dagger]]s, [[spear]]s, [[battle axe]], and [[bow and arrow]]s. However, they received assistance from its close ally, the [[Ottoman Empire]], and with the import of firearms such as [[musket]]s and [[cannon]]s. Most were Muslims, although a few adhered to [[Waaq|pre-Islamic beliefs]]; there were also some [[Orthodox Tewahedo|Orthodox Tewahedo Christians]] further inland. Mogadishu itself was a wealthy, and well-built city-state, which maintained commercial trade with kingdoms across the world.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Njoku |first=Raphael Chijioke |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FlL2vE_qRQ8C&q=portuguese+mogadishu&pg=PA39 |title=The History of Somalia |date=2013 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-0-313-37857-7 |language=en |access-date=6 November 2020 |archive-date=22 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240522143208/https://books.google.com/books?id=FlL2vE_qRQ8C&q=portuguese+mogadishu&pg=PA39 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[metropolis]] city was surrounded by walled stone fortifications.<ref name="Leo Africanus source">{{cite web |last=(Africanus) |first=Leo |date=6 April 1969 |title=A Geographical Historie of Africa |url=https://archive.org/stream/historyanddescr03porygoog#page/n180/mode/2up |access-date=6 April 2018 |publisher=Theatrum Orbis Terrarum |via=Google Books}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Dunn |first=Ross E. |url=https://archive.org/details/adventuresofibnb00ross_0 |title=The Adventures of Ibn Battuta |publisher=[[University of California]] |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-520-05771-5 |location=Berkeley |page=373 |url-access=registration}}, p. 125</ref>

The [[Ajuran Sultanate]] collapsed in the 17th century due to heavy taxation against their subjects, which started a rebellion. The ex-subjects became a new wave of Somali migrants, the [[Abgaal]], moved both into the [[Shebelle River]] basin and Mogadishu. A new political elite led by [[Abgaal]] Yaquub [[imam]]s, with ties to the new leaders in the interior, moved into the [[Shangani District]] of the city. Remnants of the [[Ajuran (clan)|Ajuran]] lived in the other key-quarters of [[Hamar Weyne District]]. Ajuran merchants began to look for new linkages and regional trade opportunities since the Abgaal had commandeered the existing trading networks.<ref>Enrico, Cerulli, How a Hawiye tribe used to live, Chapter 4, scritti vari editi ed inediti, Vol. 2, edited by Enrico Cerulli, Roma</ref><ref>Lee V. Cassanelli, Towns and Trading centres in Somalia: A Nomadic perspective, Philadelphia, 1980, pp. 8–9.</ref>

===Early Modern period (1700s–1900s)===
==== Hiraab Imamate ====
By the 17th century, the [[Hiraab Imamate]] was a powerful kingdom that ruled large parts of southern and central Somalia. It successfully revolted against the [[Ajuran Sultanate]] and established an independent rule for at least two centuries from the seventeen hundreds and onwards.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X1dDDwAAQBAJ&q=%22hiraab+imamate%22&pg=PA62 |title=Making Sense of Somali History: Volume 1 |isbn=9781909112797 |last1=Abdullahi |first1=Abdurahman |date=18 September 2017 |publisher=Adonis and Abbey Publishers |access-date=6 November 2020 |archive-date=19 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201119224403/https://books.google.com/books?id=X1dDDwAAQBAJ&q=%22hiraab+imamate%22&pg=PA62 |url-status=live }}</ref>

By the late 19th century, the Imamate began to decline due to internal problems, the Imamate also faced challenges from Imperialist kingdoms, the Zanzibari Sultan from the coast and [[Geledi Sultanate]], and [[Hobyo Sultanate]] from the interior from both directions.<ref name="Lee V. Cassanelli 1982">Lee V. Cassanelli, The shaping of Somali society., Philadelphia, 1982,</ref>

==== Geledi Sultanate ====
The [[Sultanate of Geledi]] and the [[Omani Empire]] vied over who would be the superior power on the Benadir Coast, with Sultan [[Yusuf Mahamud Ibrahim|Yusuf Mahamud]] ultimately being the dominant force with the Omanis having a nominal presence and [[Said bin Sultan]] even paying tribute to him in order to keep [[Oman|Omani]] representatives in Mogadishu.<ref>{{cite book |title=Encyclopedia of African History, Volume 2 |page=990 |year=2005 |first=Kevin |last=Shillington |isbn=9781579584542 |publisher=Fitzroy Dearborn}}</ref> Mogadishu under [[Abgaal]] control had been in a period of decline and disarray near the end of the [[Hiraab Imamate]]. Following a struggle between the two leading figures of each respective quarter ([[Shangani District|Shingani]] and [[Hamar Weyne District|Hamarweyn]]) Sultan Yusuf marched into the city with an 8,000 strong army and ruled in favour of the Shingani leader, with the loser fleeing the city. Yusuf would nominate a relative of the deposed chief to lead the Hamarweyn quarter ending the dispute.<ref>{{cite thesis |type=PhD |last=Luling |first=Virginia |title=The social structure of southern Somali tribes |publisher=University College London |page=156 |year=1971 |url=https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1317929 |access-date=23 March 2023 |archive-date=23 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230323193318/https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1317929/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sultan Yusuf is even referred to as the governor of Mogadishu in some sources, highlighting the power he exerted over the city.<ref>{{cite book |title=Somalia:A Chronology of Historical Documents 1827–2000 |year=2001 |page=5 |first=Abdiwahid Osman |last=Haji |publisher=Indiana University |isbn=9780968874301}}</ref>

Despite the Somali political decline, trade with [[Geledi Sultanate]] flourished during Geledi Sultan [[Ahmed Yusuf (Gobroon)|Ahmed Yusuf]]'s reign. British explorer [[John Kirk (explorer)|John Kirk]] visited the region in 1873 and noted a variety of things. Roughly 20 large dhows were docked in both Mogadishu and [[Merka]] filled with grain produced from the farms of the Geledi in the interior. Kirk met the Imam Mahmood who reigned over Mogadishu. The [[Shabelle]] river itself was referred to as the 'Geledi river' by Kirk, perhaps in respect of the volume of produce that the Sultanate output. In [[Barawa]] there was little grain instead a large quantity of ivory and skins which had already been loaded onto ships destined for [[Zanzibar]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society of London, Volume 17; Volumes 1872–1873 |date=1873 |first=John |last=Kirk |page=341 |publisher=Edward Stanford}}</ref>

The Geledi Sultans were at the height of their power. They dominated the East African [[ivory]] trade, and also held sway over the [[Jubba Valley|Jubba]] and [[Shebelle Valley|Shebelle]] valleys in the hinterland. The Omani Sultans' authority in Mogadishu, however, was largely nominal (existing by name only).<ref name="Adonis & Abbey Publishers Ltd">{{Cite book |title=Making Sense of Somali History: Volume 1 |last1=Abdullahi |first1=Abdurahman |page=62 |publisher=Adonis & Abbey Publishers Ltd |year=2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Culture and Customs of Somalia (Culture and Customs of Africa) |first=Mohamed |last=Abdullahi |page=18 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group; Illustrated edition |year=2001}}</ref> When Imam [[Azzan bin Qais, Sultan of Muscat and Oman|Azzan bin Qais of Oman]] sought to build a fort in the city, he was thus obligated to request permission from Sultan [[Ahmed Yusuf (Gobroon)|Ahmed Yusuf]] the real power broker who in turn convinced the Hiraab Imam to acquiesce to the decision.<ref name="Aitncte">{{cite book |last=Ade Ajayi |first=J. F. |title=Africa in the Nineteenth Century Until the 1880s |url=https://archive.org/details/generalhistoryof00unes |url-access=registration |publisher=UNESCO |page=[https://archive.org/details/generalhistoryof00unes/page/387 387] |isbn=9789231017124 |date=1 January 1989}}</ref> Omani and later Zanzibari officials were mere representatives of the Sultan to collect customs and needed the fort for their own security rather than control of the city.<ref>The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 5 - Page 88</ref><ref name="Adonis & Abbey Publishers Ltd"/> The  Fort of Garessa was eventually constructed in 1870.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Africa Volumes 27-28 |last1=Cyril |first1=Daryll |page=288 |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1957}}</ref> The Sultan of Zanzibar later leased and then sold the infrastructure that he had built to the Italians, but not the land itself, which was Somali owned.<ref name="Ghalib25">{{cite book |last=Ghalib |first=Jama Mohamed |title=The Ogaden |date=2014 |publisher=LULU |isbn=978-1483405773 |page=25 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=J_0LAwAAQBAJ |access-date=30 January 2015 |archive-date=4 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804041426/https://books.google.com/books?id=J_0LAwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Italian Somaliland (late 1800s–1960)===
{{clear}}
[[File:Mogadishu 1923.jpg|thumb|View of Italian Mogadishu in 1923.]]
[[File:Group portrait of Somali officials, c.1939.jpg|thumb|258x258px|A group of senior [[Somali people|Somali]] officials recently returned from [[Italy]] in Mogadishu, 1939.]]
In 1905, Italy made Mogadishu the capital of the newly established [[Italian Somaliland]]. The Italians subsequently spelled the name of the city as ''Mogadiscio''. After [[World War I]], the surrounding territory came under Italian control with some resistance.{{sfn|Hamilton|2007|p=28}}

Thousands of Italians and other people from the Italian empire began to settle in Mogadishu and founded small manufacturing companies across Somalia. They also developed some agricultural areas in the south near the capital, such as [[Janale]] and the ''Villaggio duca degli Abruzzi'' (present-day [[Jowhar]]).{{sfn|Bevilacqua|Clementi|Franzina|2001|p=233}} In the 1930s, new buildings and avenues were built. A {{cvt|114|km}} narrow-gauge railway was laid from Mogadishu to Jowhar. An asphalt road, the ''Strada Imperiale'', was also constructed and intended to link Mogadishu to [[Addis Ababa]].{{sfn|Eichstaedt|2010|p=41}}

In 1940, the [[Italian Somalis|Italo-Somali]] population numbered 22,000, accounting for over 44% of the city's population of 50,000 residents.<ref>{{cite web |last=Termentin |first=Fernando |title=Somalia, una nazione che non esiste |url=http://www.paginedidifesa.it/2005/termentini_050513.html |publisher=Pagine di Difesa |access-date=2 January 2014 |language=it |date=13 May 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105003933/http://www.paginedidifesa.it/2005/termentini_050513.html |archive-date=5 November 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Il Razionalismo nelle colonie italiane 1928–1943 – La "nuova architettura" delle Terre d'Oltremare |url=http://www.fedoa.unina.it/1881/1/Santoianni_Progettazione_Architettonica.pdf |publisher=Fedoa |access-date=2 January 2014 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924011622/http://www.fedoa.unina.it/1881/1/Santoianni_Progettazione_Architettonica.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Mogadishu remained the capital of Italian Somaliland throughout the latter polity's existence. In [[World War II]] it was captured by British forces in February 1941.

After World War II Mogadishu was made the capital of the [[Trust Territory of Somaliland]], an Italian administered fiduciary political entity under the [[United Nations|UNO]] mandate, for ten years (1950–1960).
{{clear}}

===Somali Republic (1960–1991)===
{{Main|Somali Republic|Somali Democratic Republic}}
[[File:Mogadishu city centre - 1960s.jpg|thumb|left|Mogadishu Avenue, 1963]]
[[British Somaliland]] became independent on 26 June 1960 as the [[State of Somaliland]], and the [[Trust Territory of Somalia]] (the former Italian Somaliland) followed suit five days later.{{sfn|Encyclopædia Britannica|2002|p=835}} On 1 July 1960, the two territories united to form the Somali Republic, with Mogadishu serving as the nation's capital. A government was formed by [[Abdullahi Issa]] and other members of the trusteeship and protectorate governments, with [[Haji Bashir Ismail Yusuf]] as President of the Somali National Assembly, [[Aden Abdullah Osman Daar]] as [[List of Presidents of Somalia|President]] of the [[Somali Republic]], and [[Abdirashid Ali Shermarke]] as [[Prime Minister of Somalia|Prime Minister]] (later to become president from 1967 to 1969). On 20 July 1961 and through a popular [[referendum]], the people of Somalia ratified a new [[constitution]], which was first drafted in 1960.{{sfn|Greystone|1967|p=338}} In 1967, [[Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal]] became Prime Minister, a position to which he was appointed by Shermarke.

On 15 October 1969, while paying a visit to the northern town of [[Las Anod]], Somalia's then President Abdirashid Ali Shermarke was assassinated by one of his own bodyguards. His assassination was quickly followed by a military [[coup d'état]] on 21 October 1969 (the day after his funeral), in which the [[Military of Somalia|Somali Army]] seized power without encountering armed opposition&nbsp;— essentially a bloodless takeover. The [[1969 Somali coup d'état|putsch]] was spearheaded by Major General [[Siad Barre|Mohamed Siad Barre]], who at the time commanded the army.{{sfn|Sachs|1988|p=290}}
[[File:Mogadishu.jpg|thumb|right|Metropolitan Mogadishu in the 1980s]]
Alongside Barre, the [[Supreme Revolutionary Council (Somalia)|Supreme Revolutionary Council]] (SRC) that assumed power after President Sharmarke's assassination was led by Lieutenant Colonel [[Salaad Gabeyre Kediye]] and Chief of Police [[Jama Ali Korshel]]. Kediye officially held the title of "Father of the Revolution," and Barre shortly afterwards became the head of the SRC.{{sfn|Adam|Ford|1997|p=226}} The SRC subsequently renamed the country the [[Somali Democratic Republic]],{{sfn|Fage|Oliver|Crowder|1984|p=478}}{{sfn|Americana Corporation|1976|p=214}} arrested members of the former civilian government, banned political parties,<ref name=Metz3>{{citation |editor-last=Metz |editor-first=Helen C. |chapter=Coup d'Etat |title=''Somalia: A Country Study'' |year=1992 |chapter-url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+so0031) |publisher=[[Library of Congress]] |location=[[Washington, D.C.]] |access-date=21 October 2009 |archive-date=9 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109115411/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd%2Fcstdy%3A%40field%28DOCID+so0031%29 |url-status=live }}</ref> dissolved the parliament and the Supreme Court, and suspended the constitution.{{sfn|Wiles|1982|p=279}}

The revolutionary army established large-scale public works programmes, including the [[Mogadishu Stadium]]. In addition to a [[nationalization]] programme of industry and land, the Mogadishu-based new regime's foreign policy placed an emphasis on Somalia's traditional and religious links with the [[Arab world]], eventually joining the [[Arab League]] in 1974.{{sfn|Frankel|1992|p=306}}

After fallout from the unsuccessful [[Ogaden War|Ogaden campaign]] of the late 1970s, the Barre administration began arresting government and military officials under suspicion of participation in the [[1978 Somali coup d'état attempt|1978 coup d'état attempt]].{{sfn|ARR|1978|p=602}}<ref name="Ahmed">{{cite web |last=Ahmed III |first=Abdul |title=Brothers in Arms Part I |url=http://wardheernews.com/Articles_2011/Oct/29_Brothers_in_Army_abdul.pdf |publisher=WardheerNews |access-date=28 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120503221634/http://www.wardheernews.com/Articles_2011/Oct/29_Brothers_in_Army_abdul.pdf |archive-date=3 May 2012}}</ref> Most of the people who had allegedly helped plot the putsch were summarily executed.{{sfn|New People Media Centre|2005|p=94–105}} However, several officials escaped abroad and started to form dissident groups dedicated to ousting Barre's regime by force.{{sfn|Fitzgerald|2002|p=25}}

===Civil war===
{{Main|Mogadishu riots of July 1989|Somali Civil War}}

By the late 1980s, Barre's regime had become increasingly unpopular. The authorities became ever more [[totalitarian]], and [[resistance movement]]s, encouraged by Ethiopia's [[communist]] [[Derg]] administration, sprang up across the country. Mogadishu saw its first major outbreak of violence during the [[Mogadishu riots of July 1989|14 July 1989 riots]],<ref name=":6">{{Cite journal |date=19 Jul 1989 |title=Military Imposes 'Terror' in Capital |journal=Daily Report: Sub-Saharan Africa |publisher=[[Foreign Broadcast Information Service]] |volume=89 |issue=138 |pages=6}}</ref> during the crackdown Barres forces killed approximately 400 civilians.''<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Ap |date=22 July 1989 |title=SOMALIA EXECUTES 46 AFTER RIOTING |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/07/22/world/somalia-executes-46-after-rioting.html |access-date=2022-12-31 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=23 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230723150348/https://www.nytimes.com/1989/07/22/world/somalia-executes-46-after-rioting.html |url-status=live }}</ref>'' The July 1989 riots resulted in a large exodus of foreigners from the city and intensification of opposition towards the regime.<ref name=":7">{{Cite journal |date=18 July 1989 |title=Envoy to London Cited on Unrest in Mogadishu |journal=Daily Report: Sub-Saharan Africa |publisher=[[Foreign Broadcast Information Service]] |volume=89 |issue=143}}</ref> This incident and other events over the following months led to the outbreak of the [[civil war]] in 1991, the toppling of Barre's government, and the disbandment of the [[Military of Somalia|Somali National Army]]. Many of the opposition groups began competing for influence in the [[power vacuum]] that followed the ouster of Barre's regime. Armed factions led by United Somali Congress commanders General [[Mohamed Farah Aidid]] and [[Ali Mahdi Mohamed]], in particular, clashed as each sought to exert authority over the capital.<ref name="Lirs">Library Information and Research Service, ''The Middle East: Abstracts and index'', Volume 2, (Library Information and Research Service: 1999), p.327.</ref>
[[File:A view over the Mogadishu coast.jpg|thumb|A view over destroyed Mogadishu coast during the civil war]]
[[File:Aerialmog2.jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of a residential area in Mogadishu (1992)]]
During the [[United Nations Operation in Somalia II]] several [[gun battle]]s took place in Mogadishu between Somali factions, volunteers and [[United Nations peacekeeping|peacekeepers]]. Among these was the [[Battle of Mogadishu (1993)|Battle of Mogadishu of 1993]], a US apprehension of two high-ranking [[lieutenant]]s of the [[Somali National Alliance]]. The UN soldiers withdrew altogether from the country on 3 March 1995, having incurred more significant casualties.{{Sfn|Seddon|2013|p=476}}

In 2006, the [[Islamic Courts Union]] (ICU), an [[Islamism|Islamist]] organization, assumed control of much of the southern part of the country and imposed [[sharia]] law. The new [[Transitional Federal Government]] (TFG), established two years earlier, sought to establish its authority. With the assistance of [[Ethiopian National Defense Force|Ethiopian troops]], [[AMISOM]] peacekeepers and air support by the United States, it drove out the rival ICU and solidified its rule.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/153/26334.html |title=Ethiopian Invasion of Somalia |publisher=Globalpolicy.org |date=14 August 2007 |access-date=27 June 2010 |archive-date=10 September 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090910145231/http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/153/26334.html |url-status=live }}</ref> On 8 January 2007, as the [[2007 Battle of Ras Kamboni|Battle of Ras Kamboni]] raged, TFG President and founder [[Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed]], a former colonel in the Somali Army, entered Mogadishu for the first time since being elected to office. The government then relocated to [[Villa Somalia]] in Mogadishu from its interim location in [[Baidoa]], marking the first time since the fall of the Barre regime in 1991 that the federal government controlled most of the country.<ref name="PNT2011">{{cite web |author=PNT The Gazette Edition |url=http://www.garoweonline.com/artman2/publish/Somalia_27/Somalia_President_Parliament_Speaker_dispute_over_TFG_term_gazette.shtml |title=Somalia President, Parliament Speaker dispute over TFG term |work=Garoweonline.com |date=12 January 2011 |access-date=12 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219002038/http://www.garoweonline.com/artman2/publish/Somalia_27/Somalia_President_Parliament_Speaker_dispute_over_TFG_term_gazette.shtml |archive-date=19 February 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
[[File:TanksRoad3a.jpg|thumb|An armoured column of M1A1 Abrams Tanks and M2 Bradley IFVs of 1-64th Armor move down a dirt road outside the city of Mogadishu]]
Following this defeat, the Islamic Courts Union splintered into factions. Some of the more radical elements, including a youth militia within the Courts' military wing known as [[Al-Shabaab (militant group)|al-Shabaab]], regrouped to continue their [[insurgency]] against the TFG and oppose the [[Ethiopian National Defense Force|Ethiopian military]]'s presence in Somalia. Throughout 2007 and 2008 al-Shabaab scored military victories by seizing control of key towns and ports in both central and southern Somalia. At the end of 2008, the group had captured [[Baidoa]] but not Mogadishu. By January 2009, al-Shabaab and other militias had managed to force the Ethiopian troops to retreat and leave behind an under-equipped African Union peacekeeping force to assist the Transitional Federal Government's troops.<ref>{{cite web |author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/publisher,USCIRF,,,4a4f272bc,0.html |title=USCIRF Annual Report 2009&nbsp;– The Commission's Watch List: Somalia |publisher=Unhcr.org |date=1 May 2009 |access-date=27 June 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110510005900/http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/publisher%2CUSCIRF%2C%2C%2C4a4f272bc%2C0.html |archive-date=10 May 2011}}</ref>

Between 31 May and 9 June 2008, representatives of Somalia's federal government and the moderate [[Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia]] (ARS) group of Islamist rebels participated in peace talks in [[Djibouti]] brokered by the UN. The conference ended with a signed agreement calling for the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops in exchange for the cessation of armed conflict. Parliament was subsequently expanded to 550 seats to accommodate ARS members, which then elected a new president.<ref name=2009factbook>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/somalia/ |title=Somalia |access-date=31 May 2009 |date=14 May 2009 |work=[[World Factbook]] |publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]] |archive-date=1 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140701190026/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/so.html |url-status=live }}</ref> With the help of a small team of African Union troops, the coalition government also began a [[War in Somalia (2009-)|counteroffensive]] in February 2009 to retake control of the southern half of the country. To solidify its control of southern Somalia, the TFG formed an alliance with the Islamic Courts Union, other members of the [[Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia]], and [[Ahlu Sunna Waljama'a]], a moderate [[Sufism|Sufi]] militia.<ref>{{cite news |author=African Press Agency |url=http://horseedmedia.net/2010/05/un-boss-urges-support-for-somalia-ahead-of-istanbul-summit/ |title=UN boss urges support for Somalia ahead of Istanbul summit |newspaper=Horseed Media |date=22 May 2010 |access-date=27 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619183438/http://horseedmedia.net/2010/05/un-boss-urges-support-for-somalia-ahead-of-istanbul-summit/ |archive-date=19 June 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In November 2010, a new [[technocrat]]ic government was elected to office, which enacted numerous reforms, especially in the security sector.<ref name="Swscmos">{{cite web |url=http://www.somaliweyn.org/pages/news/Jan_11/15Jan18.html |title=Security Council Meeting on Somalia |publisher=Somaliweyn.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140105060056/http://www.somaliweyn.org/pages/news/Jan_11/15Jan18.html |archive-date=5 January 2014}}</ref> By August 2011, the new administration and its AMISOM allies had managed to capture all of Mogadishu from the Al-Shabaab militants.<ref name="Asdilr">{{cite web |url=http://www.iol.co.za/news/africa/al-shabaab-dug-in-like-rats-1.1114585 |title=Al-Shabaab 'dug in like rats' |publisher=Independent Newspapers Online |date=10 August 2011 |access-date=2 October 2011 |archive-date=9 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509052019/http://www.iol.co.za/news/africa/al-shabaab-dug-in-like-rats-1.1114585 |url-status=live }}</ref> Mogadishu has subsequently experienced a period of intense reconstruction spearheaded by the Somali diaspora, the municipal authorities, and Turkey, a historic ally of Somalia.<ref name=Hmeanbd>{{cite web |last=Mulupi |first=Dinfin |title=Mogadishu: East Africa's newest business destination? |date=21 June 2012 |url=http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/mogadishu-east-africas-newest-business-destination/17661/ |access-date=26 June 2012 |archive-date=27 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120627101741/http://www.howwemadeitinafrica.com/mogadishu-east-africas-newest-business-destination/17661/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Apsassnlrmdm">{{cite news |last=Guled |first=Abdi |title=Sports, arts and streetlights: Semblance of normal life returns to Mogadishu, despite mortars Read it on Global News: Global News {{!}} Sports, arts and streetlights: Semblance of normal life returns to Mogadishu, despite mortars |url=http://www.globalnews.ca/world/sports+arts+and+streetlights+semblance+of+normal+life+returns+to+mogadishu+despite+mortars/6442614089/story.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130115130730/http://www.globalnews.ca/world/sports+arts+and+streetlights+semblance+of+normal+life+returns+to+mogadishu+despite+mortars/6442614089/story.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 January 2013 |access-date=26 June 2012|newspaper=Associated Press|date=3 April 2012}}</ref>

In October 2017, over 500 people were killed by [[14 October 2017 Mogadishu bombings|a truck bombing]].<ref name=":587">{{cite web|url=https://hiiraan.com/news4/2018/Mar/157047/committee_587_dead_in_oct_14_terror_attack.aspx|title=Committee: 1000 dead in Oct 14 terror attack|publisher=Hiiraan Online|date=5 March 2018|access-date=2018-03-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180313031627/https://hiiraan.com/news4/2018/Mar/157047/committee_587_dead_in_oct_14_terror_attack.aspx|archive-date=13 March 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In March 2022, al-Shabaab killed over 60 people in [[March 2022 Somalia attacks|a series of attacks]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 March 2022 |title=Female opposition MP among dozens killed in Somalia bombings |url=https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/mar/24/female-opposition-mp-among-dozens-killed-in-somalia-bombings |access-date=31 March 2022 |website=the Guardian |language=en |archive-date=27 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220327234630/https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2022/mar/24/female-opposition-mp-among-dozens-killed-in-somalia-bombings |url-status=live }}</ref>

In October 2022, an al-Shabaab [[October 2022 Mogadishu bombings|double car bombing]] killed over 120 people.<ref>{{cite web
| url = https://acleddata.com/2023/03/03/context-assessment-heightened-political-violence-in-somalia/
| title = Context Assessment: Heightened Political Violence in Somalia
| date = March 2023
| publisher = Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project
| access-date = 4 June 2023
| archive-date = 31 May 2023
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230531184956/https://acleddata.com/2023/03/03/context-assessment-heightened-political-violence-in-somalia/
| url-status = live
}}</ref>
On 14 March, militants [[2024 Mogadishu YSL Hotel attack and siege|attacked and sieged the SYL Hotel in Mogadishu]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Al-Shabab fighters killed as overnight siege of Mogadishu hotel ends |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/3/15/al-shabab-fighters-killed-as-overnight-siege-of-mogadishu-hotel-ends |access-date=2024-03-15 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref>

In July 2024, at least eight people were killed and twenty-one others injured in a shootout between security forces and inmates in a Mogadishu prison during an escape attempt. The prisoners who attempted to escape were members of Al-Shabaab.<ref>{{Cite news|title=At least eight killed in shootout during Somalia prison breakout attempt|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/7/13/eight-killed-in-mogadishu-prison-breakout-attempt|access-date=2024-07-14|website=Al-Jazeera}}</ref> On 14 July, 10 people were injured in a cafe due to a car bombing done by Al-Shabaab.

In August 2024, 37 people were killed by an Al-Shabaab suicide bomber at Lido Beach.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Ali |first1=Faisal |last2=Gabobe |first2=Mohamed |date=2024-08-03 |title=More than 30 killed in terrorist attack on popular Mogadishu beach |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/aug/03/terrorist-attack-mogadishu-beach-somalia |access-date=2024-08-03 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

===Reconstruction===
[[File:Mogadishu in 2017.jpg|thumb|Mogadishu Overview, 2017]]
In August 2011, militant group al Shabaab made a strategic withdrawal from Mogadishu to return to hit-and-run tactics.<ref name="mogtechbabaea">{{cite news |title=Al-Shabaab rebels withdraw from Somali capital |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/somalia/8685953/Al-Shabaab-rebels-withdraw-from-Somali-capital.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/somalia/8685953/Al-Shabaab-rebels-withdraw-from-Somali-capital.html |archive-date=11 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=7 August 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Mayor Mohamed Nur recognized the opportunity as critical to stabilizing and rebuilding the city. Working closely with the UN, USAID, and DRC, Nur's administration started large-scale rehabilitation of roads and general infrastructure, with residents cooperating with the civil and police authorities to tighten up on security.<ref name="Mclrtnatata">{{cite web |url=http://www.somaliareport.com/index.php/post/1612 |title=Mogadishu City Life Returning to Normal |access-date=6 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404041425/http://www.somaliareport.com/index.php/post/1612 |archive-date=4 April 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Nur recognized the opportunity to transform Mogadishu although resources were limited. Working with urban strategist Mitchell Sipus, the Benadir government sought to design and deploy a data-driven approach to post-war reconstruction.<ref name="mogtechgege">{{cite news |title=Life After Warfare: How a Digital Map Could Revive Mogadishu |url=https://www.wired.com/2013/06/fa_mogadishu/=June2013 |magazine=WIRED |date=June 2013 |access-date=10 March 2017 |archive-date=3 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230403232739/https://www.wired.com/2013/06/fa_mogadishu/=June2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>

With the passing of a new [[Constitution of Somalia|Constitution]] in 2012 and the subsequent election of an inaugural President in the new [[Federal Government of Somalia|Federal Government]], the mayorship continued to oversee Mogadishu's ongoing post-conflict reconstruction. Building off the initial pilot, the [[Banaadir|Benadir]] administration launched a citywide street naming, [[house numbering]] and postal codes project. Officially called the House Numbering and Post Code System, it is a joint initiative of the municipal authorities and Somali business community representatives. According to Nur, the initiative also aims to help the authorities firm up on security and resolve housing ownership disputes.<ref name="Bolmssssenp">{{cite news |title=Banadir officials launch Mogadishu Street Naming Project |url=http://www.bar-kulan.com/2014/01/29/banadir-officials-launch-mogadishu-street-naming-project/ |access-date=30 January 2014 |newspaper=Bar-Kulan |date=29 January 2014 |archive-date=1 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201232203/http://www.bar-kulan.com/2014/01/29/banadir-officials-launch-mogadishu-street-naming-project/ |url-status=live }}</ref> {{As of|2016}}, there are postal codes for 156 localities and sub-localities, including the Mogadishu metropolitan area.<ref>{{cite web |title=Banaadir |url=http://www.mapanet.eu/EN/Postal_Codes/?c=SO&n=2&r0=00&r1=02&r2=00&r3=00&r4=00&l=0 |publisher=Mapanet |access-date=2 July 2016 |archive-date=23 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150323012525/http://www.mapanet.eu/EN/Postal_Codes/?c=SO&n=2&r0=00&r1=02&r2=00&r3=00&r4=00&l=0 |url-status=live }}</ref>