Senior Al-Shabaab fighter surrenders to Somali gov't

A senior Al-Shabaab fighter has surrendered to Somalia's National Intelligence and Security Agency under amnesty offered by the Somali government.

Somali Minister of Internal Security Abdirisak Omar Mohamed told Xinhua by phone on Tuesday that the government facilitated the defection of Ibrahim Aden Ibrahim on Monday evening.

The minister said the government welcomes anyone in the terrorist group who decides to leave the group of defect under the amnesty period.

Ibrahim told journalists on Monday that he has been in the group for nine years and was planning to defect to government two years earlier.

"I was Al-Shabaab official in charge of education issues," said Ibrahim, who is expected to provide crucial information that may lead to the arrest of other insurgents who have been fighting the transitional government. Endit