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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR
THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA
Alexandria Division

FARHAN MOHAMOUD TANI WARFAA,
Plaintiff,
v.

YUSUF ABDI ALI,
Defendant.

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SECOND AMENDED COMPLAINT FOR
TORTURE AND ATTEMPTED
EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLING
Civil Action No. 1:05-cv-00701-LMB-JFA

JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

Plaintiff Farhan Mohamoud Tani Warfaa (“Plaintiff”) files this Second Amended
Complaint alleging as follows:
PRELIMINARY STATEMENT
1.

This is an action for compensatory and punitive damages for torts in violation of

international and domestic law. Plaintiff brings this action against Defendant Yusuf Abdi Ali,
a.k.a. Tukeh (“Abdi Ali”) for his responsibility for the attempted extrajudicial killing and torture
of Plaintiff.
2.

Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Abdi Ali is personally liable for, or exercised

command responsibility over or conspired with or aided and abetted subordinates in the Fifth
Brigade of the Somali National Army (“Fifth Brigade”), or person or groups acting in
coordination with the Fifth Brigade or under their control, to commit acts of attempted
extrajudicial killing and torture. Accordingly, Plaintiff asserts that Defendant Abdi Ali is liable
under domestic and international law for their injuries, pain and suffering.

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JURISDICTION AND VENUE
3.

This Court has jurisdiction over Plaintiff’s claims of torture and attempted

extrajudicial killings pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331 because the action arises under the Torture
Victim Protection Act, Pub. L. No. 102-256, 106 Stat. 73 (1992) (codified at 28 U.S.C. § 1350,
note).1
4.

On information and belief, Defendant Abdi Ali resides in Alexandria, Virginia.

Therefore venue is proper in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b) or (d).
PARTIES
Defendant
5.

On information and belief, Defendant Abdi Ali is a native of Somalia and a

permanent resident of the United States. He currently resides in Alexandria, Virginia.
6.

Between approximately 1984 to 1989, Defendant Abdi Ali served as Commander

of the Fifth Brigade of the Somali National Army. The Fifth Brigade was stationed in or near the
northern city of Gebiley, Somalia.
7.

On information and belief, Defendant Abdi Ali departed Somalia and eventually

entered Canada in December 1990.
8.

In 1992, Defendant Abdi Ali was deported from Canada for having committed

gross human rights abuses in Somalia and came to the United States.

After deportation

proceedings in the United States were initiated against him, Defendant Abdi Ali voluntarily

1

In the original Complaint (Dkt. No. 1), as well as in the Amended Complaint (Dkt. No. 89), Plaintiff brought
claims under the Alien Tort Statute, 28 U.S.C. § 1350 (“ATS”), and under the Torture Victim Protection Act, Pub.
L. No. 102-256, 106 Stat. 73 (1992) (codified at 28 U.S.C. § 1350 note). Plaintiff’s ATS claims were dismissed on
July 29, 2014. Dkt. No. 106. While Plaintiff’s Second Amended Complaint does not reassert Plaintiff’s ATS
claims, Plaintiff hereby preserves for appeal all ATS claims previously brought by Plaintiff in his original Complaint
and Amended Complaint.

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departed the United States in or about July 1994. He returned to the United States on or about
December 8, 1996.
Plaintiff
9.

Plaintiff is a native, citizen and resident of Somalia. He brings this action for the

attempted extrajudicial killing and torture that he suffered at the hands of Defendant Abdi Ali or
his subordinates in the Fifth Brigade.
STATEMENT OF FACTS
10.

Throughout the 1980s, the Somali National Army committed gross human rights

abuses against the civilian population of Somalia, including the widespread and systematic use of
torture, rape, arbitrary and prolonged detention, and mass executions. These human rights
abuses were the hallmark of the military government that came to power in 1969 and brutally
ruled Somalia until it was toppled in 1991.
11.

In October 1969, a coup led by Major General Mohamed Siad Barre toppled the

first and only democratic government of the new nation of Somalia. Power was assumed by the
Supreme Revolutionary Council (“SRC”), which consisted primarily of the army officers who
had supported and participated in the coup. The SRC suspended the existing Constitution, closed
the National Assembly, abolished the Supreme Court and declared all political parties illegal. To
further strengthen its grip on power, the military leadership, composed primarily of members of
the Marehan, Ogadeni, and Dulbahante clans, systematically oppressed all other clans who
opposed the military government.
12.

The Isaaq clan, located primarily in the northwestern region of Somalia, was a

special target of the government. The Isaaq were among the best educated and most prosperous
Somalis and were perceived from the outset as potential opponents to the Barre regime. The
government’s extreme oppression led members of the Isaaq clan to establish an opposition force
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called the Somali National Movement (“SNM”) in 1981. The government responded by placing
the northern region under military control. Throughout the 1980s, Somali National Army units
were stationed in or near virtually every village and town throughout the region.
13.

The Somali National Army committed widespread human rights abuses in its

violent campaign to eliminate the SNM and any perceived supporters. It killed and looted
livestock, blew up water reservoirs, burned homes, and tortured and detained alleged SNM
supporters. Particularly after 1984, it also carried out a systematic policy of indiscriminately
killing civilians as collective punishment for SNM activities. Such acts were intended to, and
did, spread terror among Isaaq civilians in order to deter them from assisting the SNM.
14.

The area around the northern town of Gebiley was a center of human rights

abuses by the Somali National Army. Gebiley is surrounded by large, open agricultural and
grazing land where the area’s semi-nomadic people farmed and tended their livestock. This
region was a strategic focus of the military campaign because of its close proximity to the
Ethiopian border, where SNM bases were located.
15.

Defendant Abdi Ali commanded the army unit stationed in Gebiley. Between

approximately 1984 through 1989, Defendant Abdi Ali, as commander of the Fifth Brigade,
directed, and participated in, a brutal counterinsurgency campaign that refused to distinguish
between civilians and combatants.
Plaintiff
16.

At the time of the events at issue, Plaintiff was a farmer living in Jifo Uray, a

small village located near the city of Gebiley. Plaintiff is a member of the Isaaq clan.
17.

On or about mid-December, 1987, Defendant Abdi Ali came to the village of Jifo

Uray. A few days earlier, a water tanker that had been engaged to provide water to nearby
Ethiopian refugees had been stolen. Defendant Abdi Ali called a public meeting of the villagers.
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He expressed his belief that the tanker had been stolen by the SNM. He threatened to execute
everyone in Jifo Uray unless the water tanker was returned.
18.

On or about a night a few days later in December of 1987, Plaintiff was sleeping

near his family’s hut in Jifo Uray. Very early in the morning, two army soldiers from the Fifth
Brigade carrying AK-47 machine guns woke him up. He was taken to a central collection point
where other farmers from the area were being detained by a group of army soldiers. All of the
men were accused of supporting the SNM.
19.

He and the other men were then forced to march for approximately thirty minutes

to the village of Huunshalay, where an army truck was waiting for them. The soldiers forced
them onto the truck and they were transported to the headquarters of the Fifth Brigade in
Gebiley. Some members of the group were released because they were not Isaaq but rather
members of clans that were allied with the government.
20.

Plaintiff and the remaining ten members of the group were detained together in a

small cell. There was no window or other ventilation and no toilet.
21.

One night, around mid-January 1988, soldiers from the Fifth Brigade took

Plaintiff to a roofed building with open sides in the army compound. He was hit on the head
with the butt of a gun and fell forward onto the ground. The soldiers tightly tied his hands and
feet together behind his back so that his body was arched backward in a slightly-tilted U shape,
with his arms and legs high in the air, causing him excruciating pain. This form of torture was
called the “Mig,” because it placed the prisoner’s body in a shape that resembled the Somali Air
Force’s MIG aircraft, with its swept-back wings. The soldiers took his clothing and repeatedly
kicked his head with their boots. As the soldiers tortured him, they interrogated him about the
SNM fighters the Army claimed had stolen the water tanker.

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22.

Plaintiff was then taken to Defendant Abdi Ali’s office. His hands and legs were

chained. Defendant Abdi Ali also questioned him about the SNM fighters who had allegedly
stolen the water tanker and his family’s alleged support for the SNM. After Defendant Abdi Ali
finished interrogating him, Plaintiff was given back his clothing and returned to his cell.
23.

Two nights later, Plaintiff was again taken from his cell, stripped naked, and

beaten until he was unconscious. Each time he fainted, the soldiers poured cold water on him
and then beat him again. The soldiers warned him he would die if he did not reveal the identities
of the SNM fighters who stole the water tanker.
24.

After an hour, Plaintiff was once again taken to Defendant Abdi Ali’s office. His

hands and legs were chained. Defendant Abdi Ali questioned him about the SNM fighters who
had allegedly stolen the water tanker and his family’s alleged support for the SNM.
25.

Plaintiff was tortured no fewer than nine times between January and March 1988.

On more than one occasion, Defendant Abdi Ali was present while he was tortured.
26.

One evening in early March 1988, while Plaintiff was being interrogated by

Defendant Abdi Ali, the SNM attacked the Fifth Brigade’s headquarters. Defendant Abdi Ali
spoke into his walkie-talkie and told his soldiers to either capture or kill the SNM fighters.
Defendant Abdi Ali then took out his pistol and fired five shots at Plaintiff. Plaintiff was hit on
the wrist and right leg and fell to the floor unconscious. Defendant Abdi Ali then ordered his
bodyguards to bury Plaintiff’s body.
27.

The bodyguards then removed Plaintiff from Defendant Abdi Ali’s office. They

soon recognized that he was not dead. They agreed to accept a bribe from Plaintiff’s family and
subsequently released him.

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GENERAL ALLEGATIONS
28.

Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Abdi Ali is personally liable for acts of torture and

attempted extrajudicial killing by virtue of his direct or indirect participation, including
committing the acts himself or directing or ordering his subordinates in the Fifth Brigade of the
Somalia National Army to commit these acts.
29.

Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Abdi Ali is also liable because he conspired with,

or aided and abetted, subordinates in the Fifth Brigade of the Somali National Army to commit
acts of torture and attempted extrajudicial killing. Defendant Abdi Ali is therefore also jointly
and severally liable for the actions of members of the Fifth Brigade, all of which were actions
undertaken as part of a common plan, design and scheme.
30.

Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Abdi Ali is also liable because, as commander of

the Fifth Brigade of the Somali National Army, he possessed and exercised command and
control over the Fifth Brigade.

He also acquiesced in, and permitted, groups acting in

coordination with the Fifth Brigade, to commit human rights abuses.
31.

Defendant Abdi Ali had the legal authority and practical ability to exert control

over subordinates in the Fifth Brigade, or persons or groups acting in coordination with the Fifth
Brigade, or under their control, who participated in the torture and attempted extrajudicial killing
described herein. Defendant Abdi Ali’s command over the Fifth Brigade included the authority
and responsibility to give orders to, set policy for and manage the affairs of forces under his
control, and to appoint, remove and discipline such forces.
32.

As commander of the Fifth Brigade, Defendant Abdi Ali had a duty under

customary international law and multilateral treaties to ensure the protection of civilians, to
prevent violations of international law by the Fifth Brigade, and to ensure that all persons under
his command were trained in, and complied with, the laws of warfare and international law,
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including the prohibitions against torture and extrajudicial killing. Furthermore, Defendant Abdi
Ali was under a duty to investigate, prevent and punish violations of international law committed
by members of the Fifth Brigade under his command.
33.

Defendant Abdi Ali failed or refused to take all necessary measures to investigate

and prevent these abuses, or to punish personnel under his command for committing such abuses.
34.

The acts of torture and attempted extrajudicial killing inflicted upon Plaintiff were

part of a pattern and practice of systematic or widespread human rights violations against the
civilian population of Somalia. At all relevant times, Defendant Abdi Ali knew or reasonably
should have known of the pattern and practice of gross human rights abuses perpetrated against
the civilian population by subordinates under his command, including the abuses committed
against Plaintiff.
Equitable Tolling of the Statute of Limitations
35.

The Statute of Limitations should be tolled during periods after the fall of the

Barre regime when Defendant Abdi Ali has resided outside the United States. Defendant Abdi
Ali has resided in the United States for less than ten years since he first arrived in the United
States after the fall of the Barre regime. Plaintiff first filed this case against Defendant Abdi Ali
on November 10, 2004, and the Court’s April 29, 2005 further tolled the statute until the date of
this re-filing. Therefore the filing of this complaint is timely.
36.

The Statute of Limitations should also be tolled because prior to 1997, Isaaq

victims of human rights abuses committed in the 1980s by the Somali Armed Forces, or persons
or groups acting in coordination with the Somali Armed Forces, could not have been expected to
pursue a cause of action in the United States. Until approximately 1997, victims’ reasonable fear
of reprisals against themselves or members of their families still residing in Somalia served as an

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insurmountable deterrent to such action. Also, until approximately 1997, it would not have been
possible to conduct safely investigation and discovery in Somalia in support of such a case.
37.

Throughout the 1990s, Somalia fell into increasing chaos. Following the violent

defeat of the military government in 1991, Somalia’s central government collapsed. Fighting
among rival clan leaders resulted in the killing, displacement, and mass starvation of tens of
thousands of Somali citizens. The ensuing chaos led the United Nations to intervene militarily in
1992, though it proved incapable of restoring even a minimum level of order. Somalia’s clanbased civil war and anarchic violence proved to be so brutal that it drove the United Nations
from the country in 1994. Rival clan militias continued to commit gross and systematic human
rights abuses in the years after the United Nations’ departure, including the deliberate killing and
kidnapping of civilians because of their clan membership.
38.

During these years, conditions in Somalia precluded human rights cases against

former commanders of the Somali Armed Forces from being brought either in Somalia or the
United States. Throughout the time period alleged in the complaint, and up to the present, the
Plaintiff either lived in Somalia or had immediate family still residing there. No national
government existed in Somalia to protect them from the continuing clan-based violence. Gross
and systematic human rights violations openly committed by rival clans had a further chilling
effect. Pursuit of human rights claims, even in the United States, would have exposed victims
and their families to acts of retribution that discouraged them from pursuing such a course.
Witnesses also reasonably feared acts of reprisal for assisting in such cases.
39.

The return of stability sufficient to permit victims of Barre-era human rights

abuses to come forward has been a slow and uneven process. Stable conditions still do not exist

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in most regions of the country. It took until approximately 1997 for even one region to establish
the conditions that permitted victims to consider bringing their claims.
40.

This region, the former British protectorate of Somaliland, is dominated by the

Isaaq clan. In 1991, it declared its independence, reclaimed its previous name, and seceded from
Somalia. A rudimentary civil administration was established there in 1993, but major armed
conflicts in 1994 and 1996 plunged the region back into turmoil.

Since about 1997,

Somaliland’s government has exercised a modicum of authority over its territory.
Absence of Remedies in Somalia
41.

Somalia remains without a functioning national government and national judicial

system in which victims of Barre-era human rights abuses could bring their claims. Shari’a
courts operate in some regions of the country, filling the vacuum created by the absence of
governmental authority, but such courts impose religious and local customary law often in
conflict with universal human rights conventions. Despite the very recent selection of a former
warlord as president, Somalia still does not have a functioning national government with a court
system capable of reviewing human rights abuses committed by the military government in the
1980s. The country remains under the de facto control of competing clan leaders, warlords and
criminal gangs, many of whom commit or countenance the commission of serious human rights
abuses.
42.

Somaliland does not offer a forum in which victims of human rights abuses can

bring their claims. Although civil order has prevailed there since 1997, it remains impossible to
seek judicial remedies in its courts for such claims. The Somaliland government’s human rights
record is weak, and human rights activists are frequently arrested and detained. The judicial
system remains closely tied to religious and political elites and lacks properly trained judges and
other legal personnel. Furthermore, no former members of the Barre government reside within
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Isaaq-dominated Somaliland. Thus, the people who should be held accountable reside beyond
the jurisdictional reach of the Somaliland courts. Accordingly, there were and are no adequate
and available remedies for Plaintiff to exhaust in Somalia.
CLAIMS FOR RELIEF
FIRST CLAIM FOR RELIEF
(ATTEMPTED EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLING)
43.

Plaintiff realleges and incorporates by reference the allegations set forth in

paragraphs 1 through 42 as if fully set forth herein.
44.

The attempted murder of Plaintiff described herein constitutes an attempted

extrajudicial killing as defined by the Torture Victim Protection Act, Pub. L. No. 102- 256, 106
Stat. 73 (codified at 28 U.S.C. § 1350 note).
45.

The attempted extrajudicial killing of Plaintiff was not authorized by any court

judgment. Plaintiff was never charged with, convicted of or sentenced for any crime.
46.

Defendant Abdi Ali personally committed, or exercised command responsibility

over or directed, ordered, conspired with or aided and abetted soldiers in the Fifth Brigade to
commit the attempted extrajudicial killing of Plaintiff.
47.

Defendant Abdi Ali’s acts or omissions described above and the acts committed

by his subordinates against Plaintiff were committed under actual or apparent authority, or color
of law, of the government of Somalia.
48.

As a result of his attempted extrajudicial killing, Plaintiff is entitled to damages in

an amount to be determined at trial.
49.

Defendant Abdi Ali’s acts were deliberate, willful, intentional, wanton, malicious,

and oppressive and should be punished by an award of punitive damages in an amount to be
determined at trial.

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SECOND CLAIM FOR RELIEF
(TORTURE)
50.

Plaintiff realleges and incorporates by reference the allegations set forth in

paragraphs 1 through 49 as if fully set forth herein.
51.

The acts described herein constitute torture as defined by the Torture Victim

Protection Act, Pub. L. No. 102-256, 106 Stat. 73 (1992) (codified at 28 U.S.C. § 1350 Note).
52.

The acts described herein were inflicted deliberately and intentionally upon

Plaintiff for purposes that include, among others, intimidating or coercing him, discriminating
against him for his presumed political beliefs, or discriminating against him for his membership
in a specific ethnic group.
53.

The torture of Plaintiff did not arise from, and was not inherent in or incidental to,

lawful sanctions.
54.

Defendant Abdi Ali personally tortured, or exercised command responsibility

over or directed, ordered, conspired with or aided and abetted soldiers in the Fifth Brigade to
torture, Plaintiff.
55.

Defendant Abdi Ali’s acts or omissions described above and the acts committed

by his subordinates caused the torture of Plaintiff and caused him to suffer severe mental pain
and suffering.
56.

Defendant Abdi Ali’s acts or omissions described above and the acts committed

by his subordinates against Plaintiff were committed under actual or apparent authority, or color
of law, of the government of Somalia.
57.

As a result of the torture described above, Plaintiff is entitled to damages in an

amount to be determined at trial.

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58.

Defendant Abdi Ali’s acts were deliberate, willful, intentional, wanton, malicious,

and oppressive and should be punished by an award of punitive damages in an amount to be
determined at trial.
PRAYER FOR RELIEF
WHEREFORE, Plaintiff prays for judgment against Defendant as follows:
1.

For compensatory damages according to proof;

2.

For punitive and exemplary damages, according to proof;

3.

For prejudgment interest as allowed by law;

4.

For attorneys’ fees and costs of suit, according to proof;

5.

For any such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.
JURY TRIAL DEMANDED

Plaintiff hereby demands a trial by jury.

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Dated: June 6, 2018

FARHAN MOHAMOUD TANI WARFAA
By Counsel

By: /s/ Lindsay Barnes
Lindsay R. Barnes III (VSB# 85904)
Louis Ramos (admitted pro hac vice)
Benjamin D. Klein (admitted pro hac vice)
DLA Piper LLP (US)
500 Eighth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004
Telephone: (202) 799-4000
Facsimile: (202) 799-5000
Email: Lindsay.Barnes@dlapiper.com
Email: Louis.Ramos@dlapiper.com
Email: Ben.Klein@dlapiper.com
Joseph C. Davis (VSB # 79574)
DLA PIPER LLP (US)
11911 Freedom Drive, Suite 300
Reston, VA 20190
Telephone: (703) 773-4000
Facsimile: (703) 773-5000
Email: Joe.Davis@dlapiper.com
L. Kathleen Roberts (admitted pro hac vice)
Nushin Sarkarati (admitted pro hac vice)
Carmen Cheung (admitted pro hac vice)
Center for Justice & Accountability
One Hallidie Plaza, Suite 406
San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: (415) 544-0444
Fax: (415) 544-0456
Email: kroberts@cja.org
Email: nsarkarati@cja.org
Email: ccheung@cja.org

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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that on the 6th day of June, 2018, I will electronically file the foregoing
with the Clerk of Court using the CM/ECF system, which will then send a notification of such
filing (NEF) to the following:

Joseph Peter Drennan, Esq.
218 North Lee Street, Third Floor
Alexandria, Virginia 22314-2631
Telephone: (703) 519-3773

By: /s/ Lindsay Barnes
Lindsay R. Barnes III (VSB# 85904)
DLA Piper LLP (US)
500 Eighth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004
Telephone: (202) 799-4000