Sheikh Osman Barre is calling on Edmonton's Somali community to end the violence that has seen 13 Somali men killed in three years. (CBC)

For the second time in two weeks Edmonton Sheikh Osman Barre prepared another member of his community for a funeral.

“It’s very worse it’s becoming — day after day,” he said.

Dozens of family and community members attended the funeral of 44-year-old Abdi Ali Mohamud at the Al Rashid mosque Monday.

Mohamud was shot to death in a confrontation with three men Friday, the 13th man of Somali background to be killed in Edmonton in three years; the third of 2011.

Barre has prepared the bodies of almost all of them.

“We are responsible for them what’s happening to them now,” he said.

“I’m thinking about that could be happening to my children also,” said Barre. “I have two boys who’ve gone to university and I feel that maybe that could happen to my son.”

Most of the murders remain unsolved with many of the victims having links to the drug trade.

“As a Somali community we have to do something,” Barre said. “We have to wake up. We can’t complain (to) someone else all the time. We have to do something.”

Comments

comments