Caleb Weiss and Bill Roggio assess Somali officials' claim of the death of Maalim Ibrahim, a co-founder of al-Shabaab and a key military planner who held many executive hats. However, Weiss cautions that such claims often lack third-party verification and may be false. The US is currently threatening to cut funding for the UN mission in Somaliadue to a perceived lack of progress against the group and pervasive internal political corruption. (3)