Chief of Defence Force (Somalia)

The Chief of Defence Force (Somali: Taliyaha Ciidanka Xooga Somaaliyeed) is the professional head of the Somali Armed Forces. He is responsible for the administration and the operational control of all branches of the Somali military (Army, Navy and Air Force) and thus is the direct superior to both the Chief of the Navy and the Chief of the Air Force. The post has however only been held by Army officers and the term limit is 2 years.^{[citation needed]} Typically the rank held by the Chiefs is major general.

Chief of the Defence Force
Taliyaha Ciidanka Xooga Somaaliyeed (Somali)
Coat of arms of the Armed Forces
Incumbent Major General Odowaa Yusuf Rageh since 9 November 2024
Somali Armed Forces
Style	Jaale
Type	Chief of staff
Status	Highest ranking military officer
Abbreviation	CDF
Appointer	President of Somalia
Term length	2 years
Formation	12 April 1960
First holder	Daud Abdulle Hirsi
Unofficial names	Commander of the Somali Armed Forces, Commander of the Somali National Army[1]

Odawa Raage served from 22 August 2019 to June 2023. He was promoted to major-general in the last days of his tenure, being listed as such in a Somali government briefing of 21 June 2023.^[2][3] He was reappointed on 9 November 2024.^[4]

List of Chiefs

Somali Republic and Somali Democratic Republic (1960–1991)

No.	Portrait	Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
1		Jaale Major general Daud Abdulle Hirsi (1925–1965)	12 April 1960	1965 †	4–5 years	[5]
2		Barre, SiadJaale Major general Siad Barre (1910–1995)	1965	1969	3–4 years	[6]
3		Jaale Lieutenant general Ali Samatar (1931–2016)	1969	1990	17–18 years	–
4		Jaale Major general Mohamed Said Hersi Morgan (1949–2025)	25 November 1990	20 January 1991	56 days	[7]

Transitional Federal Government (2004–2012)

No.	Portrait	Chief of Army	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
1		Naji, Ismail QasimMajor general Ismail Qasim Naji	15 April 2005	10 February 2007	1 year, 301 days	[8]
2		Omar, Abdullahi AliMajor general Abdullahi Ali Omar (born 1947)	10 February 2007	21 July 2007	161 days	[9][10] [11]
3		Jama, Salah HassanMajor general Salah Hassan Jama	21 July 2007	11 June 2008	326 days	[12]
4		Jama, Said DheereMajor general Said Dheere Mohamed	11 June 2008	14 May 2009	337 days	[13]
5		Dhumal, Yusuf OsmanMajor general Yusuf Osman Dhumal	15 May 2009	6 December 2009	205 days	[14]
6		Kahiye, Mohamed GelleMajor general Mohamed Gelle Kahiye	6 December 2009	6 September 2010	274 days	[15]
7		Gedi, Ahmed JimaleMajor general Ahmed Jimale Gedi	6 September 2010	29 March 2011	204 days	-
8		Dini, Abdulkadir Sh.Major general Abdulkadir Sheikh Dini	29 March 2011	13 March 2013	1 year, 349 days	[16][17]

Federal Government (2012–present)

No.	Portrait	Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Ref.
1		Elmi, Dahir AdanMajor general Dahir Adan Elmi	13 March 2013	25 June 2014	1 year, 104 days	[17]
2		Anod, AbdullahiMajor general Abdullahi Anod	25 June 2014	24 September 2015	1 year, 91 days	[18]
3		Ahmed, Mohamed AdamMajor general Mohamed Adam Ahmed (born 1950)	24 September 2015	5 April 2017	1 year, 193 days	[17]
4		Jimale, Ahmed MMajor general Ahmed Mohamed Jimale	5 April 2017	12 October 2017	190 days	[19]
5		Hussein, Abdiweli JMajor general Abdiweli Jama Hussein Gorod	12 October 2017	16 August 2018	308 days	[20]
(1)		Elmi, Dahir AdanMajor general Dahir Adan Elmi	16 August 2018	27 August 2020	2 years, 11 days	[21]
6		Rageh, Odowa YusufMajor general Odowaa Yusuf Rageh	27 August 2020	19 June 2023	2 years, 296 days	[22]
7		Muhyadin Addow, Ibrahim SheikhMajor general Ibrahim Sheikh Muhyadin Addow	19 June 2023	9 November 2024	1 year, 143 days	[17]
(6)		Rageh, Odowa YusufMajor general Odowaa Yusuf Rageh	9 November 2024	Incumbent	295 days	[23]