Top 10 Most Famous People from Comoros

Flag of the Comoros. Photo by Sangjinhwa- Wikimedia commons

Top 10 Most Famous People from Comoros

Comoros is an independent state made up of three Comoro Islands in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of East Africa. Mayotte, a fourth island in the Comorian archipelago, is claimed by the Comoros but administered by France.

Comoros is impoverished, with an ongoing uprising of educated and skilled workers to France and a gradual decrease in GDP. The capital, Moroni, is located on the island of Grande Comore (N’gazidja) and has the majority of the country’s advanced industrial and manufacturing amenities; in the absence of other options, many locals must depend on farming activities.

Tourists have always been drawn to Comoros because of its miles of gorgeous beaches. Even so, the islands’ history of political turmoil has hindered tourism endeavours.

1.Mohamed Bacar

Colonel Mohamed Bacar was born May 5, 1962 in Barakani, Anjouan, then a French colony is a retired Comorian politician who served as President of Anjouan, one of the three autonomous islands that comprise the Comoros Union, from 2001 to 2008.

He is a retired Anjouan police chief who has widely studied in France and the United States. He was a member of the Anjouan military coup in August 2001 and quickly became President.

He is accused of rigging the elections to become Anjouan’s first president in March 2002, in part because of his leadership role in the separatist movement. In the March 2008 an attack on Anjouan, he was deposed by the allied efforts of the Government of the Union of Comoros and the African Union.

2.Fazul Abdullah Mohammed

This photo taken from the FBI’s website shows suspected terrorist Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, who is wanted in connection with the November 2002 bombing of a hotel near Mombasa, Kenya which killed 15 people and the 1998 bombing of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Photo by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)- Wikimedia commons

Fazul Abdullah Mohammed was born on 25, August 1972 , also renowned as Fadil Harun, was a Comorian-Kenyan al-Qaeda member who led the organization’s presence in East Africa. Mohammed was born in Moroni, Comoros Islands, and was both Kenyan and Comorian. He could communicate in French, Swahili, Arabic, English, and Comorian.

As stated by the UN, Mohammed was an ally of Osama Bin Laden, Al Qaeda, and the Taliban; “supplied Al-Qaida special forces training and aid to Somalis opposed to the UN intervention in Somalia”; “colluded with others to commit, under the direction of Al Qa[e]da, the 7 August 1998 bombings of the United States of America embassies in Kenya and Tanzania”; “deposited money collected from Bin Laden to Mombasa, Kenya, and enabled Al Qaeda’s internal communications and involved in the final preparations for the bombing of the United States Embassy in Nairobi”; “conspired to target a commercial flight in Mombasa while also bombing the Paradise Hotel in Kikambala, Kenya, killing twelve people and injuring forty.”

As would be expected of a terrorist of his stature—and with a $5 million bounty on his head—Mohammed was the target of multiple assassination attempts by the US.

Since 2006, the US has attempted to assassinate Mohammed and his Al Qaeda associates in Somalia eight times. He was finally killed in June 8, 2011 in Somali, Mogadishu.

3.Ikililou Dhoinine

Ikililou Dhoinine, born 14 August 1962, is a Comorian politician who served as President of the Comoros from 2011 to 2016. He previously served as Vice President of the Comoros from 2006 to 2011.

Dhoinine was elected president of Comoros in 2010, receiving the most votes in the first round (28.19%). In a run-off election, he defeated Mohamed Said Fazul and Abdou Djabir, receiving 61.12% of the vote. Dhoinine, a member of the majority party, was backed in the election by incumbent President Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi.

He previously served as Vice-President in charge of Budget and Women’s Entrepreneurship in the Ministry of Finance. He served as the provisional President of Anjouan, an island in Comoros, from March 26 to March 31, 2008.

He also served as the provisional President of Anjouan, a Comoros island, from March 26 to March 31, 2008.

Dhoinine, a pharmacist by trade, is the first Comorian President, hailing from the island of Mohéli.

Dhoinine was outgoing president Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi’s deputy for five years.

Dhoinine vowed at his swearing in ceremony to “stop at nothing in the fight to combat corruption.” In order to improve transparency, he established the National Commission for the Prevention and Fight Against Corruption and the Regulatory Authority for Public Procurement.

Hadidja Abubacarr I’Dhoinine, the former First Lady of Comoros, is Dhoinine’s wife.

4.Ahmed Abdallah

Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi. Photo by Lawrence Jackson- Wikimedia commons

Ahmed Abdallah was the Comoro Islands’ first president. On June 12, 1919, he was born in Dimoni, on the island of Anjouan in the Comoro archipelago. The Comoro Islands are a group of four biggest islands in the Indian Ocean.

The French took control of Mayotte in 1843 and the other three islands were placed under French control in 1886. The islands were granted representation in the French National Assembly in 1947. They gained internal autonomy under French position in 1971.

In the 1940s, he had an interest in engaging in politics. From 1949 to 1953, he was President of the Islands’ General Council and in the 1970s, he was Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies. From 1959 to 1973, he served in the French Senate as a Comoros delegate.

Three islands voted for independence from France in 1974, while Mayotte opted to stay under French control. The French National Assembly mandated that each island determine its own destiny. As chairman of the Chamber of Deputies, Abdallah contended that all islands’ voters should determine on a shared goal.

When Mayotte voted against independence, Abdallah responded by publicly announcing the Comoro Islands independent on July 6, 1976, while Mayotte remained under French control. On August 3, 1975, Abdallah’s government was overthrown by a coup headed by a French mercenary named Bob Denard. President Siad Mohamed Djohar was sworn in. The following year, in 1976, Djohar was deposed in a coup led by Ali Soilith.

Denard helped lead one more successful coup on May 13, 1978, restoring Abdallah to power. Abdallah was voted into office after a new constitution was drafted. Although Abdallah was an oppressive dictator, several think Denard wielded real authority as commander of the Presidential Guard.

Abdallah declared the Comoros a one-party state in 1982. His Comorian Union for Progress emerged as the sole legal party. In the 1984 presidential election, Abdallah was the only candidate on the ballot.

Abdallah survived three coup attempts between 1978 and 1989 however, was assassinated on November 26, 1989, during a fourth successful coup led by Siad Mohamed Djohar, the half-brother of retired coup commander and president Ali Soilith.

When Abdallah attempted to remove him as Commander of the Presidential Guard, it is generally speculated that bounty hunter Bob Denard assisted in the coup. Djohar took over the government and ended the one-party state.

Ahmed Abdallah died on November 26, 1978, in Moroni, the Comoro Islands.

5.Nawal

Nawal is a Comorian musician whose music combines traditional Comorian elements with sounds from African and Arabic cultures.

She grew up hearing dhikr (Sufi chanting) in mosques, Twarab music, and well known songs on the radio because she was born into a musical family. She creates an acoustic roots-based fusion by combining Comorian rhythms with bantu polyphony, Indo-Arabian-Persian sounds, and Sufi chanting.

She can play a variety of instruments, such as the guitar and qanbs. She sings in four languages: Comorian, Arabic, French, and English.

6.Kassim Ahamada

Kassim Ahamada, born 18 April 1992, is a Comorian international footballer who plays as a right back for the French club Créteil.

Ahamada, who was born in Dzaoudzi, Mayotte, has represented Troyes B, Évry, Beauvais, Bourges Foot, and Vierzon at the fifth level of French football. He was signed by Créteil in the summer of 2020 to play with their B team at the same level however, was drafted into the first team during the season and appeared in a number of games in Championnat National.

In 2011, he made his first international appearance for the Comoros.

7. Rohff

Rohff Distinct. Photo by Dreezy94- Wikimedia commons

Housni M’Kouboi (born 15 December 1977), widely regarded as Rohff and sometimes stylized as Roh2f, is a French rapper.

Born in Antananarivo, Madagascar, to a Comoran family, he moved to France in 1985 and now lives in Vitry-sur-Seine, a suburb of Paris. Rohff is an abbreviation for “Rimeur Original Hardcore Flow Fluide.”

Rohff started rapping around 1990 and in 1994, he contributed to the album Première Classe (First Class), working on the track “On fait les choses” with Neg’Marrons, Mystik, and Pit Baccardi, and began to gain recognition.

He is a member of the Val-de-Marne-based rapper collective Mafia K’1 Fry. In 1999, the band released the album Légendaire (Legendary).

In the same year, Rohff started working on his first solo album, Le Code de l’Honneur, which was released in 1999. (The Code of Honor). “Appelle-moi Rohff,” “Catastrohff,” “Skyrohff,” “Rohff Vs l’État,” “Les Nerfs à Vifs,” “Génération Sacrifiée,” and “Manimal” were among the tracks.

Motivated by the popularity of his first album, he released his second album, La Vie Avant la Mort, in September 2001. (Life Before Death). The album sold around 250,000 copies, with songs like “TDSI,” “Get Down, Sam’di Soir,” and “5-9-1,” which was a duet with Assia and released as a single.

However, it was the spring 2002 single “Qui est l’exemple?” that gave him his big break, selling approximately 750,000 copies. It was also his first appearance on France’s large national radio stations.

He recorded “La Resurrection” for the soundtrack of the video game Scarface: The World is Yours in 2006.

In 2008, Rohff released his fifth album, Le Code de l’horreur, which sold 200,000 copies. In 2010, he released La Cuenta, which sold 80,000 copies and earned him a gold certification.

He came back in 2013 for his seventh album P.D.R.G., his third double album release, after a three-year long break.

8.Chamsia Sagaf

Chamsia Sagaf was born 1955 is a Shingazidja singer from the Comoros.

Sagaf is a Comorian singer widely recognized for her songs about women and children. She began singing in women’s groups in the 1970s and has since released three albums. She has been a resident of France since 1975. She is married and the mother of five children.

She was nominated for the award for best East African singer in 2003.

9.El Fardou Ben

El Fardou Mohamed Ben Nabouhane was born on the10th of June 1989. He is also widely recognized as El Fardou Ben, Ben Nabouhane, or just as Ben, is a Comorian footballer who plays as a forward for Red Star Belgrade and the Comoros national team. He is has a Serbian citizenship as well.

10.Said Mohamed Cheikh

Cheikh was born in Mitsamiouli, Grande Comore, on April 7, 1904. He finished his studies in Madagascar, graduating in medicine in 1926. He was the first doctor to return to the Comoros islands. He started working as a doctor until the end of World War II in 1945.

He served as France’s diplomatic delegate at the United Nations General Assembly in 1954. Dr. Said Mohamed Cheikh was widely thought to be the most influential political figure in the islands in the run-up to independence.

Cheikh was appointed as the first president of the Comoros Chamber of Deputies’ Governing Council in 1961, a position he retained until 1970, when he died of a heart attack in Antananarivo, Madagascar. Cheikh was laid to rest in Moroni, Comoros.

In 1973, stamped envelopes displaying his resemblance were released. In 1978, the state approved high-value gold coins worth 10,000 and 20,000 francs bearing Cheikh’s resemblance. He has also appeared on the 5000 Comoran franc banknote since 2006.