Somalia's Islamist Insurgent Group Joins Al-Qaeda-led Jihad

[Kamaavi]

Somali Islamist insurgent group al- Shabaab, fighting to overthrow President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed's government, vowed Monday to take part in an international al-Qaeda-led Jihad (holy war).

 

A meeting of the leaders of al-Shabaab and the Mu'skar Raskanboni, a smaller militia, decided that the two groups join forces to establish an Islamic state. Al-Shabab said it was trying to unite all Islamist forces to create a Muslim state under its hard-line interpretation of Sharia law.

 

Reports quoting hardline Raskanboni leader Sheikh Hassan Abdullahi Hersi said his group merged with al-Shabaab.

 

Al-Shabaab said in a statement that the "jihad of Horn of Africa must be combined with the international jihad led by the al-Qaeda network."

 

Meanwhile, reports quoting witnesses said at least eight people were killed in heavy artillery battle between Islamist insurgents and pro-government forces in Mogadishu.

 

The clashes erupted Sunday night when militants fired mortar shells at the presidential palace in the capital. Government soldiers and African Union peacekeeping troops returned fire, resulting in casualties.

 

Al-Shabab, which until recently denied that it is linked to al-Qaeda, is admitting for the first time that its joining forces with the larger terrorist group.

 

By RTT Staff Writer

 

For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com

[Kamaavi]

Somali Islamists al-Shabab 'join al-Qaeda fight'

 

Al-Shabab wants its hard-line brand of Sharia introduced all over the country

Somali Islamist rebel group al-Shabab has confirmed for the first time that its fighters are aligned with al-Qaeda's global militant campaign.

 

The group said in a statement that the "jihad of Horn of Africa must be combined with the international jihad led by the al-Qaeda network".

 

Meanwhile, several people have died in fighting in Mogadishu after government troops shelled militant positions.

 

Islamist insurgents control much of southern and central Somalia.

 

The government, which is backed by the UN and African Union, holds sway only in a small part of Mogadishu.

 

Despite repeated accusations by the US that al-Shabab is linked to al-Qaeda, the group denied the connection in a recent interview with the BBC.

 

The BBC Somali service's Mohamed Mohamed says it is the first time the group has officially confirmed its fight is linked to al-Qaeda.

 

'Financer of terrorism'

 

The group's statement also announced that its militants had joined forces with a smaller insurgent group called Kamboni.

 

 

 

The group, based in the southern town of Ras Kamboni, was previously allied to Hizbul-Islam - another militant group fighting the government.

 

Kamboni is led by Hassan Turki, a militant the US accuses of being a "financer of terrorism".

 

Al-Shabab said it was trying to unite all Islamist forces to create a Muslim state under its hard-line interpretation of Sharia law.

 

The group, which controls swathes of Somalia, has carried out public beheadings and stonings.

 

'Human shields'

 

Meanwhile in Mogadishu reports said at least eight civilians were killed in fighting overnight.

 

"Our team collected eight bodies of civilians who were killed in the shelling and 55 others who were injured, some of them seriously," health official Ali Musa told the AFP news agency.

 

Militants had launched an artillery attack on the presidential compound, and government and African Union forces responded with several mortar shells.

 

AFP quoted an unnamed police official accusing the rebels of hiding in civilian areas and using "human shields".

 

Somalia has been wracked by violence for much of the past 20 years. It has not had a functioning central government since 1991.

 

Source

[Geel_jire]

this is cookie cutter journalism

 

the last few years all you had to do was write a few lines of rubbish and sprinkle it with Islamist, Jihad, Al-queada and you were garaunteed to be published .. this author has managed to squeeze all of the favorite buzzwords into the article title alone ... now that is overkill.

[Kamaavi]

Somalia's Al Shabaab to Ally With Al Qaeda

 

 

NAIROBI, Kenya—The militant group al Shabaab said it would ally with al Qaeda in a drive to establish an Islamic state in Somalia and fight for Muslims across East Africa, offering a fresh test for U.S.-backed African peacekeepers struggling to defend a weak Somali government.

 

In a statement Monday, the group said it had agreed, among other things, "to connect the horn of Africa jihad to the one led by al Qaeda and its leader Sheikh Osama Bin Laden." The statement, written in Somali and Arabic, is believed to be the first explicit confirmation of what U.S. and Somali government have long suspected: Militants in one of Africa's least stable places are sharing resources and merging agendas.

 

It isn't clear whether this new resolution will result in funding or training from al Qaeda, or even if it will lead to an official endorsement from the global terror group. At the very least, the statement signals a tightening embrace with foreign fighters who have been supporting al Shabaab's efforts to topple the Somali government.

 

The cooperation also could spur Somali militants to assist al Qaeda elsewhere. Al Shabaab has sent fighters to Afghanistan to train with al Qaeda, according to the Somali government. Al Shabaab recently pledged to send fighters across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen, where al Qaeda is active.

 

Al Shabaab made its announcement a day after Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed marked his first year in office. The past year has offered little respite from the violence that has rocked Somalia for nearly two decades. In the short term, a combined threat is likely to increase pressure on Mr. Sharif's tenuous government and those trying to stave off its collapse.

 

The U.S supports Mr. Sharif and is the biggest backer of an African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia, for which it has provided training and equipment. That support reflects concerns that al Qaeda is attempting to establish a base in Somalia to attack Western targets.

 

Overall, the Somali government has been frustrated with the lack of foreign support. Thus far, Western donors have provided only a fraction of the $213 million pledged in 2009 to the Somali government and the African Union mission.

 

A Somali government spokesman declined to comment on the statement from Al Shabaab. An African Union official dismissed the statement as a "non-event," given that the AU already assumed the two groups were working together.

 

Still, the announcement shows how the Somali militant group's identity is evolving, analysts say. Al Shabaab, which already controls much of the country, is increasingly split between Somali nationalists who oppose foreign leadership and want to establish Shariah law in their country, and those who seek a bigger role in the global terror network, these analysts say. Some warn too much foreign influence could backfire.

 

"The thing that gives Al Shabaab its punch is its national agenda," said Roger Middleton, an analyst who focuses on the horn of Africa, at London think-tank Chatham House. "That's key for it, in terms of recruiting and being able to control areas of territory. If they fail to respect that nationalist element of Shabaab, they're going to be in trouble."

 

Al Shabaab has struggled to hold the support of a population wearied by war in part by claiming not to kill civilians. But foreign fighters have introduced more vicious tactics, including suicide bombs and attacks on civilians. After a suicide bombing in December killed at least 19 people, most of them civilians, Somalis took to the streets in protest. Al Shabaab initially denied any involvement. It later admitted the bomber had been an al Shabaab fighter, and a foreigner.

 

 

—Abdinasir Mohamed in Mogadishu contributed to this article.

 

Source : Wall Street Journal

[Chimera]

The Al-Shabimbos are clearly undercover agents, may they rot in hell.

[Kamaavi]

Goortii taariikhdooda la qori lahaa ma dheera,

 

hadayna dhaweyn.