The militant group Al Shabaab said it has allied 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 an Arabic audio message posed Monday (April 30, 2012) on Al shabab internet forum, the leader of Al shabab Sheik Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr said that both the militants in Kenya and Somalia had agreed to connect the horn of Africa jihad to the one led by Al Qaeda.
Sheik Ahmed Iman, the leader of Islamic movement in Kenya also said that the group is happy to merger with Al shabab in Somalia, saying that they will continue carrying out attacks in Kenya.
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.
Source: TerrorFreeSomaliaFoundation, April 30, 2012.
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