Shaul shay research fellow, ict june 2014 the views expressed in this publication are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect. Inside al shabaab is the definitive history of the somali militant group, rich with newly disclosed details about the groups genesis and its ties to al qaeda. Ethiopia invades somalia in fight against alshabab. The number of attacks attributed to alshabaab has increased rapidly from less than 10 in. This book reveals insights ive never seen during my 15 years in counterterrorisman excellent work. Alshabaab is an extremist militant islamic group that is centralized in somalia. Al shabaabs foreign threat to somalia by david shinn david shinn is an adjunct professor in the elliott school of international affairs at george washington university. Alshabaab events in history timeline timetoast timelines. The impact of al shabab terrorist attacks in kenya.
A kenyan army spokesperson also said that 20 alshabaab fighters had defected. Alshabaab fighters at a somali training camp, in an image taken from a video released by the group in 2009. On january 2010, alshabaab expressed its support for alqaeda in the arabian peninsula. The arabic translation of alshabaab is the youth, which relates to the group well since it is largely comprised of. The next day, al shabaab followed up the violence with the beheading of nine civilians in the little village of jima on the mainland, a gruesome tactic that surprised even the locals, who have. June 15, 2006alshabaab leader aden hashi farah eyrow, was said to have taken arms sent from eritrea see page. A brave attempt to both historicize and scrutinize alshabaab, it is a mustread for. An offshoot of the islamic courts union, the organization seeks to impose sharia law across. The group has experienced two dramatic transformations in its short. Together with alshabaab, the two groups account for a substantial amount of carnage on the african continent. Al shabaab has been designated as a terrorist organization by australia, canada, norway, sweden, the united kingdom and the usa. Al shabaab is an al qaedaaffiliated organization that has risen rapidly to prominence in the midst of somalias decadeslong anarchy. According to the national counterterrorism center, the.
The once ragtag somaliabased al qaeda affiliate group known as alshabaab has grown into an economic powerhouse, raising tens of millions of dollars in cash every year from a variety of. Ethiopia invades somalia in fight against alshabab in december, ethiopian troops seized the city of beledweyne, in western somalia, from terrorist group alshabab. Analyzed here are the ideologies of these two infamous organizations. Alshabaab and boko haram ebook by john maszka author.
Shabaab and ugandas lords resistance army iss paper 229 december 2011 in particular, is said to be neither unitary nor very cohesive, and at lower levels it functions largely. The al shabaab variously spelled shabab and shebaab terrorist group, an al qaedaaffiliated organization with roots in somalia, attacked shoppers in a nairobi, kenya mall this weekend. Harakat al shabaab is somalias infamous though underresearched militant islamist group. Radicalisation and alshabaab recruitment in somalia. While alshabaab lost control of some key towns, it maintains control over large swathes of territory, and many key transport routes. Modern history of al shabaab while much of the icus leadership quickly fled the advancing ethiopians, members of al shabaab instead retreated into the swampy south of the country, from where they launched a bloody guerilla campaign against the ethiopian military in somalia. Alqaeda and alshabaab have had a partnership for years, with alshabaabs former leader declaring allegiance to alqaeda in 2012. The government of canada lists alshabaab as a terrorist group, saying. Until recently, many had been tempted to suggest that the.
Alshababs ideology is typically described as a brand of salafism and wahhabism that supports takfir, the excommunication of apostates or unbelievers. Alshabaab terrorists propaganda and the kenya government. Al shabaab center for strategic and international studies. Alshabaab continued to extend the area under its control in 2009, banning behaviours that it deemed unislamic and implementing punishments including beheading, stoning, and. In april 2010, the jihadist propaganda center daawat alhaqq lildirasat wal buhuth, which is under the auspices.
Alshabaab in somalia is a judicious and timely study of a poorly understood militant islamist group. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group, 20052012 stig jarle hansen on. Aqam futures project case study series july 2011 project. The jihadist group claims to have killed 61 in the assault though somali officials put. Kenyan military claims that it had killed 60 alshabaab fighters with an air strike. Kenya steps up the war against al shabaab before its elections. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group kindle edition by hansen, stig jarle.
Alshabaab, the al qaedaaligned militia in somalia, is experiencing some of the most successful months of its recent history. Firstly, tourism, which is one of kenya s major revenue earners, has been adversely affected. The majority of the attacks in kenya have either come from al qaedas and al shabaab s presence in kenya. Clinton watts, senior fellow, foreign policy research institute inside al shabaab is the definitive history of the somali militant group, rich with newly disclosed details about the groups genesis and its ties to al qaeda.
The history of alshabaab south african history online. Alshabaabs composition is multiethnic, with its leadership positions mainly occupied by afghanistan and iraqtrained ethnic somalis and foreigners. The murder of lee rigby five years ago ushered in a wave of easy extremist violence. Roland marchal senior research fellow at cnrs sciencespo. This article contains a timeline of events for the somali militant group alshabaab. This study examines four periods in recent somali history. On june 8th, alshabaab fighters attacked a military base in puntland, a semiautonomous region in somalia. Its a great introduction for those new to the topic, but its also a landmark work and absolutely required reading for those who study and work to counter terrorism. Despite military pressure and global efforts to starve it of financing, the group continues to operate effectively, allowing it to function. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading alshabaab in somalia. Two kenyans executed in public by al shabaab terrorists in bula fulay village along the bay region of somalia for allegedly working for antiterrorism spies from kenya.
The focus of this study, however, is the al shabaab attacks in kenya. The reemergence of alshabaab was helped in no small part by the continuing ethiopian occupation of somalia, which created a fertile environment for recruitment to the alshabaab membership. Marka has signalled the death knell for al shabaabs domestic territorial integrity. Somalia attacks signal escalation of alshabaab offensive. The history and ideology of a militant islamist group, 20052012 article pdf available in african affairs april 2014 with 167 reads how we measure reads. Al shabaab, which has al qaeda ties and controls most of southern and central regions of the country, has historically banned international aid agencies from operating within territories under. While at the beginning white foreign jihadists were present.
Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The recent attacks in kenya have affected the country in many ways. The alshabaab terrorist organisation are largely thought to be behind these last two attacks and were thus the main focal point of this discussion. This report briefly examines al shabaab aka harakat shabaab al mujahidin, or mujahidin youth movement which is an insurgent and terrorist group that evolved out of a militant wing of.
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