Terrorist groups like most anti-everything organisations end up hating each other as much as their avowed enemies:
Al Shabaab also damaged itself earlier this year after a power
struggle in which its former commander, the US-born Omar Hammami (alias Abu
Mansoor al-Amriki) was toppled. Hammami, who was on the US most wanted list,
together with his colleague from the UK Usama al-Britani, were ambushed
and shot dead earlier this month by allies of the new leader, Ahmed Abdi
Godane. It is Godane who was instrumental in establishing Al-Shabaab’s affiliation
with al-Qaeda in 2012. A little earlier, Godane had planned the July 2010 bombing in the Ugandan
capital of Kampala to retaliate against Uganda’s participation in AMISOM.
To consolidate his power base earlier this year, Godane – who is also known
as Mukhtar Abu Zubayr – executed four top
commanders of Al Shabaab, including the group’s co-founder known as Sheikh
Ibrahim al-Afghani, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan. His brutal assumption
of power compelled the group’s spiritual leader, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, to
flee for his life. The Somali government subsequently captured
Aweys.
And for that small grace we are thankful. However, even though a snake might have had its head chopped off, reflex actions and the fact that the fangs are still loaded with venom make the decapitated part still lethal, as witnessed by this horrible organisations current strike in Kenya.
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