Africa remains to be one of the hotspots of the world with things turning ugly.
A senior US official quoted by the American media confirmed that a specific al-Shabab individual had been targeted. It is suspected that the attack may have taken place in retaliation for an attack by al-Shabab terrorists on a detention centre in Mogadishu, which occurred on the evening of 31 August.
The US military and its semi-civil contracting force has proven to be the backbone of the 22,000 man mission to Somalia, which earlier successfully restored a degree of law and order to the anarchy that had up until recently characterised Somalia as a failed state. Nonetheless a degree of instability remains thanks to the survival of al-Shabab elements in the north of the country and in certain urban areas. The aim of the rebels is to overthrow the internationally established government and replace it with a Jihadist Islamic fundamentalist regime.
Hosted by Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, heads of state at the summit include Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who both face Islamist insurgencies in their nations.
Bama is just 70km by road from the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. The city is the radicals' spiritual home but they were chased out by the military when a state of emergency was declared in May last year.
Boko Haram has seized a number of towns and villages in southern Borno and near the border with Cameroon in recent weeks, leading to claims that it is planning to encircle Maiduguri and make it the centre of a hardline Islamic state.
The fighting forced hundreds of residents to flee, adding to increasing numbers of displaced people forced out of their homes across Nigeria's far northeast because of the violence.
In Benghazi, birthplace of the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed dictator Moamer Kadhafi, a spokesman for the Libyan Army's Special Forces said the jihadist group Ansar al-Sharia took part in the clashes.
Ansar al-Sharia, which classifies as a terrorist organisation, is based in Benghazi and said to control 80% of Libya's second city. It is part of the Shura coalition of jihadist fighters who tried to advance on Benina, which is both a civilian airport and an air force base, Zawi said.The situation is now under control, the Army repelled the attack with help from the Air Force which bombarded a column of advancing jihadists. In May a rogue general, Khalifa Haftar, launched an offensive dubbed Operation “Dignity” against radical Islamists in Benghazi, vowing to press his campaign until they are crushed.
US Attacks al-Shabab in Somalia
On 2 September, US military forces conducted an operation against units of the al-Shabab militia in Somalia seeking a particular individual but provided little data on the assault (sources report the target was top al-Shebab commander Ahmed Abdi Godane). A spokesman from the Pentagon said that more details would be revealed at their discretion following a thorough assessment of the operation and feedback from the human and electronic intelligence sources at their disposal. |
| al-Shabab insurgents. |
A senior US official quoted by the American media confirmed that a specific al-Shabab individual had been targeted. It is suspected that the attack may have taken place in retaliation for an attack by al-Shabab terrorists on a detention centre in Mogadishu, which occurred on the evening of 31 August.
The US military and its semi-civil contracting force has proven to be the backbone of the 22,000 man mission to Somalia, which earlier successfully restored a degree of law and order to the anarchy that had up until recently characterised Somalia as a failed state. Nonetheless a degree of instability remains thanks to the survival of al-Shabab elements in the north of the country and in certain urban areas. The aim of the rebels is to overthrow the internationally established government and replace it with a Jihadist Islamic fundamentalist regime.
Africa Must Tackle Terrorism, Leaders Warn
African leaders went as far as saying the continent must work together to end the plague of terrorism, amid fears of a growing extremist threat on the continent. The African Union (AU) summit in the Kenyan capital began hours after a US air strike in neighbouring Somalia. |
| “We are concerned about the peace and stability of our continent,” Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno said, as he opened the summit as chairman of the AU Peace and Security Council. “The attacks in the Sahel region, terrorist acts of the Boko Haram in Nigeria and other parts of west Africa... only motivate us to intensify efforts to combat this scourge. Terrorism and organised crime compels us to take common action.” |
Hosted by Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, heads of state at the summit include Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who both face Islamist insurgencies in their nations.
Boko Haram Pre-Dawn Raid on Nigerian Troops
Boko Haram militants on Monday launched a pre-dawn raid on Nigerian troops as they prepared for a major offensive to retake a town that the group's leader declared part of his Islamic caliphate. Scores of Boko Haram fighters stormed the town of Bama as soldiers readied for an attack on the nearby town of Gwoza, which was seized by the Islamists on 7 August. |
| Boko Haram militants. |
Bama is just 70km by road from the Borno state capital, Maiduguri. The city is the radicals' spiritual home but they were chased out by the military when a state of emergency was declared in May last year.
Boko Haram has seized a number of towns and villages in southern Borno and near the border with Cameroon in recent weeks, leading to claims that it is planning to encircle Maiduguri and make it the centre of a hardline Islamic state.
The fighting forced hundreds of residents to flee, adding to increasing numbers of displaced people forced out of their homes across Nigeria's far northeast because of the violence.
Libyan Clashed with Jihadists
Jihadist gunmen clashed on Monday with Libyan troops in Benghazi, killing 10 soldiers, as the Islamists tried to advance on an airport in the eastern city. The fighting came as Libya's outgoing government said that armed militias were in control of the capital Tripoli, days after Islamists seized its international airport as the oil-rich North African nation further slipped into chaos. |
| On 22 August, the Fajr Libya (Libya Dawn) mainly Islamist alliance seized Tripoli airport after weeks of fierce fighting with nationalist rivals. And on Monday, the government said Tripoli was in the hands of armed militias. |
Ansar al-Sharia, which classifies as a terrorist organisation, is based in Benghazi and said to control 80% of Libya's second city. It is part of the Shura coalition of jihadist fighters who tried to advance on Benina, which is both a civilian airport and an air force base, Zawi said.The situation is now under control, the Army repelled the attack with help from the Air Force which bombarded a column of advancing jihadists. In May a rogue general, Khalifa Haftar, launched an offensive dubbed Operation “Dignity” against radical Islamists in Benghazi, vowing to press his campaign until they are crushed.