Al-Shabaab faction pledges loyalty to the Islamic State after murdering 150 Christian students
The Islamic State has already won the loyalty of Boko Haram in Nigeria and many other jihad groups worldwide. Its claim to be the caliphate is validated every day, in the eyes of those who accept that claim, by the fact that none of those who have vowed to destroy the Islamic State have yet managed to do so.
A senior spiritual leader of the al-Shabaab militant group in Somalia, which earlier this year massacred close to 150 Christian students, has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State terror group in Iraq and Syria.
“We, the mujahideen of Somalia, declare allegiance to the caliph as Ibrahim ibn Awad ibn Ibrahim al-Awad al-Qurashi,” Abdiqadir Mumin, an al-Shabaab commander in the Puntland region of Somalia, said in an audio tape, according to Reuters.
CNN pointed out that move further fractures al-Shabaab, as most of its remaining leaders are loyal to al Qaeda.
“The al-Shabaab-linked source told CNN that members of the group now fear for their lives as other political leaders systematically try to root out possible IS supporters within their ranks,” the report stated.
Al-Qaeda and IS remain in a rivalry for power, despite their shared opposition to the Western world. A great point of contention has been IS’ attacks and conquest of several cities in Syria, which went against al Qaeda’s wishes.
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Source: Al-Shabaab faction pledges loyalty to the Islamic State after murdering 150 Christian students