Thursday, December 06, 2007

Oz Muslim leaders encouraging young men to join the Somali jihad

Here's an interesting detail: "She said relatives back home told her Mr Ali - a father of two who became a radical following the September 11, 2001, attacks on Washington and New York - had recently been injured in a car crash." I guess Mr. Ali decided to back the strong horse. "Somalia 'jihad drive' probed," by Richard Kerbaj in The Australian (thanks to Jeffrey Imm):

FEDERAL police are investigating local Muslim leaders over suspicions they are encouraging dozens of young men to return to their homeland to join Islamic jihadis against the Ethiopian-backed Somali forces.
AFP agents have quizzed African community members, including families and friends in Melbourne, over the spate of young Somalis who have left Australia in the past year.

It is understood that the investigation has widened following revelations in The Australian that a Somali from Melbourne, Ahmed Ali, who travelled to Somalia in December to fight alongside the Islamic Courts movement, was believed to be working as an interpreter with al-Qa'ida. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade reported in January that Mr Ali had been killed in the fighting.

Mr Ali's mother, Khadra Nimale, who says she believes her son is still alive, has been interviewed by the AFP and provided them with contact details to family members in Somalia, Britain and the Emirates.

Mr Ali's brother, Mohammed, has been contacted by the authorities in Britain.

Ms Nimale said Mr Ali, 26, was last spotted two weeks ago on the outskirts of the capital, Mogadishu, by members of her tribe.

She said relatives back home told her Mr Ali - a father of two who became a radical following the September 11, 2001, attacks on Washington and New York - had recently been injured in a car crash.

Somali community figures said Mr Ali was one of 30 or 40 Australian Somalis who have returned to fight since last December.

It is understood that one of the recruitment strategies is a DVD, which revels in the bloodshed caused by Islamic militants in Somalia and calls on young men from around the world to join the war.

The DVD has been circulating in Melbourne's Somali community....

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