Monday, June 23, 2008

CAIRO, Egypt (AP) - An al - Qaida spokesman has urged militants in Somalia to fight a United Nations peacekeeping force slated to be deployed there.

In a 19-minute video posted on a militant website today, Abu Yahya Al-Libi also urged Muslim extremists to set up an Islamic government in Somalia.

The Somali government and the opposition Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia agreed this month to "end all acts of armed confrontation" within 30 days and remove Ethiopian troops once a UN peacekeeping force is deployed.

Al-Libi is one of the most visible faces of al-Qaida on the Internet, and has released five statements this year.

He gained fame for escaping from Afghanistan's notorious Bagram prison in 2005.

Source: AP, June 23, 2008