Friday December 29, 2017
(REUTERS / Feisal Omar)Members of al Shabaab, al Qaeda-linked insurgents, ride in a pick-up truck after distributing relief to famine-stricken internally displaced people at Ala Yaasir camp, outside Somalia's capital Mogadishu, September 3, 2011.
The Islamic State has reportedly released what is thought to be the first video of its Somali terrorists in which they called for attacks on churches, public places, and non-believers.
The SITE intelligence group reported that ISIS has released a video showing Somali fighters who have pledged allegiance to the terrorist organization. The jihadists were also shown calling for attacks on non-believers and to take advantage of the "drunkenness" of people during their Christmas celebrations, Sputnik News relayed.
Al-Shabaab, which has been linked with al-Qaeda, has been attacking military and civilian targets in Somalia and Kenya in the last few years. There were reportedly ISIS fighters who split from the group and are now considered a separate terror threat.
Meanwhile, The Star has learned that Al-Shabaab is now using attractive women as spies against security forces fighting the terror group in Lamu. Officers told the publication that these women try to lure security officers connected to the Linda Boni operation into sexual relationships with them in an effort to know their secrets.
"They visit villages close to our camps to attract us. They know it is our biggest weakness," one security officer told The Star.
It is worth noting that Al Shabaab started attacking just a couple of days after the beautiful women were spotted in Lamu. Joseph Kanyiri, the operations director of Linda Boni, said they were aware of the militant group's new spying tactics and are on alert.
"They are using every available trick to spy on officers," said Kanyiri. "But we are alert."
This was not the first time that Al-Shabaab has used women against security forces. Kanyiri said authorities arrested two female spies in Kiunga last year. In light of the situation, officers have been instructed to be wary of women who attempt to make sexual advances towards them.