June 2, 2011 | Posted by admin
MOGADISHU, Somalia – The militant group al-Shabaab says it was a Minnesota man who carried out a suicide bomb attack at a base in Mogadishu this week, but an FBI spokesperson told FOX 9 they are still waiting to confirm the man’s identity although it appears he may be someone who was on their radar for some time.
Al-Shabaab says 25-year-old Abdullahi Ahmed attacked the African Union peacekeeping base in Somalia’s capital on Monday, killing two AU troops and one government soldier. The group says on its website that Ahmed moved to Somalia from Minnesota two years ago.
The report purported to quote Ahmed before his death saying that he wanted to carry out the attack because of abuses by Christians in Muslim countries.
In a recording, Ahmed urged his “brothers and sisters out there in the West” to “die like lions
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“I have been a member of al-Shabaab for two years. I am from Minnesota, USA,” Ahmed said. “I am so happy to turn my body into shrapnel for the infidels.”
Omar Jamal, a Minneapolis Somali community advocate, said Ahmed was a taxi driver when he lived in Minneapolis. He said Ahmed was “very fundamental.” Jamal said the two often argued about religion in coffee shops.
Four years ago, Ahmed left Minnesota to fight for al-Shabaab but was injured and returned to the Twin Cities to recruit other American Somalis. He is credited with enticing some of the 20 who vanished from Minneapolis nearly three years ago.
What concerns many abuot Ahmed is how easily he moved back and forth between the U.S. and Somalia. He was only recently placed on the FBI’s most wanted list after he was stopped in Nevada before leaving the country through Mexico.
If the report is confirmed, Ahmed will become at least the third Somali-American to have carried out a suicide bombing in Somalia. The Minneapolis office of the FBI said it is aware of the AU bombing, and they have people on the ground in Somalia working to identify the bomber. They couldn’t confirm Ahmed was involved in the bombing, or any other ties to Minnesota.
The first suicide bomber from Minnesota was Shirwa Ahmed, who killed 29 people in an attack in Mogadishu in 2008
Read more: Al-Shabaab: Somalia Suicide Bomber a Minnesota Man | Abdullahi Ahmed http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/news/somalia-suicide-bomber-minnesota-june-2-2011#ixzz1OB506nHL
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Copyright AP Modified, Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not b
Copyright AP Modified, Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not b
Read more: Al-Shabaab: Somalia Suicide Bomber a Minnesota Man | Abdullahi Ahmed http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/news/somalia-suicide-bomber-minnesota-june-2-2011#ixzz1OB4fjZjq
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