British Jihadis Join Militant Al-Shabaab In Somalia

The UK's permissive, politically correct attitude towards the Muslim extremists within their midst is clearly fomenting the fires of radicalism in that country. Allowing people like Anjem Choudhary and other radicals to preach hate without consequences, and then factor in aiding and abetting their activities by supporting them with taxpayer money (since many of them are on the dole and public assistance)you've created a fertile field for home-grown terrorists. And all those lovely Islamist extremists are spreading out and joining insurgent forces abroad. So all these Brits (most of Pakistani descent) are heading out for places like Yemen, and now Somalia, to fight alongside their brothers in jihad.

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The weak, western-backed government in Mogadishu is faltering and apparently next month there will be a concerted effort by forces (US-backed) to strengthen Somalia's military. With Al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam on the government's heels, it needs all the help it can get, since Al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam already control much of Somalia, and Hizbul Islam even parts of Mogadishu. So 'foreign fighters' are amassing to counter the government's efforts to defeat them.

Warnings have been sounded about British-based groups offering funding and expertise to individuals seeking to travel to Somalia to fight alongside al-Shabab, the militia aligned with al-Qaida's global campaign.

US State Department sources said yesterday that it had noted an influx of "foreign fighters" arriving in Somalia to swell the ranks of al-Shabab. Popular routes from Britain to Somalia involve Kenya or Djibouti, the small republic that borders Somalia on its north west. One western official said some flights to the republic had, at one stage, been dubbed the "Djibouti express" because on occasion so many young Britons were on board. The precise scale of the exodus is unclear, but "scores" of British fighters are known to have travelled to Somalia.

What people seem to be most concerned about is that with all these foreign fighters (including the Brits) training in Somalia, the country could turn into a safe-haven for al-Qaida militants who are currently hiding in Pakistan and Afghanistan. And no-one is thrilled about how close Somalia is to Yemen.

Somalia's ungoverned spaces raise the risk, say analysts, of the country replicating Afghanistan's role as an al-Qaida safe haven when under Taliban control.

There is fresh concern over Somalia's proximity to Yemen, the Arabian peninsula base for al-Qaida. Last week the British ambassador to Yemen survived a suicide bomb attack as his convoy travelled through the capital, Sanaa. A Pentagon source said recent events meant the US was developing "significant concerns about the growing threat" in the area.

In an effort to squelch the potential for both Yemen and Somalia to become magnets for al-Qaeda militants, the U.S. has been spending time and money training both the Yemeni army and about 2,000 Somali soldiers.

Interestingly enough, the UK has the largest population of Somali immigrants in Europe, with approximatly 250,000, most of whom were refugees. The U.S. also has a large Somali population, and sadly, although I'm sure most are honest, law-abiding citizens who knows how many are potential terrorists. The trouble is, the youth are at risk of being radicalized in both the U.S. and the UK. A group of young Somalians disappeared from Minnesota only to re-appear in Somalia. Some claimed to be clueless, others knew exactly why they went there.

England had their own problem:

Two Somali asylum-seekers were among the four men convicted of the failed attempts to bomb the London transport system on 21 July 2005.

England needs to start instituting a zero-tolerance for anyone espousing any type of radical Islamist ideology. And the U.S. and other countries would be smart to do the same, before it gets as bad as it has in England.