al-Qaida in Somalia

The Somalian crisis is caused by both natural and human variables. Many of its people are uneducated, starving civilians. If aid is given, then it does not matter to them where it comes from and there will be good will towards those who give it. By al-Qaida giving aid and supporting Al Shababa, they achieve two things. They gain support in the world out of the middle east and they legitimize a government (al Shabab) that is often questions.

What stood out to me during this article is the possibility that groups can claim to be part of al-Qaida without being directly affiliated with them. For whatever reason a group would want to join al-Qaida’s cause, they could simply claim direct connection and enjoy the larger organization’s legitimacy. They could also, as seen in Al Shababa’s case, use Al-Qaida to give their own government legitimacy.

For years I have been under the impression that al-Qaida is an organized group with a physical location. The New York Times points out an interesting take on the organization that I had not thought of before. Al-Qaida clearly has a core group on individuals that provide leadership, but what if a portion of events that Al-Qaida took credit were actually carried out by unconnected groups.