Everything about Al-itihaad Al-islamiya totally explained
Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya or
AIAI (
Islamic Union) is a defunct
Islamist militant group in
Somalia with alleged ties to
al-Qaeda.
History
In the early
1990s as Somalia fell into disorder following the end of the
Siad Barre regime,
Osama bin Laden took advantage of the chaos to fund al-Itihaad, later sending foreign militants who trained and fought alongside al-Itihaad members with the goal of creating an Islamist state in the
Horn of Africa. AIAI was also active in setting up
sharia courts. Despite its association with al-Qaeda, other analysts caution against overgeneralization, noting that al-Itihaad had elements of a genuine social movement and that the characters of sub-factions throughout the country substantially differed from each other.
An article published in the
San Francisco Chronicle, in
December 16 2001 quoted unnamed intelligence officials who claimed AIAI was extensively connected to
Al Barakaat.
Funded by wealthy
Saudis, al-Itihaad had extensive connections with the Somali expatriate community in
Kenya, in particular the
Eastleigh district of
Nairobi and the predominantly Muslim coastal regions. At its height, the AIAI militia numbered over 1000.
According to U.S. intelligence officials, al-Itihaad cooperated with the al-Qaeda operatives who carried out the
1998 United States embassy bombings in Nairobi and
Dar es Salaam that killed 224 people.
On
March 7-
8 1999, Ethiopia claimed it had made a cross-border incursion into Ballanballe searching for members of Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya (AIAI) who had reportedly kidnapped a person and stolen medical supplies, and denied reports of looting. Allegations from that time also claim Ethiopia was the supplier of various Somali warlords, while Eritrea was arming other warlords.
On
24 September 2001, al-Itihaad al-Islamiya's finances were sanctioned by the administration of U.S. President
George W. Bush under
Executive Order 13224. Its then-head
Hassan Dahir Aweys was also sanctioned under EO13224 in November of that year.
In June 2004,
Hassan Abdullah Hersi al-Turki, who had become leader of the organization, was also sanctioned for his connections to bin Laden.
Al-Qaeda operatives were reported to have used the al-Itihaad base on the island of
Ras Kiyemboni, south of
Kismayu near the border with Kenya.
Other sources indicate that al-Qaeda formed a training camp on Kiyemboni, while al-Itihaad set up its own training camp at
Las Quoay near the northeast port of
Boosaaso. In the aftermath of the
September 11, 2001 attacks, these camps were dismantled and the hundreds of trained militants sailed for the safety of tribal areas in
Yemen. Hassan Al-Turki went on to lead
Hizbul Shabaab, the Youth Movement wing of the ICU before ceding the organisation to
Aden Hashi Farah "Eyrow".
Members of Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya (AIAI)
The following individuals were known to be members of AIAI:
Further Information
Get more info on 'Al-itihaad Al-islamiya'.
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