Combating a common threat

Attack by Somali extremists in Kenya shows there must be greater international cooperation to fight terrorism

The terrorist attack on an upscale shopping mall popular among affluent Kenyans and foreigners in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, on Saturday, killed at least 62 people, including a Chinese citizen, and wounded more than 170 others. The Somali militant group al-Shabab has claimed responsibility for the attack, which was the most deadly terrorist attack in Kenya since the bombing of the United States embassy in 1998 that killed 213 people.

Civilians escape an area at the Westgate Shopping Centre in Nairobi Sept 21, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]

However, the terrorist attack should not be viewed as an isolated event. Al-Shabab carried out its first cross-border bomb attack in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, in 2010, but since the Kenyan government sent troops to Somalia in October 2011 to help the Somali transitional government pursue al-Shabab militants, the group has made Kenya a target and repeatedly threatened attacks on Kenyan soil if Nairobi did not pull its troops out of Somalia. In fact, al-Shabab has been responsible for a number of terrorist attacks in Kenya between October 2011 and March 2013, which resulted in 60 casualties.

After formally joining al-Qaida in February 2012, the Somali al-Shabab, taking advantage of the unrest in North Africa, has strengthened its collaboration with al-Qaida in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb and the Boko Haram militants in Nigeria, and the three African Islamic extremist groups are seeking to combine with various anti-government forces at home and abroad to use a variety of destructive and terror means to undermine domestic and regional peace and stability.

The collaboration of different terrorist groups and the growing scale and intensity of their terror attacks should sound the alarm for stability and security in Africa, and African authorities should seek new cooperation strategies in response to the changes in terrorist activities.

African countries and countries in other regions subject to terrorist activities should remain on high alert for signs of affiliation and cooperation between existing or potential anti-government forces and foreign extremist groups.