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Nairobi attack: US-Somalis decry shopping centre bloodshed | Nairobi attack: US-Somalis decry shopping centre bloodshed |
(about 2 hours later) | |
US-Somalis in Minnesota have condemned the Nairobi shopping centre attack, after Kenyan officials said one or two of the suspected al-Shabab militants involved were from the US state. | US-Somalis in Minnesota have condemned the Nairobi shopping centre attack, after Kenyan officials said one or two of the suspected al-Shabab militants involved were from the US state. |
In the city of Minneapolis, mosque leaders said such violence had nothing to do with Islam. | In the city of Minneapolis, mosque leaders said such violence had nothing to do with Islam. |
Minnesota is thought to be home to about 70,000 people of Somali origin. | Minnesota is thought to be home to about 70,000 people of Somali origin. |
The FBI says at least 20 young men from the US state have gone to Somalia since 2007 to join al-Shabab. | |
Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed said on Monday that two or three Americans were involved in the attack. | Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Mohamed said on Monday that two or three Americans were involved in the attack. |
The Americans were 18 to 19 years old, of Somali or Arab origin and lived "in Minnesota and one other place" in the US, she said. | The Americans were 18 to 19 years old, of Somali or Arab origin and lived "in Minnesota and one other place" in the US, she said. |
US officials have said they are looking into the claim. | US officials have said they are looking into the claim. |
'Criminals not Muslims' | 'Criminals not Muslims' |
Somali religious leaders spoke out against the Kenya attack during a news conference in Minneapolis on Monday afternoon at the state's largest mosque, the Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Centre. | |
"This kind of activity, killing innocent people, has no base or any relationship with Islam," Abdirizak Hashi, an imam, was quoted as saying by the Star-Tribune newspaper. | "This kind of activity, killing innocent people, has no base or any relationship with Islam," Abdirizak Hashi, an imam, was quoted as saying by the Star-Tribune newspaper. |
"Al-Shabab and these people, they are criminals. They are not Muslims," Ibrahim Baraki, another imam, was quoted by KMSP-TV as saying. | |
"They may have our name and look. They have deviated from the teaching of Islam: save life, not destroy life." | "They may have our name and look. They have deviated from the teaching of Islam: save life, not destroy life." |
After the press conference, leaders at the Islamic centre deflected questions from reporters about young men allegedly having been radicalised at the mosque. | After the press conference, leaders at the Islamic centre deflected questions from reporters about young men allegedly having been radicalised at the mosque. |
In recent years, officials at the Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Centre have repeatedly denied that any recruitment for al-Shabab has taken place at the mosque. | In recent years, officials at the Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Centre have repeatedly denied that any recruitment for al-Shabab has taken place at the mosque. |
Meanwhile, in New York City on Monday trial proceedings were under way against three men of Somali descent who face federal terrorism charges over alleged ties to al-Shabab. | Meanwhile, in New York City on Monday trial proceedings were under way against three men of Somali descent who face federal terrorism charges over alleged ties to al-Shabab. |
Prosecutors in Brooklyn describe the defendants - Ali Yasin Ahmed, Madhi Hashi and Mohamed Yusuf - as "dangerous and influential" members of al-Shabab who were part of an elite unit of suicide bombers. | Prosecutors in Brooklyn describe the defendants - Ali Yasin Ahmed, Madhi Hashi and Mohamed Yusuf - as "dangerous and influential" members of al-Shabab who were part of an elite unit of suicide bombers. |