Islamic State-affiliated fighters in Somalia urged on attacks on churches

The first official propaganda video from Islamic State-affiliated fighters in Somalia was released late Monday, according to a group that monitors extremist organizations.

The SITE Intelligence Group said the inaugural video posted online urged Islamic State group supporters to take advantage of people’s “drunkenness” over the holiday season to “hunt down” and attack what it called non-believers.

“#ISIS called on lone wolves to attack during #Christmas and #NewYearsEve, and to hit nightclubs, churches, and markets, regardless of the presence of children,” the SITE Intelligence Group said in a description of the video.

The Horn of Africa nation has a small but growing presence of Islamic State-affiliated fighters. Many of them are defectors from the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab extremist group. Last month, the U.S. military for the first time conducted airstrikes against these fighters who are based in northern Somalia’s rural Puntland.

Source: /USA Today