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| A Sunday, Feb. 22, 2015 photo shows the exterior of the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn. A video released late Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015, purported to be by Somalia’s al-Qaida-linked rebels, urges Muslims to attack shopping malls in North America, Britain and other Western countries, specifically mentioning the Mall of America in Minnesota, the West Edmonton Mall in Canada, and the Westfield Mall in Stratford, England. |
JOHANNESBURG
(AP) -- A video purported to be by Somalia's al-Qaida-linked rebel group
al-Shabab urged Muslims to attack shopping malls in the U.S., Canada,
Britain and other Western countries.
The
threat came in the final minutes of a more than hourlong video in which
the extremists also warned Kenya of more attacks like the September 2013
assault on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi in which 67 people were killed.
The video included footage from major news organizations showing the
assault on the mall and said it was in reprisal for alleged abuses by
Kenyan troops against Muslims in Somalia.
The
masked narrator concluded by calling on Muslims to attack shopping
malls, specifically naming the Mall of America in Minnesota, as well as
the West Edmonton Mall in Canada and the Westfield mall in Stratford,
England.
The authenticity of the video could not be immediately verified by The Associated Press.
The
narrator, his face wrapped in a black-and-white kaffiyeh-type scarf and
wearing a camouflage jacket, spoke with a British accent and appeared
to be of Somali origin.
"What if such an
attack were to occur in the Mall of America in Minnesota? Or the West
Edmonton Mall in Canada? Or in London's Oxford Street?" the man said,
then called for Britain's Westfield mall to be targeted.
Speaking
on morning talk shows in the U.S., Department of Homeland Security
Secretary Jeh Johnson called the video "the new phase" of the global
terrorist threat and warned the public to be vigilant.
"These
groups are relying more and more on independent actors to become
inspired, drawn to the cause and they'll attack on their own," Johnson
said, speaking on CNN's "State of the Union."
"I
am very concerned about serious potential threats of independent actors
here in the United States. We've seen this now in Europe, we've seen
this in Canada."
Asked about the specific
threat against the Mall of America, Johnson said: "Any time a terrorist
organization calls for an attack on a specific place we've got to take
that seriously. What we're telling the public is you've got to be
vigilant. ... There will be enhanced security there that will be
apparent, but public vigilance, public awareness and public caution in
situations like this is particularly important. It's the environment
we're in."
The Mall of America, one of the
nation's largest, located in Bloomington, Minnesota, said in a statement
that it was "aware of a threatening video which includes a mention and
images of the mall," and said extra security had been put in place
Shoppers seemed undeterred Sunday by the threat.
"I'm more afraid of the cold today than any terrorists," said Mary Lamminen, of St. Paul.
David
Modrynski said he talked with his wife and son about whether to visit
the mall after hearing about the video. "But we can't stop living our
lives because somebody says they're going to do something," Modrynski
said.
While al-Shabab has carried out attacks
in neighboring Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti, which all have troops
fighting the extremists as part of the multinational African Union
force, the al-Qaida affiliate has never operated outside East Africa and
the Horn of Africa.
Minnesota, home to the
largest Somali population in the U.S., has been the target of terror
recruiters in the past. Since 2007, more than 22 young Somali men from
Minnesota have traveled to Somalia to join al-Shabab, and a handful of
Minnesota residents have also traveled to Syria to fight with militant
groups within the last year, authorities say. At least one Minnesotan
has died while fighting for the Islamic State group.
On
Thursday, a 19-year-old Minneapolis man who was stopped at a New York
City airport in November as he and three others were allegedly
attempting to travel to Syria was indicted on charges associated with
supporting the Islamic State group.
Last week
U.S. Attorney Andy Luger led a Minnesota delegation, including law
enforcement officials and Somali community leaders, to a White House
summit on countering extremism and radicalization. In his remarks, Vice
President Joe Biden held up Minneapolis, Boston and Los Angeles as
examples of communities moving ahead with programs to counter extremism
locally.
In Kenya, the government dismissed the al-Shabab video.
"They're
using propaganda to legitimize what cannot be legitimized. When you
lead a group to go and attack a shopping mall and kill innocent shoppers
that cannot be legitimized, those were not soldiers," Interior Ministry
spokesman Mwenda Njoka said.
"Muslims also
died in the Westgate attack. It's in our interest to ensure Somalia is
stabilized because the instability affects us. The video is cheap
propaganda trying to re-write history and to get more support from those
support them."
