Somalia's Shabaab, Hizbul Islam seek merger

The two main Islamist terror groups battling the weak Somali government may merge into a single outfit.
Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, the leader of Hizbul Islam or the Party of Islam, said he is working to unite his faction with Shabaab, an al Qaeda-backed Islamic terror group that has lobbied to join the international terrorist organization. Aweys said talks were proceeding and urged followers to continue to fight until they achieve "victory over enemies" of Islam.
Aweys, who is an al Qaeda ally and a designated terrorist, made the announcement in front of a large crown of worshipers in front of the Aba Hureyra Mosque in Bakaraha market in Mogadishu, according to a report in Maareg.
Shabaab, or the Somali Youth Movement, is led by Ahmed Abdi Aw Mohamed, the reclusive spiritual leader who was seriously wounded in an explosion at a Mogadishu safehouse on May 17.
Hizbul Islam was created in January of this year with the merger of four separate Islamic groups: Aweys’ Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia-Eritrea; Mu'askar Ras Kamboni (the Ras Kamboni Brigade); Jabhatul Islamiya (the Islamic Front); and Anole. Hizbul Islam was formerly led by Sheik Omar Iman Abu Bakar but was ousted by Aweys earlier this for being too moderate.
The Ras Kamboni Brigade is a radical Islamist group that was founded by Sheikh Hassan Turki, a former senior leader in the Islamic Courts and its predecessor, al Itihaad al Islamiyah. Turki operates terrorist training camps in southern Somalia and was likely the target of a US airstrike in March 2008.
In late February Hizbul Islam joined forces with Shahaab in the battle with the African Union peacekeepers that left nearly 50 dead and 300 wounded. The two groups have been relentless in attacking Somali government forces and the African Union peacekeepers stations in the capital.
Outside of Mogadishu, the central government wields little control. Shabaab and Hizbul Islam currently control all of the southern and many of the central provinces of Lower Jubba, Middle Jubba, Lower Shabelle, Gedo, Bay, and Bakool, as well as much of Mogadishu, where the government only controls a few enclaves. Aweys' very public speech in the Bakaraha market indicates government forces cannot project power beyond the few bases and the presidential palace in the capital ..Read more: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2009/07/somalias_shabaab_hiz.php