Somali jihadis cleverly woo Americans

MINNEAPOLIS -- One young man attended secret meetings in Minneapolis. Another got a phone call, urging him to leave Minnesota and go to Somalia to fight. Terrorist training videos featuring English speakers pepper YouTube, calling others to the cause.
Details are emerging about how terrorists in Somalia have lured young American men -- including as many as 20 from Minnesota -- back to their homeland to join their jihad. At least three have died, including one who authorities think is the first American suicide bomber. Three others have pleaded guilty in the U.S. to terror-related charges.Court proceedings and interviews with community members, attorneys and terror experts indicate the Somali-based terror group al-Shabab, uses widespread recruitment tactics including a vast Web-based network."Al-Shabab 10 years ago would be a two-bit, paramilitary group that no one would've cared about … sitting in a basement somewhere stockpiling rocket-propelled grenades and bullets for AK-47s," said Bruce Hoffman, a terrorism specialist at Georgetown University. "Now, we see them reaching into the United States."Like many terror groups, al-Shabab uses Internet videos to draw disfranchised young men into its fold. Many feature typical militant scenes: men with covered faces firing automatic weapons, marching or practicing martial arts.But al-Shabab's propaganda sets it apart."I would say they were among the most explicit, the most violent, and the most enthusiastic videos of any jihadi organization out there," said Evan Kohlmann, a terror consultant.The group, which the U.S. government says has ties to al-Qaida, also uniquely targets Americans and English speakers, Kohlmann said...more..http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/insight/stories/2009/08/30/Missing_Somalis-Recruiting.ART_ART_08-30-09_G2_4VETEMI.html?sid=101
American Somali Muslims eager to join jihad
http://infidelsunite.typepad.com/counter_jihad/2009/08/american-somali-muslims-eager-to-join-jihad.html