Exposing and exploiting weaknesses in the merger of Al-Qaeda and Al-Shabaab

2013/07/01 by Matthew J. W. Thomas · 3 citations
Social Sciences · #Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence #Political Conflict and Governance #Somali #Al qaeda #Clan #Ideology #Terrorism #Strengths and weaknesses #Political science #Political economy #Sociology #Law #Politics #Epistemology

paper · doi:10.1080/09592318.2013.802611

openalex publication_date 2013/07/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29

Abstract

On 9 February 2012 the Somali terrorist organization al-Shabaab officially merged with al-Qaeda. While the significance of the merger is highly contested, it does expose internal weaknesses within the two organizations along ideological, clan, and sectarian lines. The article identifies three key weaknesses of the merger and concludes with a discussion of al-Qaeda's growing presence in trans-Saharan Africa.

Citations

• The Rise and Fall of Mogadishu's Islamic Courts
• Islamism and Totalitarianism

Cited by

• Shapeshifter of Somalia: Evolution of the Political Territoriality of Al-Shabaab
• A VAR analysis of the effects of Al-Shabaab’s pledge to Al-Qaeda on bombings and fatalities
• Al-Shabaab (militant group) [wikipedia]