Al Qaeda in Somalia names new Kenya leader. Long War Journal: 'Shabaab, al Qaeda's affiliate in Somalia, has named a radical Kenyan preacher who has advocated jihad across the globe to lead to lead their branch in Kenya. The Muslim Youth Center, a radical Islamist group in Kenya, said that Shabaab named Sheikh Ahmad Iman Ali its "Supreme Amiir", or leader, on Jan. 10. The Muslim Youth Center released a statement on their blog, which was obtained by the SITE Intelligence Group. ...'
Iraq: Who controls the oil? Strategy Page:
While the Sunni Arab terror groups are being beaten, as long as they can still carry out their attacks, which mainly kill civilians, the entire Sunni Arab community will keep feeling the hate. In response, some Sunni Arab politicians are demanding an autonomous Sunni Arab state, extending from Baghdad (parts of which are still exclusively Sunni) north to Kurdish territory and west to the Jordanian border. Unfortunately, this idea has little support in the Sunni community because this autonomous Sunni Arab area has almost no oil. At the same time, the Kurds are allowing foreign firms to develop oil fields in areas the Kurds have controlled for two decades. This annoys the Shia dominated Iraq government but there is no enthusiasm for invading the Kurdish north. The Shia can take comfort in the fact that they still control most Iraqi oil. It's the oil, and billions in oil revenue, which occupies the attention of most Iraqis. Given the continued (since Saddam's rule) corruption and inept government, Iraqis have more to be upset about than a few terrorist bombings. If the corruption could be reduced, wiping out the terrorists would happen a lot more quickly. ...
Read the rest at the link, and scroll down to find out who's working with the Mossad and why.
More Arab League monitors quit Syria. Stratfor quotes Arab League monitor Anwar Malek on why he's getting out of Syria.
Turkey flirts with Hamas. Walter Russell Mead:
In the past, Hamas has drawn much of its funding and its political support from Israel’s most bitter opponents: Syria and Iran. Mubarak era Egypt and Kemalist Turkey wanted little to do with the Hamas.
Now increasing Islamist influence in both countries makes Hamas a much better match for them, ideologically at least. It will be interesting, to say the least, to see whether Hamas’ likely new paymasters and supporters will want to see Hamas position itself vis a vis Israel. Turkey and Egypt (who may become rivals in the next stage of Middle East politics) have different international interests and priorities than Syria and Iran. ...
