Countering al-Shabaab: a case to minimize transnational terrorist threats against Uganda

This thesis analyzes the first transnational terrorist attack by Al-Shabaab in Kampala, Uganda, on July 11, 2010. It provides a historical background of Al-Shabaab since its inception and the group's major chronological events from 2006 to 2010. The study then analyzes the factors that may have contributed to Al-Shabaab joining the transnational arena to strike hundreds of miles away from Somalia. Among the findings of the study is that the recruitment of foreign fighters by Al-Shabaab from different parts of the world materialized into the recruitment of Ugandans who acted as a local franchised cell inside Uganda. It was that cell that was responsible for the Kampala bombings. Moreover, the local franchised cell had logistic support links with other terrorist cells outside Uganda. In addition, porous borders facilitated the perpetrators to easily enter Uganda with all the materials that were used in the bombing. Recommendations include that, together with intensifying human intelligence among the indigenous population in Uganda, the East African Community has to establish a strong counterterrorism agency incorporating all member states for information sharing in order to thwart cross-border terror networks.http://archive.org/details/counteringlshaba1094510626Uganda People's Defence Force, Army autho