AL QAEDA IN AFRICA?

But it was what Castaneda said that aroused my greatest interest.  He said he attended a meeting of civil rights groups in Abuja last year.  He cited the growth of Al Qaeda in northern Nigeria, but went to say how Al Qaeda is spreading massively to the south of Nigeria.

Yesterday, Sunday June 8, I was quite disturbed watching Fareed Zakaria’s “GPS” on CNN, at 1 pm, where he had one of his usual panels of “international experts”, in the case of yesterday with Natan Sharanksy, the former Soviet dissident and former Deputy Prime Minister of Israel, Jorge Castanada, noted author from Venezuela, Ishard Manji, the Indian-Canadian writer and of course Christine Amanpour, the CNN correspondent.  What concerned me was a discussion about the diminishing role of Al Qaeda throughout their original base in the Middle East and Asia, but how potent it has grown in Africa.  They were unanimous in their assessment of this phenomenon.  In fact, they claimed that most of the violence occurring in Africa now are being caused by Al Qaeda.  And I was saying to myself, what?

But it was what Castaneda said that aroused my greatest interest.  He said he attended a meeting of civil rights groups in Abuja last year.  He cited the growth of Al Qaeda in northern Nigeria, but went to say how Al Qaeda is spreading massively to the south of Nigeria.

As I am yet to observe what these individuals have observed in Africa, maybe there are some of us in this forum, who could corroborate or dispute the potency of Al Qaeda’s presence in Africa, and seriously the allegation that Al Qaeda is moving massively down to southern Nigeria.  I believe there is a need for us to challenge Fareed Zakaria with the distortions made on his program.  People who were listening to the program will jump to the conclusion on the accuracy of their utterances.

Please, anyone at all with information or has studied the Al Qaeda presence in Africa, and especially Nigeria, let’s have your views.  Thank you.

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