The Kenyan massacre

Stuff reports:

A Hawke’s Bay man has had a “miraculous escape” after being shot in the back as he lay on the floor while dozens around him were mowed down and killed at a mall in Kenya.

Napier mum Elaine McLaren said her son, Andrew McLaren, was “very, very lucky” after being shot during the Westgate mall massacre in Nairobi.

Mr McLaren, 34, was one of about 150 people wounded when al Qaeda-linked militants opened fire inside an upmarket shopping mall in the capital of Nairobi on Saturday (local time). At least 59 people were killed.

A horrific terrorist attack.

The NYT reports on the rationale for the attacks:

The Shabab, an Islamist militant group based in Somalia, took responsibility for the attack, saying it was revenge for Kenya’s military operations in Somalia, which began nearly two years ago. “Kenya will not get peace unless they pull their military out of Somalia,” said Ali Mohamoud Rage, the Shabab’s spokesman, in a radio address. 

So it is nothing to do with Israel, the Middle East or the US.

The Shabab, who have pledged allegiance to Al Qaeda, used to control large parts of Somalia, imposing a harsh and often brutal version of Islam in their territory. They have beheaded civilians and buried teenage girls up to their necks in sand and stoned them to death. But in the past two years, the African Union forces, including the Kenyans, have pushed the Shabab out of most of their strongholds.

They sound worse than the Taliban. Politico reports:

Gunmen stormed the mall about noon local time armed with grenades and assault rifles. They asked cornered victims if they were Muslim or non-Muslim, witnesses told the Associated Press. Non-Muslims were held, while Muslims were allowed to go free.

Sounds like the Nazis asking if people were Jewish or not. The rise of Islamofascism is one of the world’s biggest threats today.