Boko Haram fighters are crossing Africa to receive specialized training from Al Shabaab fighters in Somalia, the country’s national security chief told CNN.
The Nigerian terror group were taught how to carry out suicide attacks and build weaponry in Al Shabaab training camps, said General Abdirahman Sheikh Issa Mohamed.
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Mohamed, who is the national security adviser to Somalia’s president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, said that Boko Haram members were trained in the country between 2010 and 2012 in south central Somalia, areas previously controlled by Al-Shabaab.
He added that he believed the Al-Shabaab and Boko Haram operatives are still “sharing tactical operational skills,” as well as “maintaining cyber and physical contact.”
Mohamed said the information had been shared with international partners, such as at the recent Munich Security conference in Germany, where the president of Somalia confirmed that Boko Haram and Al Shabaab had joined forces.
“We believe that the two violent extremist groups share more values and interest here in Africa than their mother group (ISIS and Al-Qaeda) would,” he added.