American militant in Somalia releases martyr's rap

JASON STRAZIUSO Yahoo! News 04/12/2011 18:01

An American from Alabama who joined Somalia's most dangerous militant group has released two new rap songs on the Internet, a possible indication that he is still alive after rumors circulated of his death during heavy fighting in Mogadishu.

Omar Hammami, who grew up in the middle-class town of Daphne, Alabama, joined the al-Qaida-linked Somali militants in 2007 while he was in his early 20s, becoming the most high-profile American member of al-Shabab. He took the nom de guerre of Abu Mansur al-Amriki, or "the American."

A jihadist website posted two songs over the weekend in which Hammami raps that he wants to die a martyr. He cites previous militant leaders killed by U.S. military action like Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the former leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, and Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a militant killed in a U.S. commando raid in rural southern Somalia in September 2009.

The two songs are titled "Send Me a Cruise (missile)" and "Make Jihad With Me."

Last month Somalia's defense minister told The Associated Press that intelligence reports indicated that Hammami may have been killed during an anti-insurgent offensive. But the minister said the reports weren't confirmed.

Though Hammami appears to still be alive, his lyrics yearn for death.

Source

Add your comment Send Print Report