Somali leader vows to get rid of Al-Qaeda menace

Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, the Somali president on Wednesday vowed to rid the war-torn country of Al- Qaeda, just days after the local militant group said it merged with the global Jihadist network.“First and foremost we rely on Allah then on our people, and soldiers. We will count on our brothers and friends to fight them (Al-Qaeda) and cleanse Al-Qaeda from our country Somalia,” the Somali president told thousands flag waving Mogadishu residents. The resident chanted anti-Al-Qaeda slogans at the rally where top government officials attended and spoke about their determination to fight the radical group of Al-Shabaab.The Somali leader said his government recognizes Al-Shabaab as Al-Qaeda and will step up its campaign against the group which controls much of south and center of Somalia. “From today onwards there is not such thing as Al-Shabaab but just Al-Qaeda. As you know Al-Qaeda surveyed this country during the 1990s but they saw that this country will never accept Al-Qaeda,” the Somali leader said.