al-Shabab got it for cheap, according to a deserter: So when a recruiter from Al Shabab (whose name means “the youth” in Arabic) gave him $400 and the promise of a regular salary, Dahir joined willingly. He knew that even if he didn’t survive the war, his family would have a better chance to ward [...]

Jeff Gettleman has a good piece in the Times about the decline in popularity of al-Shebab now that Somalis get a taste of the viciousness of that organization. I am not going to presume to have any idea how representative the sample of Jeff’s piece is, as he’s in Mogadishu and I’m not. But I [...]