Mall of America named in al-Shabab video as possible target

Islamic Extremism

CORRECTION Al Shabab Shopping MallsShoppers enter the Mall of America Sunday Feb. 22, 2015 in Bloomington, Minn. A video purported to be by Somalia’s al-Qaida-linked rebel group al-Shabab urged Muslims to attack shopping malls in the U.S., Canada, Britain and other Western countries.(AP Photo/Star Tribune, Jerry Holt)

A video purported to be by Somalia’s al-Qaida-linked rebel group al-Shabab urged Muslims to attack shopping malls in the U.S., Canada, Britain, and other Western countries.

But U.S. authorities said there was “no credible” evidence suggesting a U.S. mall attack was in the works.

The threat by the al-Qaida affiliate came in the final minutes of a more than hour-long video released Saturday in which the extremists also warned Kenya of more attacks like the September 2013 assault on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi. 67 people were killed in that attack.

The masked narrator concluded by calling on Muslims to attack shopping malls, specifically naming the Mall of America in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, as well as the West Edmonton Mall in Canada, and the Westfield mall in Stratford, England. The authenticity of the video could not be immediately verified by The Associated Press.

The FBI and Department of Homeland Security provided local law enforcement agencies and private sector partners with “relevant information regarding the recent al-Shabab propaganda video,” DHS press secretary Marsha Catron said in a statement.

“However, we are not aware of any specific, credible plot against the Mall of America or any other domestic commercial shopping center,” Catron said.

Report from The Associated Press 


Dr. Daveed Gartenstein-Ross discusses al-Shabaab threats against Western malls

CCTV America interviewed Dr. Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies about al-Shabaab threats against Western malls.