By MAX DELANY and JASON STRAZIUSO (AP) – 1 hour ago
KAMPALA, Uganda — Somalia’s most dangerous al-Qaida-linked militant group claimed responsibility Monday for twin bombings in Uganda that killed 74 people watching the World Cup final on TV, saying the militants would carry out attacks “against out enemy” wherever they are.
Al-Shabab, whose ranks are swelled by militant veterans of the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, has long threatened to attack outside of Somalia’s borders, but the bombings late Sunday are the first time the group has done so.
“We will carry out attacks against our enemy wherever they are,” Rage said. “No one will deter us from performing our Islamic duty.”
The Somali militants appear to have attacked sites in Uganda because the country contributes troops to the African Union-led peacekeeping force that protects Somalia’s weak, U.N.-backed government.
The attacks outside the Somalia represent a dangerous new step in al-Shabab’s increasingly militant path.
The death toll in Sunday’s twin blasts rose to 74 on Monday, Ugandan officials said.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — A spokesman for the Somali militant group al-Shabab is claiming responsibility for the twin bombings in Uganda that killed 74 people.
Sheik Ali Mohamud Rage, a militant spokesman in Mogadishu, claimed responsibility.
Ugandan officials had suspected the Somali group of being behind the late Sunday attacks, which took place on two sites in the Ugandan capital as people watched the World Cup final.
The attacks are the first time that the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab has attacked sites outside Somalia.
