Somalia Seeks U.S. Help Against Al-Qaeda Rebels Aiding Iran

Here’s an ominous little piece of news that got drowned in all the flood coverage of Hurricane Harvey. It was uncovered by Fox News’ prodigious intelligence correspondent Catherine Herridge.

It’s a letter from the foreign minister of Somalia, Yusuf Garaad Omar, to the U.S. Ambassador there, Stephen Schwartz. It warns that an al Qaeda affiliate, al-Shabab, has captured central areas of Somalia, a semi-arid country on the Horn of Africa that’s about 90% the size of Texas with about 57% of its 28 million population.

Somalia and its capital Mogadishu is probably most familiar to Americans as the actual site of the book and movie, “Black Hawk Down” by Mark Bowden.

In central Somalia, the letter states, the chronic rebels of al-Shabab are cooperating with ISIS supporters to strip-mine surface deposits of triuranium octoxide, a compound of uranium which in its  most common form is yellowcake. The rebels are shipping the compound — wait for it — to Iran.

Triuranium octoxide is used in the process of producing enriched uranium, a critical component for both civil nuclear power generation and — are you still waiting? — military nuclear weapons.

Read more at Hot Air