The step-grandmother of Barak Obama threatened by al-Qaeda
Chisinau / Moldova.ORG/ -- Barack Obama’s step-grandmother is being protected by armed police in Kenya after her life was threatened by al-Qaeda-linked terrorists in Africa.
Security is said to have been enhanced in response to a specific threat from Al Shabaab, Somali Islamists linked to al-Qaeda, following the death of Osama bin Laden.
One police chief reportedly told ABC News that he now had enough officers “to patrol the entire village”.
Mrs. Obama, whose full name is Sarah Anyango Obama, is believed to have been born in 1922, and is known by the president as Granny Sarah, she is a non-practicing Muslim.
Al Shabaab-is an insurgency that has been at war with Somalia’s western-backed government for several years.
One of its most prominent members is Omar Hammami, who is also known as Abu Mansur al-Amriki or The American, and produces pro-jihadist rap music.
Mr. Obama met his grandmother during his first visit to Kenya, at the age of 27. He is believed to have visited twice since then. Mrs. Obama is thought to have visited the US twice.
Reporters who visited Mrs. Obama in the approach to the election discovered she had a photo of herself and a young Mr. Obama on display in her home.
She also had a poster for his first Senatorial election campaign, on which he had written “Habariuku Mama Sarah”, which is Swahili for “Hello Granny Sarah”.
Last week Mohamed Kalaf, a senior Al-Shabaab commander, vowed revenge against the US following the death of bin Laden. “We shall make them regret”, he told a press conference in Mogadishu.
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