Al Shabab (previously) is an Al Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group whose use of child soldiers, brutal murder, and attacks targeted at civilians have allowed them to carve out a jihadi-controlled territory in Somalia.
In addition to the group's edicts against moderate forms of Islam and all forms of secularism, they have declared a ban on the use of plastic bags, which "pose a serious threat to the well-being of humans and animals alike," according to a communique published on Somalimemo.net, a semi-official state organ for the terrorist-controlled territory.
Mohammed Abdullaahi Ali, a medical student who lives in Mogadishu, the capital, was one of several Somalis who found the decision bizarre."I heard they banned plastic bags via social media," Mr. Ali said in an interview. "I see it as a good decision, but they must ask themselves: Why do they also ban humanitarian workers from operating in Shabab-controlled areas?"
He added, "I don't know why sanitation, and the health of the environment, is important but not the health workers."
Al Qaeda-Backed Terrorist Group Has a New Target: Plastic Bags [Rukmini Callimachi/NY Times]
(via Naked Capitalism)
