President Barack Obama is not just heading to his father's
homeland, but to a region that's a hotbed of terror.
Al-Shabaab militants in East Africa are now
posing new worries for the President's trip to Kenya this week. CNN has learned
that, in just the last week, the U.S. military has conducted nearly half a
dozen secret air strikes in Somalia against al Qaeda's Africa affiliate because
U.S. intelligence indicated an attack against Kenyan troops there was imminent,
according to defense officials.
The Pentagon
isn't saying much, but the strikes may be timed to the President's visit.
"This sends
a very clear message to Al-Shabaab not to try to attempt anything against the
President," says Seth Jones, a Rand Corporation analyst.
U.S. officials
do not believe Al-Shabaab can get anywhere near the President, but there are
others reasons to worry.
Jones suggested
that the group would look for more vulnerable targets to attack to show Kenyans
their government cannot keep them safe and to draw attention away from the
Obama visit.
"What's
most likely is not an attack against a U.S. government official like the
President, but an attack that happens while the President is there," he
said. "Security for the president is likely to be very significant and
that means what Al-Shabaab is
likely to do, based on what it has done very recently, is go for a soft
target."
That could
include shopping malls and schools, which the group has attacked in the past.
U.S. officials
told CNN that in recent days there is growing social media and Internet chatter
among the Somalia-based group about the President's visit.
"They all
know he is coming," one official with access to the latest intelligence
told CNN.
In addition, a
Kenyan flight bulletin outlining some details of the President's trip has been
released, including when airspace in Nairobi would be closed because of the
arrival and departure of Air Force One.
Such details are
usually kept secret for security reasons, but administration officials so far
are brushing off the publication of this information, saying there are no
public details about the President's trip that pose a risk to his security.
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