Al-itihaad Al-islamiya [VERIFIED]

: The group is believed to have funded and sheltered early Al-Qaeda operatives, who used AIAI bases such as Ras Kiyemboni near the Kenyan border.

By the mid-1990s, AIAI was largely defeated as a unified military force by Ethiopian interventions, which wiped out its southern bases in 1996. However, the group did not disappear; its leadership and ideology evolved:

, successfully recruiting across widespread clan lines—a rarity in Somalia's fractious political landscape. 3. Militant Activities and Global Links