MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Jihadist fighters from the Mali-based militant group al-Mourabitoun on Thursday pledged allegiance to the Islamic State movement, in what is the most recent addition to ISIL forces in Africa, Mauritanian news outlet Al-Akhbar reported.
A spokesman for the al-Qaeda affiliated group, which translates as the Sentinels, reportedly sent a recording to Al-Akhbar where he said al-Mourabitoun had pledged loyalty to ISIL leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi in a bid to put an end to internal disputes in the country.
In April, Nigeria's notorious Boko Haram terrorist group also pledged allegiance to the Sunni ISIL movement and changed its name to Islamic State's West Africa Province (ISWAP).
Islamic State has been rallying Islamists from across the region under its banners since it rose to prominence in Iraq and Syria in summer 2014. It now runs cells in North Africa, Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
