FACTBOX-Somalia's al Shabaab rebels
Aug 26 (Reuters) - One of two French security advisers kidnapped by insurgents in Somalia last month escaped on Wednesday after killing three of his captors.
Gunmen seized the Frenchmen at a hotel in Mogadishu on July 14 and they fell into the hands of the al Shabaab group, which Washington describes as al Qaeda's proxy in the Horn of Africa state.
Here are some details about al Shabaab:
* WAGING WAR IN SOMALIA:
-- Al Shabaab, which means "Youth" in Arabic, is an al Qaeda-inspired militant group that has taken control of large areas of south and central Somalia. The Horn of Africa nation has been mired in anarchy since warlords toppled military dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
-- The interim government's attempts to restore central rule have largely been paralysed by infighting and the Islamist-led insurgency. Fighting has killed more than 18,000 people since the start of 2007 and has uprooted at least 1 million civilians. The chaos has also helped fuel kidnappings and piracy offshore.
-- Al Shabaab's hardline militia was initially part of the Somalia Islamic Courts Council (SICC) movement which pushed U.S.-backed warlords out of Mogadishu in June 2006 and then ruled for six months before Somali and Ethiopian forces ousted them.
* STRICT PRACTICES:
-- In June, al Shabaab officials in one of the group's Mogadishu strongholds ordered four teenagers to each have a hand and a leg cut off as punishments for robbery.
-- Al Shabaab's hardline interpretation of Islamic law has shocked many Somalis, who are traditionally more moderate Muslims. Some residents, however, give the insurgents credit for restoring order to the regions under their control.
* FOREIGN FIGHTERS:
-- The Somali government says hundreds of foreign fighters have joined the insurgency from countries including Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Gulf region and Western nations such as the United States and Britain. Some of the foreign jihadists have taken up leadership positions in militant groups including al Shabaab.
-- One American national of Somali origin was killed while fighting for al Shabaab in Mogadishu in July.
-- Also in July Australian police arrested four men linked to the group raising concerns it may be seeking targets outside Somalia.
