Al Shabab 101: What is the Somali terrorist group?

In Somalia, Al Shabab has called for a government that follows sharia, or Islamic law, and have conducted amputations for theft and stoning for adultery in what they claim is accordance with sharia. Yet the more hardline Sunni Islam prevalent in Saudi Arabia and favored by Al Shabab ideologues is alien to most Somalis, who favor a more tolerant Sufi-influenced culture, regional experts say. The invasions by Ethiopia, in 2006, and most recently, in 2011 by Kenyan forces, combined with repeated attacks by forces of the UN-backed transitional government, have helped weaken the group. But the group helped mastermind the July 2010 suicide bombings in Kampala, Uganda that killed 74. And repeated cross-border raids, plus the September 2013 attack on Kenya's Westgate mall, have left some wondering how weak the organization really is.