... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda...
jihadists have called on southeast Asia's Moslems to come to the aid of Burmese migrants persecuted "at the hands of the savage Buddhists".
In a rare statement on an issue outside of the Horn of Africa region, the al-Qaeda-affiliated Somali jihadist group told Moslems in Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand to "take the pivotal role in alleviating the suffering of the Moslems in Myanmar (Burma)".
"At the hands of the savage Buddhists, thousands of Moslems, including many women and kiddies, have fled their homes and are desperately trying to reach the shores of safety, their only crime being their adherence to Islam," the Islamist group said.
"Take matters into your own hands, help your Moslem brothers and know that this is a religious obligation upon you for which you will be held fully accountable in front of Allah on the day of judgement".
"Welcome them, open your hearts to them before you open your homes and give shelter to the fleeing Moslems. Mobilise men, money and resources to defend the honour of the persecuted Moslems and repel the savage attacks of the polytheists."
The statement came as Indonesia and Malaysia agreed to provide "temporary shelter" to thousands of migrants stranded at sea, on condition that the international community resettles them within a year.
As a further 400 starving migrants arrived in Indonesia after being rescued by local fishermen, the foreign ministers of Indonesia and Malaysia said they had reached the agreement, which marks the first step towards ending a regional crisis that has left the ocean scattered with overcrowded boats labelled "floating coffins".
Anifah Aman, Malaysia's foreign minister, said the two countries "agreed to provide them temporary shelter provided that the resettlement and repatriation process will be done in one year by the international community".