A Somali militant group with links to al-Qaida has claimed responsibility for the twin explosions that killed 74 people watching the World Cup final in Kampala last night, and has threatened to carry out attacks “against our enemy” wherever they are.

The blasts came two days after a commander with the group, al-Shabab, urged militants to attack sites in Uganda and Burundi, two countries that contribute troops to the African Union peacekeeping force in Somalia.

Al-Shabab, whose ranks are swelled by militant veterans of the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, has long threatened to strike beyond Somalia’s borders, but the bombings late on Sunday are the first time the group has done so.

“We will carry out attacks against our enemy wherever they are,” said Sheik Ali Mohamud Rage, a militant spokesman in Mogadishu. “No one will deter us from performing our Islamic duty.”

Continues: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/12/uganda-bombs-blasts-world-cup