Al-Shabab ‘bans’ tree-cutting — but not to save the environment

FILE - A Kenyan army helicopter flies over forest near Kismayo, Somalia, on Oct. 2, 2012, where allied African troops were fighting al-Shabab Islamist rebels. Al-Shabab limits tree cutting in areas of Somalia it controls, in part to hide it from aerial attack.

The al-Shabab militant group in Somalia has been limiting the extent of tree cutting in the areas under its control for several years. The militant group has also burned down trucks carrying charcoal and arrested workers involved in the business.