Similarities of War on Somalia and Iraq

November 14, 2007

There are striking similarities between the U.S. war on Iraq and the U.S. encouraged proxy war Ethiopia wages against Somalia. The escalation of both also follow a likewise scheme.

Last December I wrote about the U.S. directed Ethiopian invasion of Somalia:

Are there any doubts that this successful U.S. intervention will follow just the same track the one in Iraq took?

There will be less dead U.S. GI’s in this war – for now at least – but the track will be essentially the same as the war took in Iraq. The travel down the road to hell will be much faster though as the knowledge that had been developed bit by bit by the resistance in Iraq over the last three years will immediately be implemented in Somalia.

(Arab News has an informative piece on the colonial background of the conflict. In the open threads here commentator b real thankfully keeps us updated on what is happening in Mogadishu and other places in Africa.)

Confirming b real‘s regular observations and my year old prediction McClatchy recapitulates:

[T]he Ethiopians have faced stubborn resistance from fighters loyal to the Islamists, who’ve proved adept at ambushes and remote-controlled bombings.

Ethiopia’s campaign has become an open-ended military intervention besieged by a stubborn insurgency, and Ethiopians recently responded by sending in a surge of reinforcement troops. Human rights groups charge that the Ethiopian forces are carelessly killing civilians.

Sounds familar? The Ethiopian tactics are exactly the same the U.S. uses in Iraq. The resistance in Somalia is copying Iraqi resistance tactics. Mogadishu is now another Fallujah.

And just like Cheney is itching to escalate the war on Iraq by bombing Iran, the Ethiopian dictator Meles wants to escalate his war on Somalia by attacking Eritrea. The U.S., in the person of the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer, is confirmed (by John Bolton – none less) to be the one directing that coming war (rec. read):

She has actively been on a personal crusade to orchestrate an international demonization of the Eritrean leader and his regime as part of a coordinated effort to facilitate aggression. In Ms. Frazer’s vernacular, the Eritrean regime is a sponsor of transnational terrorism, and the answer must be “regime change”.

While the Ethiopian dictator Meles wants to regain the ‘defector province’ of Eritrea, the U.S. wants to get rid of an Eritrean regime reluctant to follow its dictate while being friendly with China. Under the ‘excuse’ of fighting ‘terrorism’, the U.S. urges Addis Ababa to ignore international law:

There should be no mistake that the reason for another war between Eritrea and Ethiopia is not that Eritrea has suddenly become a state sponsor of transnational terrorism, but the fact that Ethiopia desperately needs a pretext to create a material foundation for its de facto rejection of the Hague decision on the border issue.
[…]
The difficulty for both the Bush Administration and Meles is the fact that both international law and the practice of international diplomacy support Eritrea’s position.

The authors quoted above are not friends of the rulers in Eritrea. But just like the opposition in Iran, they abhor outside interference and the always available fake opposition figures who collaborate with foreign interests:

We, too, desperately yearn for regime change in Eritrea, but not one initiated, financed and directed by outside forces with the so-called Eritrean opposition providing enabling services.
[…]
What Eritrea desperately yearns for today are not neo Challabists who ignominiously seek power for its own sake on the back of foreign sponsors, but principled patriots who accept the Weberian synthesis of visionary ethics and the ethics of responsibility to provide authentic national leadership.
[…]
Ironically, Meles’s [Ethiopia] refusal to abide by the Hague verdict and America’s counter-productive meddling in the matter has contributed to the longevity of the Isaias [Eritrea] regime.

The last statement is again a parallel to what is happening in Iran. The current Iranian president Ahmedinejad would not have the support he has, if the U.S. would not be as aggressive against Iran as it is.

But like in Iran the aim is not merely the change of a ruler or the erection of a real democratic government. The U.S. wishes total control via ‘regime change’ and installation of ‘friendly regimes’ – pseudo democratic or not even that.

While in Iraq and on Iran the U.S. is investing itself by its own military means, on Somalia and Eritrea the Ethiopian government is the willing proxy. The slaughter and the outcome though, do not differ.

(This map might help you to digest the above. Note how a east-west line from the Red Sea through Eritrea and Ethiopia might open access to rich oil fields in south Sudan while bypassing Khartoum … that could be another motive for this ‘intervention’ …)

Posted by b on November 14, 2007 at 19:13 UTC | Permalink

Comments

too short on time to comment lucidly right now, so here are some more background links
on comparisons w/ iraq
jan 03: The Making of Another Iraq

By taking on the ICU in order to find a handful of suspected terrorists in its midst, Washington was imprudently “looking to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut,” as an unnamed Western diplomat aptly put it. The same diplomat added that “even if they do get their six or so ‘high-value’ terror targets they will pay for it in frankly hundreds of people being converted to the cause.” Similarly, U.S. intervention in Iraq, presented as a way to combat terrorism, actually served as a recruitment opportunity for al-Qaida.
“I think the U.S. government panicked. They saw Islamic group; they said, Taliban is coming,” says Herman Cohen, former assistant secretary of State for African affairs. As with Iraq, Washington fell for politicized intelligence, probably from Ethiopia, which was eager to enlist U.S. assistance to deal with a potential security threat of its own. By giving tacit support to Ethiopia and because of its ill-advised preference for military solutions over diplomatic negotiations, Washington is helping to remake Somali in the image of Iraq.

that might give ethiopian too much credit, so here’s another good backgrounder
War Crimes in Somalia, Blame the White House

Complicity is not too strong a word. In fact, the Bush administration has been overseeing Somalian affairs since at least early 2006. In June 2006, a coalition of warlords sought to enter and take Mogadishu – causing a series of battles in which hundreds died. As it turned out, and popular rumor is backed up by the majority of regional analysts, the so-called Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism was cobbled together by the CIA and Ethiopia.
When that failed, rumors began emerging from Uganda and Baidoa, the only city controlled by the transitional government of Somalia. The Observer reported in summer 2006 that after the APCRT debacle, private military firms based in Virginia had been linking up the Ugandan government with Addis Ababa and the TG for a renewed assault on Mogadishu, which was by then controlled by the Islamic Courts Union. Letters from the employees of Select Armor and ATS Tactical discussed how their forces could avoid “another Dien Bien Phu” in Somalia. This presumably meant how they could draw the forces of the ICU into open confrontation without losing their supply lines, as the French did in Indochina.
By now, several hundred Ethiopian troops were in Baidoa, protecting the TG, and the presence of these forces – compounded by a baffling UN report which attempted to link the Islamic Courts with Hezbollah and Iranian uranium deals – meant that peace talks floundered. The Courts would not negotiate with the TG while it was a tool of the Ethiopians.
Meanwhile, with the collapse of the CIA backed warlords and the strategic retreat of the TG to Baidoa, the Islamic Courts were free to expand into other areas of Somalia, such as the southern port of Kismayo, which they captured easily, yet by expanding they gave the impression of launching a military conquest. This allowed Ethiopian president Meles Zenawi to pose as threatened by the Courts, which he duly did, using the language of Muslim-Christian conflict to arouse American support.
But the November 2006 UN report on the arms embargo on Somalia proved the final nail in the Islamist coffin. It was this report, more than anything else, which doomed the Courts to becoming another front in the War on Terror and another one launched under cover of a blitzkrieg of lies.
The report was packed with exotic fabrications, with the transparent intention of priming Somalia for a UN approved attack.

the mcclatchy article’s figures — “More than 114,000 people fled their homes over the past two weeks, according to United Nations estimates released on Friday” — on IDPs in modagishu are out-of-date as the UN yesterday increased the number to “an estimated 173,000”
and salim lone on democracynow wednesday morning (amy fails to cite yesterdays’ UN figures as well, telling her audience that “The UN estimates 100,000 people have left Mogadishu in the last two weeks”. tsk tsk.)
Former UN Spokesperson Salim Lone: International Community Turning Blind Eye to Worsening Somalia Crisis

this government, that had been put in there with Western support, it’s comprehensively been defeated. It is only surviving by intimidating and killing scores and scores of people. 400,000 refugees, displaced people, in the last fifteen years, the worst years everybody thought, and then 450,000 more refugees in the last few months, and this as a result of a war waged by the United States and Ethiopia.
And increasingly — on a smaller scale, obviously, but increasingly — the situation is beginning to resemble Iraq. You mentioned the soldier dragged through the streets, desecrated, and the resulting massacre of so many innocent people, including an entire family of ten people, although one child is gravely injured but not dead. The same thing happened in Fallujah, that one terrible desecration by a few militants led to the killing of hundreds. We have, as in Iraq, in Somalia now IEDs. We have mortar rounds being launched on government and other forces. And we have mass civilian casualties. It’s only these mass suicide bombings that are to come.
And the world is completely silent. The government has tried everything, from the bombing of civilians in hospitals, killing journalists — I think it should be clear: this government has killed journalists, not that ten journalists have died. Some of them, or even many of them, have actually been killed by the government. And yesterday, it closed the largest independent media house in Somalia, Shabelle Networks. So this situation has to be arrested somehow, and it can only be arrested by the international community.

three independent radio stations have been closed so far this week making it harder for local populations to get information and for international audiences to keep up on what’s really happening there.
Government shuts down media groups

The closure of the two media houses came a day after one of the biggest media house in Mogadishu, the Shabelle Media Network, was ordered to shut down.
“There was no official explanation as to why we were closed down or the length of the shutdown,” Adan said.
Madobe Nuunow Mohamed, the TFG information minister, confirmed the closures and said they were carried out “on the orders of the National Security Committee”.
Mohamed said the stations had been “carrying false reports and misrepresenting the activities of the security forces”.
A local journalist told IRIN that the government was “at war with the independent media”.
“They are getting more and more sensitive to any reports from Mogadishu and what is happening there,” he said. “I think they [the government] doesn’t want the world to know about the suffering in Mogadishu and so would rather close down all private media or force them to report only pro-government news.”
He said that only three independent radio stations remained on air and “it is just a matter of time before they are also shut down”.

more updates later

Posted by: b real | Nov 14 2007 20:53 utc | 1

Somalia also has parts that are similar to the Kurdish area in northern Iraq. Somaliland and Puntland broke out in the 90’ies, both has been reported to be subsidised by Ethiopia. They have also fought internally. To see the areas this wikipedia map describes the situation as of may.
Meles and Isaias uses each other as the scary bogeyman, playing the nationalist card. They were allied when they were fighting the Mengistu government of Ethiopia as leaders of the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (now the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front) and the Eritrean People’s Liberation Front (now the People’s Front for Democracy and Justice). However as is the case the powerhungry people they soon fell apart. Might also have something to do with their inability in governing anything that is not a war. Both tried to get on the US good side in 2001 but it was Meles that drew the longer straw and Isaias had to settle for China as sponsor.

Posted by: a swedish kind of death | Nov 14 2007 22:59 utc | 2

Ethiopia has a lobby. An NYT op-ed by a Brookings “scholar” and former ambassador to Ethiopia : Don’t Turn on Ethiopia

A new war in the Horn of Africa would destabilize the region and bolster radical Islam’s push to build a Muslim caliphate.
…
Eritrea demands that the border be marked exactly as determined five years ago. But this places some Muslim and Christian villages on what they consider to be the wrong side of the border, cuts through others and splices certain roads several times. The United States should press both governments to let people who live on the border help reach a mutual agreement on the final boundary.
Ethiopia is a nation where 77 million Orthodox Christians and Muslims live in peace, engaged in building a democracy while besieged from within and without by enemies of democracy. Congress should put aside its bill and instead use creative diplomacy to deal with the combined threat of insurgency and war.

What a stupid argument. Some “Muslim and Christian villages on what they consider to be the wrong side of the border” so the border should be moved. At the same time they laud “Christians and Muslims live in peace” in Ethiopia.
What is it? And Meles builds “democracy”???

Posted by: b | Nov 15 2007 9:15 utc | 3

Ethiopia, though it was never actually colonized, suffers greatly from the arbitrary imposition of colonial boundaries that included British Somaliland. Zenawi does not care about Christian vs. Muslim so much as the US asked him to help out in Somalia so he did. It helps publicly to say it is Christian vs. extremist Muslims, because a fight cast in those terms the American peoples’ sympathies and support because of September 11th. Ethiopia is a the sole Christian nation in that region, surrounded by predominantly Muslim nations, but those Huntington theories are generally rejected by scholars.
Zenawi himself courts US favor so he can continue to consolidate power in the Tigray administration while oppressing the Oromo and the people of the Gambella region, both of which have oil and gold he wants to exploit. The US has CIA rendition bases in Ethiopia, and at least 3 known military bases there and is a strategic launchpad next to Somalia and Sudan. Moreover, the 5th Special Forces Group was training the Ethopian military that is active in Somalia and is killing Oromo civilians in Ethiopia. The Defense Attache in Addis has a history of passing military intelligence and securing arms and training for client regimes in Africa.
It is true that Ethiopia has hired PR firms and their embassy is very active in the United States on their behalf. When the State Department was holding hearings on a bill to pass sanctions on Ethiopia, a delgation of Embassy officials appeared at every press conference to heckle anyone asking questions critical of the Ethiopian Government. Notice in the above article how Mr. Cohen threw the blame back at the Ethiopian Government in case the situation goes sour. Now the clan infighting in Somalia has resurfaced full force.
Pres. Yusuf is consoldating power along clan lines and forced Prime Minister Gedi out. I have a feeling he won’t be going quietly…he may decide to be active behind the scenes. If the struggle interferes with international interests in the region, they will have to take sides and choose between Gedi and Yusuf.
Meanwhile covert forces are trying to incorporate British Somaliland into Somalia and gain independence so the oil concessions can be worked. The Australians and Canadians are already there and Pres. Yusuf is from Puntland, the semiautonomous region adjacent to British Somaliland. Puntland forces have fought fiercely with Somaliland recently….

Posted by: Dave B. | Nov 15 2007 19:01 utc | 4

Thanks Dave – really interesting information and you seem to have some insight. Additional links would be welcome.
Have you read b real‘s Africom series on this site?
Please add to it.

Posted by: b | Nov 15 2007 19:33 utc | 5

Recent rumors about Ethiopia invading Eritrea have been exaggerated by the Eritrean side – at least according to an Eritrean diaspora based opposition website that is generally considered reliable.
More Reasons to Doubt Eritrea’s Drumbeat of War
Yet – at the same time an Ethio-Eritrea war is being fought in a proxy fashion in Somalia.
Somali’s Conflict
The hostilities between the Zenawi and Afeworki administrations over the peace plan have found a new forum – Somalia.
It is perhaps instructive to remember that the current rulers of Ethiopia and Eritrea, whilst leading insurgent movements against a one-party military regime in Ethiopia during the 1980s were at times based in Somalia and gained support from some Somali’s … there has been a general shock at the show of barbarity by the Ethiopian ruler, Meles, in the current occupation of Somalia.
So it makes sense when the Eritrean President claims that “support” or at least relations with Somalians are ‘historical’:
Tension in the region reached fever pitch after Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki pledged support for the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia (ARS), formed in Asmara by Somali opposition figures and militant members of the Islamic court.
“The Eritrean people’s support to Somalis is consistent and historical, as well as a legal and moral obligation,” Afeworki said in an interview.
As a result Washington:
is concerned about Eritrea’s support for al Qaeda-linked Somali Islamist militants, it is not clear how it intends to handle Ethiopia’s governance record.
and in actions similar to decisions regarding the current despotic ’emergency rule’ in Pakistan – Washington has
passed the Ethiopian Democracy and Accountability Act, which threatens the country with security aid cuts should it fail to make positive domestic democratic changes. Yet Addis Ababa is Washington’s major counter-terrorism partner in the Horn and has troops in Mogadishu.
Just to go back about the “terrorist” links that the Islamic Courts Union are said to have
The Islamic courts emerged in the early 1990s as a response to the need for law and order in Somalia…The courts formed a non-warlord controlled and pan-Hawiye military force. As William Church, the director of the Great Lakes Centre for Strategic Studies, observes, this development led America’s CIA to support the anti-ICU warlords organised as the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism (ARPCT).
The major decision to attack the courts came when:
The courts captured Mogadishu and stabilised the city. They removed road blocks, cleared piles of rubbish and even re-opened Mogadishu’s main airport and seaport for the first time in a decade. To the consternation of the international community, the ICU was slowly gaining legitimacy.
Ethiopia was unleashed and is now stuck without the chance of leaving anytime soon within a year or two.
In the mean time after this weeks Ethiopian offensive the regrouped ICU is claming that a SURGE will do in the Ethiopian occupation forces.
Somalia’s opposition leaders are predicting that a further surge in Islamist-led insurgency could defeat Ethiopian troops. “The liberation forces are gaining strength day after day,” says Zakariya Mahamud Abdi, spokesman for a congress in Eritrea that has gathered Islamist leaders, exiled lawmakers and diaspora representatives.

Posted by: BenIAM | Nov 16 2007 3:36 utc | 6

Question for some of you bloggers who contribute aesthetically pleasing comments – how do I indent ? I see no tag for that. Thanks.

Posted by: BenIAM | Nov 16 2007 3:39 utc | 7

Daniel Volman has a decent article on Africom Dangers Africa
that summarizes the reasons why it is being established now:
1.Support Proxy Regimes
2.China
Shout out to b-real for calling Meles out on supporting Africom. It seem’s Liberea and Ethiopia are among the few to vocally support Africom.
In a blog contribution Wandia Njoya “outs” both countries.
The interesting portion of her article
Africom The Poisonous Fruit of the Industrial Complex identifies Africom’s danger as:
It is in this language of “poverty-speak,” characteristic of the Mercy Industrial Complex, that lies the greatest threat to African peace, security and dignity that is now posed by Africom.
It is the notion that african’s need redemption that is a constant background for the RIGHT of western powers to interven as they see fit. That is the bases for the observation that Africom people and US political attaches’ are arrogant – it is less arrogance than it is about a matter of fact “adult to child” type of relationship where Africa is the dark child.
I think b- real’s trilogy on Africom has not only been ahead of the curve but much more detailed. I vote to get b-real’s Africom Trilogy published in a journal with a wide African readership, Review of African Political Economy. What say you??
We can say it comes from the school of hard-knocks at MoA.

Posted by: BenIAM | Nov 16 2007 4:03 utc | 8

Ben, to indent you can use the blockquote tag above and below your content:
<blockquote>

and your text is set a little smaller and indented left and right. This may look a little different depending on what browser is being used, but it is an effective way to quote text.

</blockquote>
Some people put the quote in <i>italics</i> instead.
Hope this helps.

Posted by: jonku | Nov 16 2007 4:52 utc | 9

@4
Ethiopia is a the sole Christian nation in that region
Ethiopia may possibly be 60:40 Christian:Muslim. Or it could be the other way round.

Posted by: jony_b_cool | Nov 16 2007 5:12 utc | 10

@8
Wandia Njoya says it all. Her account of the disorder prevalent in how Western/Eurocentric (Blacks & Whites) intellect perceives Africa is pretty complete.

Posted by: jony_b_cool | Nov 16 2007 5:50 utc | 11

that “war clouds” article was pretty good. frazer is good in the sense that she’s so inept at diplomacy & transparent in her objectives she makes it easier to point out how dangerous/reckless u.s. africa policy is becoming in establishing outposts of tyranny across the continent.
only thing the authors of that piece should have mentioned was the main reason isais has little tolerance for the un & international powers — being ignored & screwed over for so long by them during the 30-yr war for independence. not making excuses for him, just pointing out that the context is important for understanding why he didn’t kowtow to particular u.n. demands.
the house subcommittee meeting mentioned was very interesting, primarily for the testy exchanges between chairman payne & frazer. the webcast is still up & that part occurs in the first panel during the Q&A — see Thursday, August 02, 2007 -Africa Command: Opportunity for Enhanced Engagement or the Militarization of U.S.-Africa Relations? if you’re interested. nothing spectacular, but you can watch frazer read directly her entire prepared stmt (rather than speak as if she has a command of the subject) and then lie/spin/obfuscate/engage in sophistry a lot in response to questions as payne takes her to task for it. nice second panel too, except for pham at the end.
one thing to keep an eye on w/ ethiopia & meles is their growing relations w/ china. right now china has the main exploration contracts in the ogaden & has also been increasing economic support, probably to keep those extraction deals lined up. one pundit i read opined that meles is playing the u.s. right now & will do a 180 turn to china if the u.s. puts pressure on him to lay off the opposition & his human rights abuses. sorta like the cold-war switcheroo when ethiopia dropped the west for the eastern bloc. not saying it’s likely to happen, but meles is crafty & it gives him extra leverage to get his way.
there’s so much going on in the horn right now, it’s almost overwhelming to try to follow it closely. the devastation in somalia is esp painful to watch, having seen it coming & yet nobody outside somalia seems to care. you may recall that somalia was one of the countries on the short list of seven countries targeted for regime change that wes clark was talking about a few years back.
the events in the north of somalia are ratcheting up, as well. as mentioned above, yusuf is consolidating his power & looking to bring puntland back into the national fold while breaking somaliland. ethiopia might get permanent access to the sea somewhere along there in the process.
two analyses on that part of somalia are:
michael weinstein at PINR
Somaliland Moves to Close its Borders and is Caught in a Web of Conflict
markus hoehne at SSRC
Puntland and Somaliland Clashing in Northern Somalia: Who Cuts the Gordian Knot?
the u.s. agreed to let prez yusuf finally boot PM gedi (mostly over those disputes on oil contracts that we followed during the summer, though gedi was also reportedly embezzling some serious grip) & the day that the heavy fighting resumed last week, yusuf was safely in kenya meeting w/ frazer & un representatives to negotiate for a replacement. haven’t come across any english-language coverage yet so i have no idea what transpired in those talks. as pointed out here, somali media is asserting that the u.s. is calling the shots on nominees, but no specific names have been thrown out AFAIK.
lots going on all over africa right now. and, re my rpt on AFRICOM, it’s troubling to see more of what i was foretelling continue to materialize.
i’ve been way short on time the past couple of days to follow it closely, but negroponte & frazer were in nigeria the other day where negroponte reportedly did most of the talking, after which there were press rpts that nigeria will be sending 700 troops to somalia soon. i’ll believe that when i see it, but negroponte also pushed the official AFRICOM narrative & offered to help settle things in the delta. still have to wait & see how that visit played out.
but at the same time, nigeria’s SSS detained a number of people of whom they told the media some were alleged AQ affiliates & were planning to bomb western targets in the country — bags of fertilizer & all that. of course some media picked up the sensational story & ran w/ it while others expressed great skepticism over the claims & timing, which boosters western calls for increased military operations in the gulf. there were denials from muslim officials in nigeria that AQ or other transnational extremists were in the are & there has not been an int’l terrorist incident in nigeria so far according to a scholarly book on the history of terrorism that i read awhile back. we’ll probably read in the next weeks that the allegations were premature & the SSS was overzealous in their arrests if it plays out like according to the pattern these type of arrests for terrorists conspiracies have taken across the rest of the world.
also, MEND has been back in action, bombing pipelines & attacking platforms. saw the other day where they have a new shoulder patch to complement their militant garb.
but MEND haven’t even come close to killing a small fraction of the number that the nigerian police have, according to this reuters rpt
Nigeria police kill 785 robber suspects in 90 days

ABUJA (Reuters) – Nigerian police have killed 785 suspected armed robbers in the past three months and lost 62 of their own men, the national chief of police was reported as saying on Thursday.
Human rights groups and U.N. experts have accused Nigerian police of killing robbery suspects instead of arresting them and in some cases using the “armed robber” label as a pretext to kill innocent people who cross them.
Mike Okiro, the acting inspector general of police, was reported in Nigerian newspapers as saying that during his first 90 days in office, police had arrested almost 1,600 suspected armed robbers and killed another 785.
The figures suggest Nigerian police are killing people at a similar pace as in 2003, when they reported shooting dead 3,100 robbery suspects in a year.
…
Last year, another U.N. rapporteur said police also routinely torture those in detention by beating them or shooting them in the legs and then letting their wounds fester.
These experts, as well as campaign groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have said police enjoy complete immunity for their actions while suspects are deprived of basic rights such as the right to face trial.
The majority of inmates in Nigerian prisons have never been convicted of a crime.

and, another reuters article tonite. this one lets OPIC decry the chinese for getting the economic advantage in africa by not upholding the transparent support for good governance the way that the good ole’ usa does. cough … meles … cough … kigame … cough … museveni … cough
US playing “catch-up” on Africa investment – OPIC

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – United States companies were playing “catch-up” after a sharp rise in investment into Africa by China, a top U.S. official said on Thursday.
“I think there is a lack of information about the quality of opportunities and potential that continues to exist (in Africa) within the American business community,” said Robert Mosbacher, President of the U.S.’s Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC).
“I think there is a bit of catch-up going on,” he told reporters at a U.S.-Africa investment summit.
OPIC is a U.S. government agency operating in 140 countries that promotes and helps finance private sector investments outside the United States.
Total foreign direct investment into Africa was $38.8 billion in 2006, with Nigeria and Egypt making up the biggest shares, according to data from UNCTAD, the United Nations’ trade and development agency.
China’s share of the investment has risen sharply, with it offering billions of dollars in loans and for projects, largely to win resources to help feed its booming economy, and boost its international presence.
The bulk of investment by U.S. companies has been in oil, while China has diversified its interests from resources to other sectors including banking.
…
But critics have raised questions over China’s human rights record and what they say is the lack of transparency in some of the deals with African countries.
Mosbacher said Chinese investments often merely continued poor governance.
“I am concerned that the massive investment (from China) is not as focused on priorities such as the rule of law, enforceability of contracts, transparency and accountability as the United States and Europe are,” he said.
“In fact, in some cases, I think it perpetuates bad governance.”

“bad” meaning, of course, “not in our orbit or accountable to us”
—
BenIAM – use the

tag (and the preview button is always recommended)

Posted by: b real | Nov 16 2007 7:25 utc | 12

whoops! the preview converted the entities — should read
<blockquote> tag

Posted by: b real | Nov 16 2007 7:27 utc | 13

only have time right now for a drive-by link drop
afp: European parliament calls for war crimes probe in Somalia

NAIROBI (AFP) — European deputies called Thursday for an independent probe into war crimes and rights violations in the Somali capital, where the government is battling rebels, a statement said Thursday.
The resolution, adopted by the European Parliament, “strongly condemns the serious violations of human rights committed by all parties to the conflict”.
It called for “an independent panel to investigate war crimes and human rights violations.”
The resolution also called for an immediate ceasefire and in particular an end to indiscriminate attacks on civilians.

Dangerous Times for Africa

Akwe Amosu is Senior Policy Analyst for Africa at the Washington Office of the Open Society Policy Center. This essay is drawn from her remarks at the 50th Anniversary Meeting of the African Studies Association, held recently in New York.

no comment right now on her focus on restoring credibility to u.s. africa policy, but there are some good points & interesting links embedded.
one of which covers the u.s. military’s doctrine of “phase zero”, which has been pointed out here previously
Phase Zero: The Pentagon’s latest big idea

A new term has entered the national security lexicon, courtesy of the Pentagon. It’s “Phase Zero.” And it has some potentially troubling implications for U.S. foreign and development policy, particularly in Africa. Unfortunately, the concept isn’t getting the attention that it deserves.
The Defense Department (DoD) spends countless hours drafting plans for potential wars. Each plan outlines specific missions and military requirements for discrete phases of war, from the run-up to hostilities (Phase 1), to the onset of military action (Phase 2), to major combat (Phase 3), to “post-conflict” stabilization (Phase 4), and then to the shift to civilian control (Phase 5).
More recently, the Pentagon got the idea that greater military attention to pre-conflict situations-preventive action-could pay huge dividends, by making it unnecessary to use U.S. troops around the world.
That’s where Phase Zero comes in. It implies that America’s far-flung Regional Combatant Commands have a new military mission-eliminating the roots of instability and terrorism in the world’s most dysfunctional countries.
The rationale for this new mission was spelled out in the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review. The QDR argues that victory in the “long war” against terrorism requires bolstering weak and failing states so they can better defend their borders and territories and eliminate “ungoverned spaces” hospitable to America’s enemies. Accordingly, the U.S. military should expand training of foreign security forces and cooperate with U.S. civilian agencies in engaging developing countries.
A centerpiece for this strategy is the newly announced Africa Command (AFRICOM), slated to begin operations in late 2008. According to the Pentagon, the command’s primary mission will be “shaping” activities designed to ameliorate troubling trends before they reach a crisis, rather than traditional operations involving the use of force. To this end, AFRICOM will be an inter-agency operation.

and in mogadishu, shabelle & the other independent media outlets there closed earlier in the week are still offline, which allows the govt & its backers to manufacture their own PR events, like the following effort to convince the world that somalis back their occupiers & imposed govt.
Somalis demonstrate in support of counterinsurgency operations

MOGADISHU, Somalia Nov 15 (Garowe Online) – Hundreds of Somalis packed into Conis Stadium in the country’s capital, Mogadishu, on Thursday in support of ongoing counterinsurgency operations that began last week.
The well-organized event attracted Mogadishu municipal government officials, the ambassadors of Yemen and Ethiopia, military officers from Somalia, Ethiopia and the African Union, and hundreds of government supporters.
Mogadishu Mayor Mohamed “Dheere” Omar told the huge rally that today is a “historic day” and praised Ethiopian troops for their “selfless” efforts to help secure peace in Somalia after 17 years of warfare.

last time the TFG held a mock rally, there was a true opposition rally the next day. problem now is that so many people have fled mogadishu…

Posted by: b real | Nov 16 2007 16:34 utc | 14

re mogadishu
Dispute over oil law sparked feud with Somalia president: Former PM

NAIROBI, Kenya Nov 16 (Garowe Online) – A months-long public dispute between interim Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf and his former Prime Minister, Prof. Ali Mohamed Gedi, started with disagreement over a proposed Petroleum Law, Gedi told Voice of America’s Somali Service program yesterday.
“The biggest issues that started the dispute [with President Yusuf] included the Petroleum Law, the path to reconciliation and constitutional disagreements,” the former prime minister said during the Thursday interview.

…
Gedi refused to accept the exploration deal Puntland signed with Range Resources, Ltd., on grounds that only the federal government has the constitutional authority to enter into agreements with foreign entities.
His refusal placed him in an odd position, with the Puntland leader Gen. Mohamud “Adde” Muse repeatedly threatening to withdraw support from the Gedi government if the federal parliament ratified the Petroleum Law.
Many believe that Gen. Muse enjoyed silent backing from President Yusuf, who ruled Puntland for six years before being elected the president of Somalia in 2004.

…
Another key issue that surrounded the Gedi-Yusuf dispute was government finances, with the former prime minister being accused of mismanaging donor funds.

from another report at garowe online today

Mayor Dheere’s trip to Baidoa is aimed at updating President Abdullahi Yusuf on the latest security sweep in Mogadishu, where more than 80 people were killed during Ethiopian-led counterinsurgency operations last week.
The mayor also hopes to have influence on President Yusuf’s selection for a new prime minister, after Prof. Ali Mohamed Gedi resigned from the post in October.
Mayor Mohamed Dheere has an individual he wants to be named as the new premier, inside sources tell Garowe Online. Many people remember how Dheere vacated his parliament seat in 2004 so that Gedi could be appointed as the country’s prime minister.
The mayor of Mogadishu, himself a former warlord, has close relations with both the Ethiopian government and is seen as a close ally of President Yusuf.

on the TFG’s crackdown on the media
President Abdullahi Yusuf Asked to Clarify Government’s Position On Press Freedom

Mogadishu mayor Mohamed Omar Habeb’s demands that news media and journalists must register with the authorities in order to be able work in the capital are a violation of the Transitional Federal Government’s undertakings, Reporters Without Borders said today in a letter to President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed.
Mayor Habeb said on 14 November that “all the media” including “representatives of foreign media” would have to register with the authorities “within 30 days in order to continue working in Mogadishu, otherwise they will not be authorised.”
“Aside from the fact that this decision has no legal basis and is not supported by any Somali law, it is not the mayor’s job to decide who is allowed to report the news and who is not,” the letter said. “It is one of the most elementary principles of journalism that the only persons who may assign work to journalists are their editors.”
The staff of four privately-owned radio stations (Radio Quran Karim, Radio Mogadishu, Voice of Democracy and Radio Somaliweyn), and one television station (London-based Universal TV), and five local reporters who are stringers for international news media (AFP, Reuters, Associated Press, BBC and VOA) are the only remaining journalists able to work in Mogadishu.

from another press release

The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) expresses its deep concern over the increasing dangers confronted by Somali journalists and the growing clampdown on the operations of the media in Mogadishu.

…
On 15 November 2007, three plain-clothes officers from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested freelance photojournalist Salah Mohammed Adde at a demonstration at Banadir Football Stadium in north Mogadishu organised by the Administration of Banadir Region. When arrested, Salah was taking pictures of the demonstrators, who were expressing support for security operations carried out by TFG forces with the backing of Ethiopian troops.

…
The motive behind the journalist’s arrest is unknown.

…
According to the records of the National Union of Somali Journalists, eight media employees have been killed so far this year, while 47 journalists and media assistants have been jailed because of their work. No crimes against journalists have been investigated and prosecuted, apart from the recent arrest of the killer of journalist Abdulkadir Mahad Moallim Kaskey, who was shot by clan militiamen in Baidoa.

…
NUSOJ backs the closed media houses in their refusal of the Mogadishu mayor’s calls to admit they have made mistakes in order to be allowed to resume operations.

bcc interview (via nazret) w/ ethiopian foreign minister seyoum mesfin vividly demonstrates the mendacity he, like meles, spews any time his mouth is open:

Zeinab Bedawi (ZB): Welcome Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin and thank you very much for joining me here today. Can I start by raising the issue of the 70 deaths that occurred when Ethiopia opened fire in a residential neighbourhood of Mogadishu. Was this a wise course of action?
Minister Seyoum (SM): Ethiopian and TFG troops and the Somali police have been extremely cautious to avoid collateral damage and of course we feel regret for the loss of civilian lives, but Al Shabaab ..
ZB: ..you mean the insurgents/terrorists?
SM: ..yes, they use women and children as human shields by pushing them forward.
ZB: So these killings were not in any way a reprisal for the very public mutilation of Ethiopian corpses that took place previously?
SM: No, no, no, not at all. Our army is very disciplined and they are there to do their duty. They have not gone there to drink milk but to help Somalia achieve peace and stability.
ZB: On the subject of Ethiopian troop numbers, how many are there in Somalia?
SM: It is difficult for me to say how many..
ZB: It always is difficult!
SM: It is difficult, but I can say at least that it is not in the tens of thousands as some media reports have claimed. It is less than this..
ZB: So it is in the thousands not the tens of thousands?
SM: Yes
ZB: And when will you leave, as you have been there since last December and many Somalis are hostile towards Ethiopia.
SM: This is not true
ZB: But it is well documented..
SM: It is not true, Al Shabaab has tried to stoke up animosity between Ethiopians and Somalis..
ZB: But there has been a history of rivalry between your two nations, you fought three wars..
SM: That is old baggage, it is history, we get on very well. Ethiopia acted on a request in writing from the TFG to come to its aid. The Somali people are generally better secured now.

how about some other opinions

Davide Bernocchi, executive director of Caritas Somalia, says that he fears that Somalia is moving inextricably toward a humanitarian catastrophe.
“It’s very frustrating because the security situation is so bad, aid agencies can’t help all those in need. The obstacles not only stem from the war situation itself but also from the predatory attitude of those for whom the displaced are either a lucrative business or nothing at all.

…
Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN special representative for Somalia, has said that the humanitarian situation in Somalia is the worst in Africa in terms of “food security, malnutrition, and all these issues. The current crisis in Mogadishu can only make it worse”.

Posted by: b real | Nov 17 2007 7:16 utc | 15

@b real – the foreign minister seyoum mesfin sounds like a Bush politician or U.S. army spokesperson. I believe I could find apropriate quotes to prove that …

Posted by: b | Nov 17 2007 8:22 utc | 16

something smells funky about this commentary on somalia by anna husarska, senior policy adviser at the International Rescue Committee.
Somalia: the hell that must not be ignored

Somalia’s internal conflict is propelled by a combustible mix of religion, politics and clan rivalry. Civilians are killed daily in Mogadishu, there are roadside bombs and mortar attacks, and politicians and journalists are targeted. Making matters worse, the country has suffered this year from both floods and drought.
This combination of insecurity and natural disasters has displaced huge numbers of people and caused suffering on a scale painful to behold. According to the most recent UN figures, 400,000 people, or roughly one-third of Mogadishu’s population, have fled the city.

while somalia’s internal conflict may indeed reflect those factors, it is external forces that have exacerbated & drive the current conflict and is responsible for those things that husarska points out.
and a november 16th UN OCHA situation report states that “more than half a million people have fled Mogadishu since February this year.”
back to the commentary

Since last December, Somalia has been in a de facto state of civil war. The secular government, supported by the UN, the EU and the US, with military reinforcements from Ethiopia, has been fighting insurgents from the Union of Islamic Courts, a group accused of harboring al-Qaeda terrorists whose leaders are supported by Eritrea.

the only parties making that accusation are the u.s. & ethiopian govts, along w/ the TFG, all of which are responsible for the military invasion of somalia nearly eleven month ago, which kicked off this conflict, which is not a civil war. according to u.s. military definitions, “there are five criteria for international recognition of this status: the contestants must control territory, have a functioning government, enjoy some foreign recognition, have identifiable regular armed forces, and engage in major military operations.”
the insurgency is comprised of multiple actors – remnants of the now defunct ICU, somalis defending their homeland from the u.s.-backed ethiopian occupiers, businessmen fighting against the imposed TFG, and so forth.
again, not an internal conflict. not a civil war.
back to the commentary

The lawlessness and absence of security makes finding a political solution almost impossible. When local elders and delegates wanted to assemble in Mogadishu for a reconciliation conference, security conditions forced them to postpone the conference for several months (though when they did meet, in big numbers and for a long time, they achieved no breakthrough).

the political solution is to pull the foreign actors out of there are let somalis determine their own legitimate representatives. period. the main factor in the country’s insecurity right now is that it is occupied by two of somalia’s biggest foes.
the sham national reconciliation conference was not taken seriously by most observers. it was not instigated by local elders “and delegates”; it was insisted upon by the u.s. to create the airs of legitimacy for yusuf’s TFG in a hostile situation. it was doomed from the gitgo, as was the formation of the TFG out of the processes that enabled it.
“big numbers” and “long time” are not the type of information one would expect out of a “senior policy adviser.” roughly a thousand delegates were reported in attendance. later reports also covered the frustrations of many of those delegates at not getting paid the money they had been promised for attending, nor reimbursed for the travel & lodging expenses. also, the conference was abruptly cut short once the focus started shifting away from the imposed focus on clan formulas to actual political solutions.
back to the commentary

Ignoring the situation in Somalia and not trying to reestablish law and order is not an option. The two main factions fighting in Mogadishu are backed respectively by Ethiopia and Eritrea.
Because those nations — among the poorest in Africa — have an unresolved border dispute that led to a 1998-2000 war in which tens of thousands died on both sides and as hostilities in the area continue, their involvement by proxy in the Somali civil war may have grave implications for the entire Horn of Africa.

unfortunately, “ignoring the situation in Somalia” is exactly what anna husarska, “senior policy adviser at the International Rescue Committee”, does. by offering a revisionist version of the actors & the conflict in somalia, husarska has engaged in the deliberate dissemination of false information to readers around the world. and if this is the type of expert advice she dispenses to the IRC and others, there is real cause for suspect.
according to a profile of the international rescue committee at the website right web watch,

The International Rescue Committee, Inc. (IRC) was founded in 1933 in response to a request from Albert Einstein “to assist anti-Nazi opponents of Hitler.” IRC works with refugees fleeing from “persecution and violence in totalitarian countries, as well as uprooted victims of civil conflict.” IRC focuses its programs primarily on refugees from communist and socialist countries but is quite adamant that it does not tow the U.S. foreign policy line. Robert DeVecchi, executive director, said: “It is… inaccurate to characterize IRC’s operation as having `historically reflected the interests and directions of foreign policy. ‘ IRC establishes and follows its own policy directions which may or may not coincide with U.S. foreign policy objectives. It is immaterial to us whether they do or not.”
Despite such disavowals, the IRC has consistently followed policies which have indeed coincided with U.S. foreign policy interests. It has operated in such geopolitical hotspots as Southeast Asia, Central America, Afghanistan, and Eastern Europe, conducting programs which have bolstered Washington’s anticommunist activities.

…
Many of IRC’s members have ties to the intelligence community, and at least one author calls the IRC “a long-time ally of the Central Intelligence Agency.”
IRC is a tax-exempt organization under IRS code 501(c)(3). More than 90 percent of IRC’s income goes to support its programs. The group claims that “The work of the IRC is supported by individual Americans and people abroad, the business community, unions, foundations, schools, church and civic groups,” but its literature fails to mention the support it receives from the U.S. government. In 1987, it received approximately 72 percent of its funding from U.S. government contracts and grants.

and so on.
all of which makes this 1996 sacramento bee article by husarska the more interesting
Spy Vs. Spy, With Journalists in the Middle

My nonassociation with the CIA started 12 years ago. It was in the war-emptied ghost town of Tenancingo, El Salvador, that I was accused of being a CIA spy by local guerrillas who I visited as administrator of a French humanitarian mission.
My first journalistic nonassociation with the CIA dates from Christmas week of 1991, which I spent in detention in Cuba, mostly in a squalid interrogation room where I was repeatedly asked by a major from the interior ministry why I wouldn’t simply confess to spying for the CIA. I told him that he must be crazy, that the agency’s own regulations had forbidden employing or posing as journalists since 1977, following a scandal involving CIA use of reporters.
I repeated the same arguments in 1993, after I was stopped at gunpoint with several other hacks in Pale, the so-called Bosnian Serb capital. We were all accused of being on a spy mission. Earlier that year, the Haitian supporters of then-exiled President Jean-Bertrand Aristide accused me of being on the CIA payroll; I told them that the opinion article that so infuriated them was my own idea.
In 1994, I was accused of being a CIA spy because, with two other journalists, both Russian, I crossed the Abkhazia/Georgia border when there was some fighting going on. What would I be doing there if not spying for the CIA? My two fellow travelers had a bottle of vodka and–there is no limit to Russian resourcefulness–an open can of sardines in tomato sauce for an appetizer. In pouring rain, we carried these goodies into the checkpoint and suspicion disappeared with the sardines.
Then, in October 1995, while I was taking photographs of paramilitary formations in Serbia at the invitation of the Serb commanders, the press secretary of a local warlord accused me of gathering material for the CIA.
Every time, I countered in good faith that the CIA did not employ journalists, nor did it have spies pretending to be journalists. So two weeks ago when I heard CIA Director John M. Deutch defend a long-standing policy allowing clandstine officers, under `extraordinary circumstances,’ to waive regulations and pose as reporters or to use reporters as informers. I felt kind of outspooked.
Henceforth, I will not be able to laugh off thugs, warlords and police officers in totalitarian states when they accuse me of being a CIA spy. Nor can I be confident in pointing out my two non-U.S. passports and protesting that I have no loyalty links to the United States and even less with the CIA. The Washington Post reported that whatever prohibitions existed against recruiting journalists `have never applied to foreign journalists, whom the CIA still looks to recruit, according to sources familiar with the matter.’
If the stain of suspicion is on all journalists, then those foreign sources (official or not) who want to deny access to media will have an excuse to do so. And the truth is, policy-makers can ill afford to lose any reporting from the honest news media. God forbid they should have to depend only on what the spies know.

heh

Posted by: b real | Nov 18 2007 7:12 utc | 17

opinion piece from a lawyer in dar es salaam, tanzania that fits in w/ this thread, summing up the recent backstory
Somalia: The ‘Iraqinisation’ is Here With U.S.

Mogadishu is flowing with blood. For over a week now a terrible war is raging. Over 100 people have died. Thousands displaced. This year alone, it is estimated over 1000 people died in Somalia and over the last four months alone over 400,000 Somalis have been displaced from Mogadishu.
The American surrogate, Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, is butchering a neighbouring African country while the continent keeps mum. Another African, adept at currying favours from the Bushes of the world, has 1,700 troops in Mogadishu under the umbrella of the African Union.
Other African governments have not dared to join him. Museveni of Uganda moved swiftly from the African bush where he fought a guerrilla war to save his country from militarism, to the American Bush, from whom he can only bring death and devastation not only to his, but even neighbouring countries.
Just before the invading Ethiopian forces, instigated by the Americans, overthrew it, the United Islamic Courts (UIC) had managed to bring a semblance of peace and hope to the Somalis.
The UIC defeated the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace against Counter-terrorism (ARPCT), which was a coalition of opportunist warlords backed by the Americans. At the time, through IGAD (Intergovernmental Authority on Development), African states had managed to knock together a Transitional Federal Government (TFG), another coalition of warlords based in Nairobi. It was an unstable alliance with little support in the country.
The leadership of TFG was backed by the Ethiopians. When the UIC defeated ARPCT and took over Mogadishu, the Americans changed sides. The foxy Meles Zenawi got his opportunity. The US raised its bloody banner of ‘terrorism,.
The UIC was Al-Qaeda inspired; Somalia was becoming a haven for foreign terrorists, they claimed. The superpower lies and lies. It is a living lie. Just as they manufactured evidence about the WMD (weapons of mass destruction) in Iraq, so did they fabricate “facts, about the presence of Al-Qaeda in the UIC.
Instigated by the Americans, Ethiopia invaded Somalia and installed their surrogate TFG in Mogadishu, which was hitherto confined to Bidoa. Somalis deeply resent Ethiopian presence in their country. TFG has hardly much support. Abdulahi Yusuf, the so-called president of TFG, spends more time in Nairobi and Addis than Mogadishu.
Unfortunately, some African governments toed the American line. Through UN they approved an African Union force to precede a UN force for Somalia. Our own government came very close to participating in this force. Thanks to our Stars, wise counsel prevailed; otherwise, we would have been in the same boat as Ethiopians and Ugandans; though we could not get away without any scar.
Tanzania was the only African country in the International Contact Group, whose sole purpose was to provide the Americans with a veneer of legitimacy to their adventure in Somalia.
The Iraqinisation of Somalia could be foreseen; it was foreseen. Yet, African leaders, including ours, did not pay heed to the warnings. Fascinated by dollars and mesmerised by globalisation, our governments are failing to read the signs of the time.

the author goes on to spell out what the u.s. agenda WRT AFRICOM is — “its twin objectives of securing energy (oil) and establishing its absolute military hegemony” — and expresses a concern over the eagle trying to dig its claws into tanzanian soil w/ the help of the new political class there. [side note: his column last week took the govt to task for essentially neutering the very clear meaning of ujamaa as it had been understood in the constitution since nyerere’s arusha declaration.]

The Americans are furiously looking for a base for their Africom. The US African Command is a military command for Africa created by Bush in February 2007. A number of African governments have openly refused to provide them with a base. A few seem to be supporting it in the private but dare not come out in the open.
That the Americans may be eyeing Tanzania for this purpose is logical. The country has the legendary political stability, and respect and reputation on the continent.
It is one of the biggest countries linking the Indian Ocean with the rich central Africa, especially the DRC. Its people are unsuspecting, peaceful, hospitable and satisfied with small favours like dispensaries and anti-malarial drugs dished out by uniformed gringos, as we often see them on the front pages of our newspapers.
I get worried therefore when I see the stripes-and-stars-carrying ambassadorial car moving around the country condemning corruption, seducing journalists with trips to Washington and New York, entertaining sheikhs to Iftar, or giving ‘human rights, prizes to gullible NGO leaders. Why so much interest in Tanzania?
Africans must learn from the Iraqinisation of Somalia. There are two states in the world today one should keep distance from, the US and Israel.
These are the most militarised states; the least law-abiding and the greatest warmongers that the humankind has ever seen. One has flattened two countries to rubble within a decade; another wanted to bomb Lebanon to Stone Age causing enormous devastation.
True, politics and diplomacy may require one to keep quiet; true one is not powerful enough to fight these forces single-handedly. But ‘if you can’t fight them, join them, is not always the best policy. If you can’t fight them; keep away. You don’t have to join them.

so will we see a new non-aligned bloc arise on the continent as this new cold war between the u.s. and china heats up? probably not, since the u.s. africa policy is centered on military development while china’s is founded on economic development, which makes it easy for nations to turn away from the former & no particular reason to do so toward the latter (outside of physical threats/bullying/blackmail, that is).
as a zambian article on the one year anniversary of the big sino-african summit related

During his visit to China, President Mwanawasa when asked by journalists why he valued Chinese investment, replied jokingly: “refusing Chinese investment ‘ukakana no buchi,’ meaning to refuse Chinese investment, is to refuse honey.

Posted by: b real | Nov 19 2007 2:44 utc | 18

more on that mention in #15 of mayor dheere traveling to baidoa to discuss the open prime minister slot. i had earlier suggested that dheere himself may have been wanting the job, but recent reports from somalia haven’t provided further evidence of that prospect. only english-language article i’ve come upon yet on their meeting is this one from iran’s pressTV & they rpt that it wasn’t a friendly discussion.
Political row worsening Somalia crisis

A political row between Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed and the Banadir Region Commissioner has escalated the country’s crisis.
A 250-member delegation led by the Banadir Region Commissioner traveled to Baido on Sunday, where the President of Transitional Federal Government (TFG) resides.
The Somali parliamentarians were invited by President Ahmed to discuss the appointment of a new prime minister for the remaining two years of the TFG term.
Banadir Region Governor and Commissioner Moh’ed Dhere was meeting the president to persuade him to name a candidate loyal to Dhere as PM.
President Ahmed however rejected his request, a Press TV correspondent reported.
Informed sources at the presidential palace told Press TV that the meeting ended in a quarrel with Dhere reportedly insulted the President.
After the row, President Ahmed ordered his security guards to throw the commissioner out of the palace.

and it was a bumpy ride back home too, for those however many people went along for the trip. (and a 250-member delegation sounds more like a small army. maybe that size of an entourage is what is necessary for security to move around in somalia currently. or maybe dheere wanted some backup.)
from a garowe online report on sunday

MOGADISHU, Somalia Nov 18 (Garowe Online) – At least five Somali civilians were killed and several others wounded when a roadside bomb detonated Sunday afternoon in the outskirts of the capital, Mogadishu.
The landmine was aimed at a convoy of transitional federal government officials who were returnig from Baidoa. The officials, including Mogadishu region officials, traveled to Baidoa to hold last-minute consultative talks with President Abdullahi Yusuf before he names a new prime minister.
Government soldiers guarding the convoy opened gunfire immediately after the huge blast, killing and wounding civilian bystanders, witnesses told Garowe Online.

while the garowe online rpt did not mention that this was the mayor’s convoy, somaliNet reports that he was uninjured.
Mayor again survives bomb attack

(SomaliNet) The mayor of Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia Mohamed Omar Habeb ‘Mohamed Dhere’ has escaped from bomb attack onSunday afternoon, witnesses said – it is the second time that the city’s mayor survived an attempt on his life.
A remote controlled roadside bomb exploded as the convoy of the mayor was passing on the road between Afgoyie and Mogadishu.
The mayor’s convoy came from Baidoa city where Mohamed Dhere met with the president Abdulahi Yusuf over the consultation on who will be the new premier from Mudulod sub-clan of Hawiye clan.
There is no immediate casualty on the soldiers that were keeping guard the mayor.

– – –
no mention of the following yet at ogaden online or the onlf website, but AFP on sunday reported that
Ethiopian aircrafts ‘carpet-bomb’ Ogaden region: rebels

NAIROBI, Nov 18, 2007 (AFP) – Ethiopia’s air force has been “carpet-bombing” villages and nomadic settlements in its oil- and gas-rich Ogaden region, leaving a trail of casualties, separatist rebels in the restive eastern area said Sunday.
“Since Friday the Ethiopian air force has carried out continuous air sorties on the area of the lakes called in Somali Haro Digeed,” Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) spokesman Abdirahman Mahdi said.
The air force “has been carpet-bombing the villages and nomadic settlements,” an ONLF statement said.
“Many people are hurt or dead and lots of animals have been killed,” he said, but did not say whether the fatalities were rebel fighters or civilians.
“The army decided to change tactics and use air assault because they realised their ground forces could not make it,” he said, adding the air force was still pounding the region late Sunday.
“Some ONLF fighters were hurt in the air bombardments, but the air force targeted civilian settlements and livestock,” the spokesman said, adding that locals were fleeing the region amid bad weather.

Posted by: b real | Nov 19 2007 5:39 utc | 19

latest numbers from the UN today
Number of displaced in Somalia hits 1 million mark – UN agency

20 November 2007 – The number of people displaced within Somalia by recent violence has hit the 1 million mark, a spokesperson for the United Nations refugee agency said today, warning that conditions are worsening as numbers swell.
Of this figure, 600,000 have fled the “lawless Somali capital, Mogadishu,” Jennifer Pagonis of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told journalists in Geneva. One third of those left “entire neighbourhoods in the volatile capital empty” over the past two weeks alone.
Mogadishu is also now home to an estimated 43,000 internally displaced people (IDPs), a 10,000 increase from a week ago, UNHCR said.
“At the same time, estimates on the number of IDPs living in increasingly desperate conditions in more than 60 makeshift settlements along the 30-km stretch of road linking Mogadishu and the nearby town of Afgooye have shot up to nearly 200,000 – a 50-per cent increase in the past two weeks alone,” said Ms. Pagonis.

Posted by: b real | Nov 20 2007 16:00 utc | 20

latest numbers from the UN today
Number of displaced in Somalia hits 1 million mark – UN agency

20 November 2007 – The number of people displaced within Somalia by recent violence has hit the 1 million mark, a spokesperson for the United Nations refugee agency said today, warning that conditions are worsening as numbers swell.
Of this figure, 600,000 have fled the “lawless Somali capital, Mogadishu,” Jennifer Pagonis of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told journalists in Geneva. One third of those left “entire neighbourhoods in the volatile capital empty” over the past two weeks alone.
Mogadishu is also now home to an estimated 43,000 internally displaced people (IDPs), a 10,000 increase from a week ago, UNHCR said.
“At the same time, estimates on the number of IDPs living in increasingly desperate conditions in more than 60 makeshift settlements along the 30-km stretch of road linking Mogadishu and the nearby town of Afgooye have shot up to nearly 200,000 – a 50-per cent increase in the past two weeks alone,” said Ms. Pagonis.

Posted by: b real | Nov 20 2007 16:01 utc | 21

Back to Main