United States Africa Command Public Affairs Office 26 September 2011

USAFRICOM - related news stories

Good morning. Please find attached news clips related to U.S. Africa Command and Africa, along with upcoming events of interest for September 26, 2011. Of interest in today's clips, CNN reports a mass grave thought to hold the remains of more than 1,200 victims of a 1996 massacre at Abu Salim prison has been found in Tripoli. The Somali Prime Minister said at the UN that the recent retreat of al-Shabaab forces from the capital was welcome, but it may herald a new and more dangerous phase of the conflict as they increasingly turn to asymmetric tactics such as suicide bombings and the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) targeting the civilian populace. The U.S. announced an additional $42 million in assistance for the Horn of Africa, while the World Bank announced it was tripling its funding for the region to $1.88 billion. In the south, Zambia's incumbent President Rupiah Banda acknowledged election defeat to his rival, while in Nigeria northern traditional rulers met to discuss issues affecting the region and condemned the Boko Haram insurgency. The topic of unmanned aerial vehicles resulted in several weekend reports discussing the Obama administrations purported expansion of the use of these aircraft to combat counter-terrorism in Africa and the Middle East.

U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Please send questions or comments to: africom-pao@africom.mil 421-2687 (+49-711-729-2687) -------------------------------------------Top News related to U.S. Africa Command and Africa Gadhafi loyalists launch attack across Algeria border (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44659377/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/ 25 September 2011 By MSNBC.com news services SIRTE, Libya Gunmen loyal to Moammar Gadhafi crossed the border from Algeria to attack revolutionary forces in a border city, killing six people, a military official said Sunday. Grave may hold 1,200 bodies, believed victims of Libyan prison massacre (CNN)

http://edition.cnn.com/2011/09/25/world/africa/libya-mass-grave/ 25 September 2011 By CNN Wire Staff TRIPOLI, Libya (CNN) -- A mass grave thought to hold the remains of more than 1,200 victims of a 1996 massacre at Abu Salim prison has been found in Tripoli, officials with Libya's transitional government said Sunday. SOMALIA: PM warns Al-Shabab militants are looking to export their violence to the world (Raxanreeb Online) http://www.raxanreeb.com/?p=112834 25 September 2011 By unattributed author NEW YORK (UN) -- Islamist militants that have wreaked havoc in southern Somalia are now looking to strike outside the country and concerted international action is needed to prevent them from exporting their violence, Somalias Prime Minister told the United Nations. World Bank boosts Horn of Africa aid to $1.88 bln (Reuters) http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/24/worldbank-famine-idUSS1E78N04Q2011092 4 24 September 2011 By Reuters (Reuters) - The World Bank said on Saturday it was more than tripling funding to $1.88 billion for a worsening drought in Horn of Africa countries affecting more than 13 million people. China pledges more support to relieve African food crisis (China Daily) Link inaccessible--See full text below. 25 September 2011 By Zhang Yuwei (China Daily) UNITED NATIONS - China will make further contributions to help Africa with food security and sustainable development, Foreign Minster Yang Jiechi said at a mini-summit held to raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa at the UN headquarters in New York on Saturday. U.S. Response to Humanitarian Crisis in the Horn of Africa (DoS Fact Sheet) http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/09/173921.htm 23 September 2011 By Department of State On September 23, 2011 at the United Nations, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced approximately $42 million in additional humanitarian assistance which includes an additional $30 million for Somalia. On Top of Famine, Unspeakable Violence (New York Times) http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/opinion/sunday/kristof-on-top-of-famine-unspeakab le-violence.html?_r=1&src=recg

24 September 2011 Commentary by Nicholas D. Kristof The United Nations warns that 750,000 Somalis are at risk of starving to death in the coming months, and its increasingly clear that those who try to save themselves and their children must endure a gantlet of robbers and rapists. Zambia's Leader Hands Over Power (Wall Street Journal) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903791504576588150206748590.html 24 September 2011 By Peter Wonacott and Nicholas Bariyo Zambia's incumbent President Rupiah Banda acknowledged election defeat to rival Michael Sata, paving the way for a largely peaceful transition of power that has proved rare among Africa's young democracies. Royal fathers meet in Kaduna over Boko Haram (The Moment) http://www.momentng.com/en/news/4142/royal-fathers-meet-in-kaduna-over-boko-hara m-.html 24 September 2011 Garba Muhammad KADUNA, Nigeria -- Traditional rulers from the North and Northern state governors met for several hours in Kaduna on Saturday to discuss issues affecting the region and unanimously condemned the Boko Haram insurgency that has caused serious concern across the country in recent times. Hidden explosives shipment seized at Nigerian port (AP) http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jv3Kvp9acmkW8gI8DCgTgh5O VWQQ?docId=2c8ec186feff49d3a93de444c2fefbe6 24 September 2011 By Jon Gambrell LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) Nigerian officials seized a sizable amount of explosives hidden inside a shipping container from China at one of the West African nation's major ports, an official said Saturday, amid continued unrest and bombings across the oil-rich country.

The Long Arms of al Qaeda (Wall Street Journal) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903791504576586851055188210.html 25 September 2011 By Robin Simcox A tumultuous decade of invasion, rendition, missiles, waterboarding, drones and detention has finally taken its toll on the terrorist network. The United States and its allies have killed or detained scores of al Qaeda's founders and senior leaders, and replacements are not easy to find. Americas Quest for Africa (Antiwar.com) http://www.antiwar.com/blog/2011/09/24/americas-quest-for-africa/

24 September 2011 By Brian Beyer Africa has been thrusted into the spotlight yet again thanks to the Libyan intervention. Due to the power vacuum in Libya, weapon depots have been looted dry and weapons of all sorts from Libya have been turning up on the black market. Fear of Islamists taking charge in Tripoli has been exacerbated by near hysteria over al-Shabaab in Somalia, Boko Haram in Nigeria, and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). Africa seems to be engulfed in crisis nothing new here. US to build drone base in Ethiopia (Sudan Tribune) http://www.sudantribune.com/US-to-build-drone-base-in-Ethiopia,40239 24 September 2011 By Tesfa-Alem Tekle ADDIS ABABA -- The United States is reportedly set to build a new drone base in Ethiopia for counter-terrorism operations in the Horn of Africa, the Washington Post reports. U.S. ramps up killer drone squadrons over Yemen and Somalia (Vancouver Sun) http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/ramps+killer+drone+squadrons+over+Yemen+So malia/5446536/story.html 23 September 2011 By Jonathan Manthorpe The United States administration of President Barack Obama is dramatically extending the reach of its program using missile-armed remote-controlled drone aircraft to assassinate terrorist and militant group leaders. As drones proliferate, Navy avoids the rush (Washington Post) http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/checkpoint-washington/post/as-drones-proliferatenavy-avoids-the-rush/2011/09/22/gIQAcmgToK_blog.html 23 September 2011 By Craig Whitlock With armed drones now deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen, theres huge demand in the U.S. military and CIA to acquire hunter-killer unmanned aircraft such as Predators and Reapers. ### UN News Service Africa Briefs http://www.un.org/apps/news/region.asp?Region=AFRICA (Full Articles on UN Website) Calling for more help, Libya tells UN it could become a regional beacon for progress 24 September Libya could become an oasis for human development in its region now that the regime of Muammar al-Qadhafi has fallen, a top official with the new Government told the United Nations today, but the country remains a land not yet fully liberated with

widespread destruction of its infrastructure and an enormous ongoing toll on its population and social fabric. Mali issues call at UN for international help ahead of elections and referendum 24 September Malis Prime Minister has taken to the General Assembly to call on the international community to support a constitutional referendum and national elections scheduled for next year, saying they will cement nearly two decades of democratic behaviour in the West African country. Somali leader warns UN that militants are looking to export their violence 24 September Islamist militants that have wreaked havoc in southern Somalia are now looking to strike outside the country and concerted international action is needed to prevent them from exporting their violence, Somalias Prime Minister told the United Nations today. Mauritius calls for boost to UN Economic and Social Council 24 September The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) must have a greater say in the running of global economic affairs, where new arrangements are urgently needed given the continuing financial turmoil around the world, the Prime Minister of Mauritius said today. Lesotho draws UNs attention to inconsistent approaches to conflict resolution 24 September Lesotho today at the United Nations drew the worlds attention to the lack of consistency in global conflict resolution, pointing out that the international community through the Security Council was quick to authorize military intervention in some disputes while preferring mediation in others. ### Upcoming Events of Interest: WHAT: The Department of State and USAID are seeking to more effectively integrate humanitarian action with the diplomatic and the other operational elements of civilian response to complex crises. The Department of State and USAID are seeking to more effectively integrate humanitarian action with the diplomatic and the other operational elements of civilian response to complex crises. The importance of policy and program integration is graphically illustrated by conflict, drought and famine in the Horn of Africa. TOPIC: Saving Lives, Securing Interests: Reflections on Humanitarian Response and U.S. Foreign Policy WHEN: 28 September 2011, 2-3:30 p.m. BRIEFER: Eric P. Schwartz, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration WHERE: U.S. Institute of Peace, 2301 Constitution Ave NW Washington, DC MORE INFORMATION: http://www.usip.org/events/saving-lives-securing-interests-reflections-humanitarian-resp onse-and-us-foreign-policy

RSVP: Please contact Amanda Mayoral at amayoral@usip.org with any questions about this event. ### -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------FULLTEXT Gadhafi loyalists launch attack across Algeria border (MSNBC) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44659377/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/ 25 September 2011 By MSNBC.com news services SIRTE, Libya Gunmen loyal to Moammar Gadhafi crossed the border from Algeria to attack revolutionary forces in a border city, killing six people, a military official said Sunday. Col. Ahmed Bani, a military spokesman for Libya's revolutionary forces, said the attack on Ghadames was on Saturday, but the gunmen had been crossing in cars filled with arms for several days. He told reporters Sunday that the attackers belonged to a unit that had been under the command of Gadhafi's son, Khamis. "These militias have attacked our people in Ghadames ... All the information we have got is that these groups are related to the son of Gadhafi, Khamis," Bani told a news conference in Tripoli. "We are expecting some militias in that area to use the geographical base to hide in. Our freedom fighters have taken control of that area. Our freedom fighters will not allow (another attack)," he added. An official from Ghadames, Ali al-Mana, confirmed the attack and said six people were killed and 63 others wounded. The attack came as Libya's revolutionary forces said they had stepped up a siege around Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte in an attempt to wear down his loyalist forces inside. The fighters have set up new roadblocks and checkpoints and posted snipers at key spots on Sunday. The move comes after a heavy push by the fighters into the edge of the downtown that failed to dislodge Gadhafi's men inside Sirte on Saturday.

Seven fighters were killed and 150 were wounded in fierce street battles with Gadhafi's men. The revolutionaries took Tripoli last month, effectively ending Gadhafi's rule and sending him into hiding. But his loyalists still hold Sirte, as well as Bani Walid and pockets in south Libya. Officer Osama Nuttawa al-Swehli said NATO hit four targets in Sirte in pre-dawn airstrikes. ### Grave may hold 1,200 bodies, believed victims of Libyan prison massacre (CNN) http://edition.cnn.com/2011/09/25/world/africa/libya-mass-grave/ 25 September 2011 By CNN Wire Staff Tripoli, Libya (CNN) -- A mass grave thought to hold the remains of more than 1,200 victims of a 1996 massacre at Abu Salim prison has been found in Tripoli, officials with Libya's transitional government said Sunday. The suspected grave holds 1,270 bodies, according to Libya's National Transitional Council. It was located by revolutionaries on August 20, said Kamal el Sherif, a member of an NTC committee. "There is a lot more to be done to reach the actual truth of this massacre," said Dr. Salem Fergani, also a committee member. "To be honest, we were not prepared to deal with such human massacres, so we request the assistance of the international community. We need specialists in the field to help us in identifying the victims ... this is a national mission. The families of these victims have the right to learn the truth about their deceased sons." Former guards at the prison cooperated in helping find the grave and provide details of the massacre, said Abdul Wahab Gady. He said he is a former prisoner who was at Abu Salim when the deaths took place. The bones are scattered around an area with about a 100-meter radius, Fergani said. Members of the media were taken to the site on Sunday and shown bones and clothing. Family members of the Abu Salim victims also turned up at the site. On June 28, 1996, prisoners rioting over poor conditions and restricted family visits seized a guard and escaped from their cells. "Five or seven minutes after it started, the guards on the roofs shot at the prisoners who were in the open areas," former prisoner Hussein Shafei told Human Rights Watch in an interview years later.

Security officials ordered the shooting to stop and feigned negotiations, he told the organization. But officials instead called in firing squads to gun down the prisoners. After the inmates agreed to return to their cells, they were taken to prison outdoor areas, blindfolded, handcuffed, and shot. At first, said Gady, the bodies were buried inside the prison walls, but moved outside the walls in 1999. The government of ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi did not acknowledge the killings and denied any crime had taken place. Some families filed a complaint against the government in 2007, Human Rights Watch said, and Gadhafi's government offered them compensation in exchange for their silence. The families refused, calling it a bribe, and instead began holding protests each Saturday in Benghazi, one of the spots where the Libyan unrest began this year. It could take years to identify all the bodies through DNA, Fergani said Sunday. ### SOMALIA: PM warns Al-Shabab militants are looking to export their violence to the world (Raxanreeb Online) http://www.raxanreeb.com/?p=112834 25 September 2011 By unattributed author NEW YORK (UN) -- Islamist militants that have wreaked havoc in southern Somalia are now looking to strike outside the country and concerted international action is needed to prevent them from exporting their violence, Somalias Prime Minister told the United Nations today. Abdiweli Mohamed Ali told the General Assemblys annual general debate that while the recent retreat of al-Shabaab forces from the capital, Mogadishu, was welcome, it may herald a new and more dangerous phase of the conflict as they increasingly turn to asymmetric tactics such as suicide bombings and the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) targeting the civilian populace. He said al-Shabaab and other groups affiliated with Al-Qaida were now actively planning to strike further afield, with al-Shabaab leaders quoted only this week as saying the group wanted to destroy the UN and the United States. It is also a well-known fact that the al-Shabaab have been focusing their recruitment and radicalization efforts on Somali diasporas in Australia, Europe, Canada and in the United States.

Dr. Ali said it was a small minority such as those in al-Shabaab that was responsible for turning the drought afflicting the Horn of Africa into a famine in parts of southern and central Somalia. This was because of their policies of systematically looting grain stores; forcible recruitment of and extortion from farmers and their families; and preventing access to the most affected regions in the south to aid agencies. But he said recent efforts to overcome Somalias chronic problems of instability, clan rivalries and a lack of governance gave hope that the militants can be defeated. Dr. Ali cited the national consultative conference held in Mogadishu at the start of the month which produced a road map for the re-establishment of legitimate and representative government. Somalia has not had a functioning government over the whole of its territory in two decades. The road map is a significant achievement for the Somali peace process. Its adoption marks the first of many steps on the path to the eventual conclusion of the transition process in a responsible and productive manner. It has also shed light on the remaining transitional tasks, including the drafting and promulgation of a new constitution. Today, the President of Somalias Transitional Federal Government (TFG), Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, met with Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to discuss political and security developments in the country, the humanitarian situation across the Horn of Africa and the ongoing problem of piracy in the region. (Read the entire statement by the Prime Minister of Somalia at the 66TH session of the United Nations General Assembly) ### World Bank boosts Horn of Africa aid to $1.88 bln (Reuters) http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/24/worldbank-famine-idUSS1E78N04Q2011092 4 24 September 2011 By Reuters (Reuters) - The World Bank said on Saturday it was more than tripling funding to $1.88 billion for a worsening drought in Horn of Africa countries affecting more than 13 million people. The funding is boosted from around $500 million the World Bank announced in July.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick said the financing would help fill a $1 billion funding gap needed to tackle drought and a food crisis engulfing parts of Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Uganda. At the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told a conference on the Horn of Africa famine that around $700 million was still needed for this year alone. "Next year we will need more," he added. The United Nations had estimated that some $2.4 billion in aid was needed for immediate drought relief assistance. While international appeals have drawn $1.4 billion in donor pledges, a gap remains. Somalia is at the epicenter of the hunger crisis. The United Nations has said about 750,000 people face imminent starvation in Somalia, where the al Qaeda-affiliated rebel group al Shabaab controls much of the south and will not allow food shipments. Zoellick said the World Bank funding would be allocated in three phases following initial needs assessments conducted by bank experts in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somali refugee camps and Uganda. He made clear that the bulk of the funding was for long-term measures to aid resistance to drought, with just $288 million going for "rapid response" relief in the fiscal year ending next June 30. "In addressing today's disaster, our role is to help build resilience for tomorrow. A humanitarian crisis need not and should not become a perpetual crisis," he said in a statement. At the United Nations, Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odings became the first leader attending the annual General Assembly gathering to sign a charter drafted by a coalition of aid agencies outlining actions to stop widespread starvation. They included early warning of famines, support for local food production, stockpiling emergency food reserves and limiting the use of food export bans, building social safety nets and engaging in vigorous diplomacy to end conflicts. Irish rock singer Bob Geldof, a longtime activist for famine relief, told reporters, "Is it (the charter) going to shift the world on its axis? No. Is it going to give it a little nudge? Absolutely." ### China pledges more support to relieve African food crisis (China Daily) By Zhang Yuwei (China Daily) 25 September 2011

UNITED NATIONS - China will make further contributions to help Africa with food security and sustainable development, Foreign Minster Yang Jiechi said at a mini-summit held to raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis in the Horn of Africa at the UN headquarters in New York on Saturday. Speaking to representatives of more than 50 UN member states, Yang said that China has announced it would give the region emergency grain aid and financial support - worth about $70 million - including a $16 million donation to the World Food Program to support famine-relief operations in Somalia. "It is the largest amount of grain assistance in Chinese foreign aid since New China was founded (in 1949), which has set another example of Sino-African friendship in overcoming difficulties and hardship together," Yang said. Earlier this month, China sent its first shipment of humanitarian aid to relieve drought and famine in the Horn of Africa. Shipments of wheat and rice are expected to arrive in Ethiopia and Kenya by the end of the month. The Horn of Africa, a region of eastern Africa, is home to countries including Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia, which have been suffering drought and famine. An estimated 13 million people in Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti are facing severe food shortages, according to the UN. Somalia is bearing the brunt of the most severe food crisis in Africa. About 3.6 million people, half of the country's population, are at risk of starvation. More than half of all Somali children are malnourished, with six infants dying from malnutrition every day. During the summit, at least $218 million in new aid was pledged to help tackle the region's humanitarian crisis. Still, about $500 million is needed to meet the overall humanitarian need in the Horn of Africa this year. Heads of state and government from Ethiopia, Kenya, Djibouti and Somalia, as well as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, called at the summit for humanitarian assistance to the region. Ban called on the countries in the region and international donors to take a "long-term view". "As we scale up our response, we must also do more to coordinate our work Tackling the root causes of drought and food insecurity requires a long-term approach from national authorities and from donors," Ban added. Yang said that the severe drought and famine, the worst to affect the Horn of Africa for 60 years, was a matter of grave concern for China.

He emphasized the importance of agricultural cooperation between China and Africa and urged the international community to support African nations in their efforts to achieve food security and development. The "China-Africa Cooperation Forum has agriculture as its cooperation priority and implemented a number of measures to support agricultural development and to promote food security in Africa", Yang said. China has also conducted cooperation with Africa in infrastructure, technology transfer and personnel training under the framework of the UN, he added. Yang made the speech on the sidelines of the 66th session of the UN General Assembly, where he is going to speak at the general debate on Monday. ### U.S. Response to Humanitarian Crisis in the Horn of Africa (DoS Fact Sheet) http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/09/173921.htm 23 September 2011 By Department of State On September 23, 2011 at the United Nations, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced approximately $42 million in additional humanitarian assistance which includes an additional $30 million for Somalia. More than13.3 million people are in need of emergency assistance in the Horn of Africa, primarily in Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia. The United States is deeply concerned by the humanitarian emergency in the Horn of Africa, the famine that is occurring in parts of Somalia, the ongoing conflict and political instability within Somalia, and the escalating refugee crisis across the region. A large-scale international response is underway to prevent the further deterioration of an already dire situation, but there will be no quick fix. The United States is the largest donor of humanitarian assistance to the region, now providing nearly $650 million in life-saving assistance to those in need. This assistance has reached nearly 4.5 million people, many of whom would otherwise have died from starvation or related disease. Al-Shabaabs continued efforts to block nongovernmental organization access to the most vulnerable areas of Somalia and its limitations on the delivery of life sustaining humanitarian assistance further exacerbates the humanitarian crisis. Because emergency assistance will not solve the underlying problems in the region, the United States also is developing long-term food security in Kenya and Ethiopia through the Presidents global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future, to help prevent such crises from recurring. Humanitarian Assistance to Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons, and Drought Affected Populations: Reports from inside Somalia indicate the situation is growing increasingly desperate. The nearly $650 million the United States is providing includes protection and assistance for refugees in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti, including funding for the Office

of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) recent Emergency Appeal for Somali Refugees as well as other humanitarian partners working inside and outside Somalia. Our diplomacy and our dollars leverage support from other donors for international protection and assistance efforts. These efforts are critical to saving lives and maintaining access to safe asylum in Somalias neighboring countries, even as those countries struggle with the worst drought in 60 years. U.S. assistance also supports health, nutrition, agriculture and food security, economic recovery and market systems, humanitarian coordination and information management, and water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions in Ethiopia, Somalia, and Kenya. The United States is addressing the immediate life-saving needs of affected populations while also building communities resilience to future shocks. Food Security: Part of our humanitarian assistance benefits those in need of food assistance and allows our food aid partners, including the UN World Food Program (WFP), to expand geographic coverage and scale up feeding programs in drought-affected areas in Ethiopia and Kenya. In total, the United States is providing approximately $435 million in humanitarian food aid to Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia this fiscal year. The U.S.-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) have maintained a strong presence in the region for decades, enabling the humanitarian community to identify conditions based on an extensive analysis of historical and current rainfall, cropping patterns, livestock health, market prices and malnutrition rates. Early warning of the crisis in the Horn of Africa by the Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit and Famine Early Warning Systems Network allowed the United States to alert other donors and preposition food stock and quickly scale up emergency programs to meet the increasing needs in the region. Feed the Future: President Obamas Feed the Future initiative, which helps address the root causes of hunger and undernutrition through sustainable development of entire agricultural value chains, is critical at this time. Increasing the resilience and further developing the capacity of pastoralists to engage in a commercially viable livestock trade is crucial to breaking the disaster cycle across the Horn. By working with other donors and governments in the region, Feed the Future will increase overall agricultural production. For example, Ethiopias Feed the Future program emphasizes improving early warning systems, disaster risk management, and development of alternative income sources in pastoralist and agriculture areas through programs including Ethiopias Pastoralist Livelihoods Initiative. This program has increased the value and sales of livestock by improving livestock health services, institutionalizing early warning and response, and improving land and water management. At the regional level, East Africas Livestock Trade program increases the quality and availability of trade information, improving animal health, and building capacity for private sector trade groups. ###

On Top of Famine, Unspeakable Violence (New York Times) http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/opinion/sunday/kristof-on-top-of-famine-unspeakab le-violence.html?_r=1&src=recg 24 September 2011 Commentary by Nicholas D. Kristof IMAGINE that youre a Somali suffering from the drought and famine in that country. One of your children has just starved to death, but theres no time to mourn. Depleted and traumatized, you set off on foot across the desert with your family, and after 15 exhausting days finally reach what you believe is the safe haven of Kenya. But at the very moment when you think youre secure, you encounter a nightmare broached only in whispers: an epidemic of violence and rape. As Somalis stream across the border into Kenya, at a rate of about 1,000 a day, they are frequently prey to armed bandits who rob men and rape women in the 50-mile stretch before they reach Dadaab, now the worlds largest refugee camp. It is difficult to know how many women are raped because the subject is taboo. But more than half of the newly arrived Somalis I interviewed, mostly with the help of CARE, said they had been attacked by bandits, sometimes in Somalia but very often on Kenyan soil. Some had been attacked two or three times. In short, this seems like an instance of mass rape adding one more layer of misery to the worlds most desperate humanitarian crisis. The United Nations warns that 750,000 Somalis are at risk of starving to death in the coming months, and its increasingly clear that those who try to save themselves and their children must endure a gantlet of robbers and rapists. There were three places where bandits attacked us, a 35-year-old mother told me. The first two times they took money and food. The last time, I had nothing left to give them. So they raped me. The rape, by three men, occurred inside Kenya. Another woman, a 20-year-old, said she was raped twice during her journey, first in Somalia and then after she had crossed into Kenya. One time, she said, the rapists left her naked in the desert. Although Somalian culture sometimes blames a woman for being raped, there seems less of that now, perhaps because so many have been brutalized. The 20-year-old said her husband would not divorce her: My husband still loves me, she said simply. For unmarried women, rapes often involve tearing and physical injuries. Thats because Somali girls often undergo an extreme kind of genital cutting, infibulation, that involves slicing off the genitals and sewing up the vagina with a wild thorn.

The bandits, who are virtually all ethnically Somali, seem to fear the Shabab militia on the Somalian side of the border. On the Kenyan side, which is sparsely populated with little police presence, they feel impunity. Aid groups have begun sending out vehicles to search for refugees near the border, sparing them the final few days of hiking. That has helped, but the vehicles cant rescue everyone. One obvious solution is to establish reception centers along the border, and then bus refugees to Dadaab. Kenya isnt embracing that idea, however, for fear of an even larger Somali influx. It would be unfair to beat up on Kenya, for by international standards it has borne its responsibilities and been quite hospitable to Somali refugees. It doesnt turn people away from Dadaab, and so Kenyas third-largest city is now a Somali refugee camp. Yet the fact remains: To avert mass rape and violence, Kenya must permit aid agencies to establish reception centers at the Kenya-Somalia border. Americans also suffer from compassion fatigue, and that brings me to a final point. In a previous column from Dadaab, I told of a father of eight who had lost two of his children to starvation and feared that he would lose three more. Many readers responded bluntly that when men have eight children, it is pointless to help. Saving Somalis, they say, reflects a soggy sentimentality and runs against a Malthusian constraint of mouths multiplying more rapidly than food. This view is both repulsive and wrong. I often write about the need for more family planning, but Somalis have eight children partly because they know that several may die. If we help save lives now so that parents can be confident their kids will survive, family size will drop. Likewise, educate girls and they will have fewer children. That is what has happened around the world: In India, women now average 2.6 births, down from about six in 1950. This pattern is a reason to support family planning and girls education not a reason to let children die. We mustnt turn away from starving children because their mothers had no access to education or contraception. It would be monstrous to allow Somalis to starve to death because they lost the same lottery of birth that all of us won. ### Zambia's Leader Hands Over Power (Wall Street Journal) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903791504576588150206748590.html 24 September 2011 By Peter Wonacott and Nicholas Bariyo

Zambia's incumbent President Rupiah Banda acknowledged election defeat to rival Michael Sata, paving the way for a largely peaceful transition of power that has proved rare among Africa's young democracies. "Now is not the time for violence and retribution," the 74-year-old outgoing president said on Friday, as Mr. Sata took power. "Now is the time to unite and build tomorrow's Zambia together." "So, I congratulate Michael Sata on his victory," Mr. Banda said. "I have no ill feeling in my heart, there is no malice in my words. I wish him well in his years as president." Zambians greeted Mr. Banda's concession speech with relief. Zambia has been a relatively stable democracy since independence from U.K. colonial rule in 1964, but the slow counting of ballots Tuesday sparked violence and allegations of vote-rigging. By Friday afternoon, many reveled in what had been accomplished, especially after a string of recent troubled elections in Ivory Coast, Uganda and Nigeria. "Banda's smooth handover of power shows good and mature leadership," said Alex Ngoma, president of the Foundation for Democratic Process, a civil society group in Zambia. "We hope other African leaders can emulate his magnanimousness." Some analysts say the small landlocked nation in southern Africa has set an encouraging example ahead of what are likely to be tumultuous votes in the Democratic Republic of Congo in November and, possibly next year, Zimbabwe, where two political parties are locked in a fractious coalition after a bloody 2008 election. "This is extremely positive sign for the region and the Zambian political experience," said Piers Pigou, southern Africa project director in Johannesburg for the International Crisis Group. Early on Friday, the Electoral Commission of Zambia declared Mr. Sata winner in his fourth bid for the presidency. Mr. Sata, who leads the Patriotic Front party, won 43% of the total vote versus 36.1% for Mr. Banda, the head of Movement for Multiparty Democracy. Mr. Banda's party had been in power for two decades. The rest of the votes were split among smaller parties. In a preliminary assessment, election monitors from the European Union judged the vote to have been free, fair and transparentif slightly marred by pockets of violence. Mr. Sata, 75, rallied support from the urban young, unemployed and the labor unions. He campaigned on a platform that Zambia's economic growth and strong investment flows had passed by much of the country, where 70% of people live on less than a dollar a day. His party argued that tax revenue from mines should be lifted to benefit the poor. In particular, he took aim at China, saying one of the country's biggest investors paid "slave

wages" at its mines. Mr. Sata even threatened to deport Chinese investors, although he later softened his rhetoric after his party leaders met with officials from China. Chinese and Zambian officials say Chinese investmentmore than $2 billion in totalhas created 20,000 local jobs. But many people say that fast growth in Zambia, as in other African countries, has fostered corruption and led to uneven development. "The gap between the rich and the poor is growing wider and we need to address that," said Mr. Sata in his speech. He also pledged to crack down on corruption. Although Mr. Sata said he would continue to welcome foreign investors in the country's mining sectoras long as they respected the country's labor laws, his victory also caused jitters in the business community. On Friday, Numis Securities called Mr. Sata's win a "broad negative" for miners such as Vedanta Resources PLC, Swiss commodity trader Glencore International PLC and Barrick Gold Corp. now operating in Zambia. ### Royal fathers meet in Kaduna over Boko Haram (The Moment) http://www.momentng.com/en/news/4142/royal-fathers-meet-in-kaduna-over-boko-hara m-.html 24 September 2011 Garba Muhammad KADUNA, Nigeria -- Traditional rulers from the North and Northern state governors met for several hours in Kaduna on Saturday to discuss issues affecting the region and unanimously condemned the Boko Haram insurgency that has caused serious concern across the country in recent times. NORTHERN Traditional Rulers Council converged at the Council of Chiefs Chamber, Lugard Hall, Kaduna, Saturday September 24, to deliberate on ways of tackling the problems that that fast tearing the country apart. They were particularly worried about the spate of ethno-religious crises in northern Nigeria, and top on their list was the Boko Haram insurgency. Four northern state governors, and Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, speaker of the National Assembly were also in attendance. The governors include Babangida Aliyu of Niger, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa, Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa of Kaduna and Tanko Almakura of Nasarawa. In his opening speech, the Chairman of the Northern Traditional Council, Alhaji Muhammad Saad Abubakar, charged northern politicians to be serious and sincere with one another.

Abubakar, who is also the Sultan of Sokoto, added that the sustenance of peace and harmony within their respective communities depended upon the ability and the willingness of the elected leaders to discharge effectively their responsibility to those who elected them. It is important to draw our attention to the unfortunate flare-up of the Jos and Boko Haram sectarian crisis which had claimed a large number of innocent lives and destroyed the livelihood of a significant percentage of our people, the Sultan said. Time has come for us all to renew our determination as a people, as a region and as a nation, to resolve these crises. We must work together to ensure that peace, security and religious harmony return to every nook and corner of Northern Nigeria, he added. Continuing, Abubakar said: We must be able to revamp our governance infrastructure to ensure that government at all levels is able to meet the basic needs of Nigerians, including security of life and property. Above all, we must imbibe the spirit of dialogue and reconciliation and open effective channels of communication among our people, to discuss common concerns, acknowledge differences and explore means of overcoming these differences. House Speaker Tambwal in his remarks said citizens of this country have every thing at stake and equal right to leave in harmony for the peaceful co-existence of Nigeria. God, according to him, did not make a mistake by creating Nigerians as a people and combined us to form a country called Nigeria. We should be accommodating to each other and accommodate the views of each other and tolerate each other the more. In his own speech, Niger Governor Aliyu, who doubles as chairman of the 19 Governors Forum, urged the northern Emirs to be decisive and courageous in tackling our socio-political problems as soon as they arise to forestall escalation and degeneration beyond control. He said: We need to do a lot at different levels to change the perception of the North as the bastion of violence, poverty and religious extremism. As traditional leaders, you cannot do a lot to assist the development process in the society by involving yourselves in matters that affect the socio-economic well being of the people. I think we have a responsibility to act decisively to conquer poverty, illiteracy, ignorance, diseases and extremism of all forms before we can genuinely hope to achieve desirable lasting peace and stability, Dr. Aliyu said. Earlier in his welcome address, the host Governor Yakowa of Kaduna State, commended the determination and efforts of the traditional rulers in collaborating with one another towards finding a lasting solution to the frequent ethno-religious and political disturbances, as well as general insecurity in the region and the nation in general.

He said the 24th traditional rulers council meeting has provided the opportunity to review issues of concern to the North and the country, particularly on matters of peace, security, stability and socio-economic progress and development. Your overwhelming attendance at this meeting today demonstrates your resolve towards uniting and building the society, so as to enable every stakeholder contribute his or her quota to the upliftment of our common goals and aspirations, Yakowa said. This shows your determination and sincere commitment to the peace, progress and development of the North and Nigeria in general, he added. ### Hidden explosives shipment seized at Nigerian port (AP) http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jv3Kvp9acmkW8gI8DCgTgh5O VWQQ?docId=2c8ec186feff49d3a93de444c2fefbe6 24 September 2011 By Jon Gambrell LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) Nigerian officials seized a sizable amount of explosives hidden inside a shipping container from China at one of the West African nation's major ports, an official said Saturday, amid continued unrest and bombings across the oil-rich country. The container arrived at Nigeria's Tin Can Port on June 14 on the MV Seng-Shi, with its bill of lading claiming the shipment from Huangpu, China contained industrial sockets and valves, said Wale Adeniyi, a spokesman for the Nigeria Customs Service. However, discrepancies on the shipping paperwork raised suspicions of the customs service, which kept watch over the container to see if someone came to pick it up, Adeniyi said. Officials opened the container Friday to check its contents, he said, adding that they worried whatever could be inside of the containers could grow unstable during Nigeria's continuing rainy season, he said. Officials remain unsure whether the explosives were of a military or commercial grade. "We saw them in different dimensions with cables, wires (and) some bolts," Adeniyi said. The customs service handed the explosives over to Nigeria's federal police force. Authorities have launched an investigation into the shipment, Adeniyi said, though no arrests have been made. Nigeria's chaotic ports in its megacity of Lagos see tons of cargo move through them daily, providing cars, imported food, refined gasoline and other products needed for the nation of 150 million people. Drugs and other illegal goods also flow through the ports, often aided by officials receiving bribes in a country considered by analysts to have one of the world's most corrupt governments.

It isn't the first time a shipment that could be used as weapons have been found in the country. In October 2010, authorities at Lagos' Apapa Port found a hidden shipment of 107 mm artillery rockets, rifle rounds and other weapons from Iran. The shipment was supposedly bound for Gambia. A Nigerian and an Iranian face criminal charges over the shipment. The explosives shipment also comes as Nigeria faces an increasingly bloody sectarian challenge from a radical Muslim sect known locally as Boko Haram. The sect, which wants strict implementation of Shariah law across the nation split between Christian and Muslims, claimed responsibility for the Aug. 26 suicide car bombing of the United Nations headquarters in Nigeria that killed 23 people and wounded 116 others. ### The Long Arms of al Qaeda (Wall Street Journal) http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903791504576586851055188210.html 25 September 2011 By Robin Simcox Osama bin Laden once said that "when people see a strong horse and a weak horse, by nature, they will like the strong horse." It would take a vivid imagination to see al Qaeda as a strong horse at the moment. As it becomes increasingly clear that the outfit's core leadership in Pakistan are in decline, its position as a primary national security threat to the West now depends on the cogency of its regional franchises and allies. A tumultuous decade of invasion, rendition, missiles, waterboarding, drones and detention has finally taken its toll on the terrorist network. The United States and its allies have killed or detained scores of al Qaeda's founders and senior leaders, and replacements are not easy to find. The group was so reliant on Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, their chief strategist, that variations of his terrorist plans were still being attempted at least three years after his capture. Al Qaeda are still trying to harness ricin, a weapon of limited use, nearly 10 years after the failure of a planned ricin attack in London. For a group famed for its creativity, al Qaeda central looks fresh out of ideas. The burden of continuing their struggle will increasingly fall on their affiliates. The group of most immediate concern to America is al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which has seized control of a number of towns in southern Yemen and which the Obama administration now regards as the gravest threat to the U.S. The underwear-bomb plot of 2009 and cargo-bomb plot of 2010 demonstrated AQAP's ability to project power beyond Yemen. Their popular American-born preacher, Anwar al-Awlaki, gives the group a Western appeal. The current head of AQAP actually requested that Awlaki replace him as the leader of the group, believing Awlaki had greater pulling power, though bin Laden personally quashed the move.

Yet AQAP's success has meant that they must increasingly face the onslaught of the U.S. military and counterterrorism apparatus. The potential departure of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a U.S. ally, ironically puts AQAP in greater peril. As White House counterterrorism adviser John Brennan said this month, "We reserve the right to take unilateral action [against al Qaeda] if or when other governments are unwilling or unable to take the necessary actions themselves." With Yemen in political flux, the U.S. is left to do more of the heavy lifting against terror groups. The Americans are likely to do so with greater efficiency than Saleh, who often used American counterterrorism money to crush internal dissent. The U.S. already had a presence on the ground, and is now ramping up its drone attacks. In their search for effective affiliates, al Qaeda has embarked upon a courtship of al Shabaab, the Islamist group that controls large parts of Somalia. Bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri and Rahman attempted to persuade al Shabaab leaders to widen their focus onto the global jihad and rename themselves al Qaeda in East Africa. These advances have so far been rebuffed, with al Shabaab leaders fearing it could further divide an already highly factionalized group and make it a higher-profile target for the West. However, there has been increasing contact between senior leadership of al Shabaab and al Qaeda: The two groups have provided each other with more rhetorical support, and al Qaeda leaders have found shelter in Somalia. There also now appears to be growing cooperation between al Shabaab, AQAP and Boko Haram, the militant Islamist group in Nigeria. The situation in the increasingly lawless Sinai Peninsula also presents al Qaeda with an opportunity. A statement was recently released from "al Qaeda in the Sinai Peninsula," and U.S. officials have stated that there is "no longer any doubt" that al Qaeda are operating there. The Sinai was used as a base for the recent terrorist attacks against Israel, and al Qaeda's Ayman al Zawahiri has praised the bombing of gas pipelines there that supplies Israel. While al Qaeda's central shura has yet to grant formal approval of a Sinai Peninsula franchise, the arrival of a new branch in the heart of the Arab world must be an appealing prospect. These growing threats make it likely that America's war strategy will look very different in this decade than it did in the previous one. It is difficult to imagine an Afghanistan-style land invasion of Somalia or Yemen. Instead, the U.S. will rely on drones, missile strikes and special operations forces. The U.S. already struck a significant blow in this new war against al Qaeda affiliates last month, when a drone attack in Pakistan killed Atiyah Abdul Rahman, the key link between the al Qaeda core and all its regional franchises. The U.S. will also use proxy armies. For example, America is not only encouraging neighbors such as Kenya and Ethiopia to train Somali refugees and send them back to fight al Shabaabit is offering to provide the training itself. Learning the lessons of the previous decade will also be key. Islamist groups manipulate historic grievances to gain support. Therefore, as in Afghanistan, the U.S. must encourage its regional partners to establish grass-roots grievance procedures for disenfranchised citizens. It is an unpleasant reality that the likes of drones risk a level of collateral damage

that will stop terrorist plots in the short term but inflame extremism in the long term. The U.S. must consistently aspire to better intelligence-gathering to avoid this. Yet it must also avoid the trap of thinking that the soundest policy is the one that makes America most liked. There is only so much the U.S. can do to change its perception in the eyes of poorly educated, impoverished teenagers versed in radical ideology. What the U.S. can do is identify those who seek to cause it harm and prevent them from acquiring the capacity to do so. If the U.S. is as effective at doing so in the next 10 years as it was in the previous decade, the question of the strong horse will be settled decisively. ### Americas Quest for Africa (Antiwar.com) http://www.antiwar.com/blog/2011/09/24/americas-quest-for-africa/ 24 September 2011 By Brian Beyer Africa has been thrusted into the spotlight yet again thanks to the Libyan intervention. Due to the power vacuum in Libya, weapon depots have been looted dry and weapons of all sorts from Libya have been turning up on the black market. Fear of Islamists taking charge in Tripoli has been exacerbated by near hysteria over al-Shabaab in Somalia, Boko Haram in Nigeria, and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). Africa seems to be engulfed in crisis nothing new here. Terrorism of any kind, no matter how irrelevant to the US or its interests is now seen as a greater threat than the Red Scare. The United States, of course, must and will act. Or so says AFRICOM commander General Carter Ham. General Ham considers al-Shabaab and Boko Haram, terrorist groups with mostly domestic grievances, to be very similar to AQIM, a group with a distinctly international flavor. Each of those three independently, I think, presents a significant threat not only in the nations in which they primarily operate but regionally and to the United States, Ham told defense reporters on Wednesday. Those three organizations have very explicitly and publicly voiced an intent to target Westerners and the U.S. specifically. Hams assessment of Boko Haram and al-Shabaabs targets is extremely misguided. Al-Shabaab has only once attacked outside of Somalia, which was in Uganda in response to the countrys peacekeeping operations in Somalia. As Jeremy Scahill noted, American policy was counterproductive in that it radicalized many Somalis: Rather than working with the Somali government to address what Somalia experts considered a relatively minor threat, the United States turned to warlords like Qanyare, and went down a path that would lead to an almost unthinkable rise in the influence and power of Al Qaeda and the Shabab.

Additionally, Boko Haram attacked its first international target just three weeks ago, the UN mission in Abuja. Even this attack, though directed at Westerners and a western organizationBoko Harams ideology stems from complete opposition to western educationwas within Nigerian borders. While the precision, efficacy, and hardware used in the bombing was certainly characteristic of al-Qaeda, the links between the two organizations is still very difficult to connect. Despite the lack of hard evidence, Ham is ready to act: The Africans are better at addressing this [terrorism] than we are. In some cases they need some assistance and where we can provide that, we seek to do so, he said, citing the example of Mali, where the United States has provided training and equipment to help them counter AQIM. The effort in Mali was done under the guise of the Pan Sahel Initiative (PSI), an effort to combat terrorism and secure borders in Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Chad, signed into law by the Bush administration in November 2002. In reality, the initiative focused on training and equipping American compliant armies as [k]ey aspects of the training include basic marksmanship, planning, communications, land navigation, patrolling and medical care. This foreign internal defense training, officials said, will help the countries involved better protect their own borders and regions. The PSI was a relatively small effort of $7 million, but laid the essential framework of which a much larger and more important counterterrorism initiative would be based: the Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership (TSCTP). The TSCTP was established during the Bush administration as a 5 year, $500 million project and is now under the authority of the fledgling AFRICOM, which is a mere 4 years old and is currently headed by General Carter Ham (the Department of Defense, USAID, the FBI, and Department of the Treasury also assist in the effort, as does the African Union and the Union of West African States). The goals of TSCTP are not surprising considering how terrorism of all kinds, even that unrelated to the United States, is looked upon in a paranoid fashion: The Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership (TSCTP) is a multi-faceted, multi-year U.S. Government (USG) program aimed at defeating terrorist organizations by: strengthening regional counterterrorism capabilities, enhancing and institutionalizing cooperation among the regions security forces, promoting democratic governance, discrediting terrorist ideology, and reinforcing bilateral military ties with the United States.

As this laundry list of objectives indicates, it appears that the US is approaching terrorism in Africa from many different perspectives. Mirroring Americas foreign policy, however, the TSCTP places too much emphasis on hard rather than soft power. An American diplomat from Senegal explains: The current TSCTP program focuses too much on military and security assistance [W]e believe that in Senegal the bulk of our TSCTP activities should be these &soft8 programs rather than military ones In Senegal, the objective is to prevent terrorist attacks. We are not at the stage yet where we need to find, fix and destroy terrorists. The diplomats assessment is spot on: what sense does it make to approach terrorism militarily when the threat of terrorism against the United States by African groups is next to nonexistent? Its also worth questioning why America even cares one iota about terrorism in Senegal or Burkina Faso. Neither country has ever experienced a terrorist attack, nor is either predisposed to terrorism. The military component of the program is very troublesome. Known as Operation Enduring Freedom Trans Sahara (OEF-TS), this little known military initiative is said to reinforce bilateral military ties among its ten members: Algeria, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Tunisia, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, and Senegal. Given the past actions of the US, which has shown complete willingness to exert control over militaries and security agencies all over the globe, this is hardly surprising. OEF-TS explicitly states that its role is advisory, emphasis mine: OEF-TS fosters collaboration and communication among participating countries. Furthermore, OEF-TS strengthens counterterrorism and border security, promotes democratic governance,reinforces bilateral military ties, and enhances development and institution building. Likewise, the TSCTP site makes clear that the US is participating from the sidelines, The overall goals are to enhance the indigenous capacities of governments in the Pan-Sahelto confront the challenge posed by terrorist organizations in the region. Recent events, however, have called into question American dedication to taking a backseat role, especially with the hysterical calls of danger coming from General Ham. The recent bombing in of the UN mission in Abuja, Nigeria by Boko Haram saw heavy handed American involvement. The FBI was promptly on the ground assisting in operations, though many Nigerians balked at this and declared that they had not only run roughshod over Nigerian investigators, but had completely taken over the investigation. There is no better way to foster collaboration and communication than to hijack an investigation. For all the talk of encouraging cooperation and respect among allies in order to eradicate terrorism, American calls for good faith seem to be, more than anything, a disguise for

commanding around foreign countries. Cables obtained by Wikileaks show that the US continues to use one of the oldest tricks in the book for those not fully cooperating with the TSCTP: the power of the purse and well monied insiders. The American friendly Ben Ali regime, when compared to other members of the TSCTP, was not doing all that well. We will want to emphasize to Grira that while we value our relationship with Tunisia, shrinking resources will be prioritized for those countries that are willing to work with the U.S., particularly in regional security efforts such as the Trans-Sahara Counterterrorism Program (TSCTP) and NATOs Operation Active Endeavor. Tunisias Foreign Military Financing (FMF) will drop from $15 million in FY-2010 to $4.9 million in FY-2011. Congress was also unimpressed with Tunisias performance as a partner in counterterrorism, and would need to see concrete benefits coming from the assistance [and] a willingness to increase engagement in order to receive more funding. But perhaps what irked the United States the most, and really threw a wrench in the gears of the military component of TSCTP, Operation Enduring Freedom Trans-Sahara (OEF-TS), was the lack of a status of force agreement between the US and Tunisia. As they stood up to depart, the DCMA told the Defense Minister that the U.S. was still interested in establishing a SOFA [status of force agreement] for U.S. military forces in Tunisia and that Congress considers a SOFA very important in judging the strength of a relationship. Grira said that he was aware of the issue, but that the Tunisians were waiting for the U.S. to respond to their proposal for text changes. The US, yet again, was more focused on responding to terrorism rather than preventing it. The policy of leading from behind has also seemed to have been abandoned in Mauritania. The government of Mauritania unveiled a plan called Social and Economic Aspects of the National Strategy Against Terror. Rather than supplementing the strategy already established, the TSCTP parallels the GIRMs [Government of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania] SNLT [Strategie Nationale de Lutte contre le Terrorisme], but goes a step further. In little Mauritania, American policy has supplanted that of the host country. Leading from behind? Hardly. The man responsible for Mauritania and Americas close cooperation is Ministry of Economy and Finance Director for Cooperation Mohedyne Sidi Baba, who has been the Missions primary counterpart on USAIDs Trans Sahara Counterterrorism Partnership. Babas is indebted to and very comfortable with the financial organizations of all kinds: Mohedyne Ould Sidi Baba has been a vital player in building Mauritanias relations with the IMF, World Bank and donors. His tireless work was instrumental to Mauritanias consideration for the MCC [Millennium Challenge Corporation] and re-establishing confidence with the IMF.

Baba, in other words, has shown so much willingness to act on the behalf of the United States because they keep the money flowing to poverty stricken Mauritania. The recent establishment of AFRICOM, TSCTP and OEF-TS were created in the aftermath of 9/11 paranoia. Any threat of terrorism, real or otherwise, had to be scrutinized and, whenever possible, acted upon. While al-Qaeda had attacked US interests in Kenya and Tanzania years before, there was never once an existential threat to the US from African terrorist groups. American officials, in their crusade to destroy a war tactic, are now onto Africa. It looks as though Africa is being colonized yet again, but not by those searching for diamonds or by loan sharks from the IMF. Rather, the United States, acting as a partner in the War on Terror, seems dedicated to crafting and shaping malleable countries throughout the turbulent and eternally hopeless continent. ### Somali militants in key port 'attacked by US drones' (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15052484 25 September 2011 By BBC US has been launching unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, in an escalating campaign against Islamist militants The United States has launched a series of attacks by unmanned drones on the Somali Islamist group al-Shabab, local residents say. At least three targets were hit around Kismayo, the southern port which is under the control of the militants. One reconnaissance drone is reported to have crashed. Meanwhile, there have been clashes between Somali government troops and the militants in the Gedo region, further north. Residents of Kismayo say there were explosions around the city, with at least three targets being hit. It is reported that al-Shabab are patrolling the streets, preventing locals from using the hospital, which is treating their wounded. Kismayo is a key asset for the militants, allowing supplies to reach areas under their control and providing taxes for their operations.

In the Gedo region, there has been fighting around the town of Garbahare between al-Shabaab and government troops backed by local militia. A local MP, Mahmood Sayid, told the BBC that 120,000 people had fled to the town to escape the famine, but that there was nothing to give them. Deaths are being recorded every day, he said. ### US to build drone base in Ethiopia (Sudan Tribune) http://www.sudantribune.com/US-to-build-drone-base-in-Ethiopia,40239 24 September 2011 By Tesfa-Alem Tekle ADDIS ABABA -- The United States is reportedly set to build a new drone base in Ethiopia for counter-terrorism operations in the Horn of Africa, the Washington Post reports. The establishment of the drone base in the East African country will be used to carry out strikes against targets in the region mainly to confront the activities of designated terrorist groups such as Al-Shabab an al-Qaeda affiliate who are fighting the the weak transitional government of Somalia. Ethiopia has in recent years proved as a valued counterterrorism partner to deal with the threats posed by al-Shabaab. according to US officials who spoke to the Washington Post. The CIA and other agencies also employ Ethiopian informants who gather information from across the border, the Washington Post reported. The United States and Ethiopia have been discussing creating a drone base inside the Horn of Africa nation for the past four years according to one US official, but the plan was delayed because the Ethiopians were not all that jazzed. Ethiopian officials have not been available for confirmation over the report. The United States has in the past insisted it had no plans to build new bases on the African continent reassuring Africans that the new US Africa Command, responsible for US military operations and military relations with 53 African nations except Egypt, would not mean a stretched US military presence in Africa. However the latest move instead has proved Washingtons interest to extend the range of its drone weapons to Africa. The US has a long established base in Djibouti where it conducts drone attacks over targets inside Somalia and Yemen.

The US government had carried out unauthorised deadly drone attacks in at least six countries namely Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Libya, Somalia and Yemen where in most cases the attacks have sparked public anger. ### U.S. ramps up killer drone squadrons over Yemen and Somalia (Vancouver Sun) http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/ramps+killer+drone+squadrons+over+Yemen+So malia/5446536/story.html 23 September 2011 By Jonathan Manthorpe The United States administration of President Barack Obama is dramatically extending the reach of its program using missile-armed remote-controlled drone aircraft to assassinate terrorist and militant group leaders. The focus of the operation to hunt down and kill senior figures in al-Qaida and linked groups is shifting from Pakistan, where 581 of the more than 600 people killed in the 118 drone strikes launched last year were hiding, to the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The movement to deploy the Predator and Reaper drones to a U.S. base in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, an un-named Arab state, and the Indian Ocean islands nation of Seychelles is in response to the rising presence of al-Qaida and its affiliates in the failed states of Somalia and Yemen. Since he came to the presidency in 2008, Obama and his officials have increasingly adopted the controversial drone program as their weapon-of-choice against leaders of militant groups. The New American Foundation keeps track of drone attacks. It reckons there were 33 in 2008 when Obama came to office, compared with nearly 120 last year. The program is controversial not least because of the hazy legal authority under which U.S. officials, usually Central Intelligence Agency operatives sitting at consoles in America, remotely control the drones and fire their Hellfire missiles at people intelligence information identifies as militants in Pakistan or elsewhere. The drones were originally designed as aerial reconnaissance vehicles, but since they have been equipped with missiles they are known to have been used in Afghanistan, Libya, Yemen, Iraq and Somalia as well as Pakistan. As well as the cloudy legal authority for assassinating people in countries with which the U.S. is not at war, there is the matter of killing innocent bystanders.

In Pakistan in particular, there has been much public outrage at so-called "collateral damage" when missile attacks have killed women, children and other people who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. U.S. officials insist the drones have become much more of a precision killing instrument, or "operational tool" as they prefer to call them, since the early days. The New American Foundation says it believes that, since April, drone attacks in Pakistan's lawless border area with Afghanistan have killed up to 191 militants and only 10 civilians. Even so, the U.S. is reported by the Washington Post and other news media to have in April suspended drone flights from an air strip in Pakistan's southwestern Baluchistan province amid tensions with the Islamabad government. Those tensions stem from flagrant and unsubtle operations by American intelligence agents in Pakistan, and have persisted because of the mutual suspicion between Washington and Islamabad after U.S. commandos killed Osama bin Laden at his hideout in the Pakistani military enclave of Abbottabad in May. Since April, the drone-fired attacks in Pakistan have all been launched from Afghanistan. It is the success of this assassination program, in contrast to the George W. Bush administration's use of U.S. and allied military units against terrorists, that has precipitated the move to the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Yemen, the family home of bin Laden where President Ali Abdullah Saleh is besieged by four separate uprisings, and Somalia, where there has been no functioning government for 20 years, are both the kind of failed states that provide a refuge for al-Qaida. Yemen has become a blatant terrorist hideout with the establishment of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula. Among this group is the man some American officials regard as the most dangerous al-Qaida member at large, the charismatic Americanborn cleric and online preacher, Anwar al-Aulaqi. Aulaqi fled to his family home in Yemen from the U.S. after the Federal Bureau of Investigation linked him to the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers; since then, he has inspired several attempted attacks in America - and one successful attack at Fort Hood, Texas. He escaped a drone attack in Yemen in May, but remains at the top of the CIA's target list. Aulaqi is also linked to the Islamic militant al-Shabab group in Somalia, which controls much of the south of the country where there has been no functioning government since 1991.

U.S. forces have made several conventional air strikes against al-Shabab leaders and units in the last few years, but in June used missile-armed drones for what is believed to be the first time to try to kill two senior members of the group near the southern city of Kismayo. U.S. embassy documents published by WikiLeaks show that in 2009 American officials got permission from Seychelles President James Michel to use his country as a base for unarmed drones to gather information on Somali pirates and militants. Michel said that because of political sensitivities he and he alone is to be informed if armed drones are being used. In Ethiopia, the government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi is being equally cautious before playing host to Obama's killer drones. ### As drones proliferate, Navy avoids the rush (Washington Post) http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/checkpoint-washington/post/as-drones-proliferatenavy-avoids-the-rush/2011/09/22/gIQAcmgToK_blog.html 23 September 2011 By Craig Whitlock With armed drones now deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Libya and Yemen, theres huge demand in the U.S. military and CIA to acquire hunter-killer unmanned aircraft such as Predators and Reapers. But one branch of the military is generally keeping its distance. In the fall of 2009, the Navy took delivery of three new MQ-9 Reapers, a modernized version of the old Predators manufactured by General Atomics. It was the Navys first batch of Reapers, and all were deployed for their first mission to the Seychelles Islands in the Indian Ocean. The Reapers were equipped with especially advanced sensors and could stay aloft for 40 hours at a time, far longer than other models. The Navy and the U.S. Africa Command wanted to see how the drones would fare on long flights over open waters to search for pirates, as well as on secret counterterrorism missions to Somalia. The Navy later added a fourth Reaper to its fleet in the Seychelles, which was manned by between 80 and 100 military personnel and contractors, according to Navy officials and diplomatic cables obtained by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks. The Navy operated the drones for about 18 months -- long enough to get a taste of the technology and to decide that it wasnt interested. In March 2011, Navy personnel in Victoria, the capital of the Seychelles, boxed up the automated birds with 66-foot wingspans and signed them over to the Air Force. Two of the

boxes were shipped back to the United States, while the other two stayed on the island, according to a Navy official involved in the program. With such a hot market for drones, why would the Navy want to get rid of them? Amanda Greenberg, a spokeswoman for the Navy at the Pentagon, said the service originally acquired the Reapers so it could learn lessons about unmanned aircraft operations in supporting maritime missions. The demonstrations objectives were met, she added. The Navy gave the platform and the mission back to the Air Force. Officials with the militarys Africa Command, which oversaw the Seychelles mission, dubbed Operation Ocean Look, said they were pleased with how things turned out. It was deemed a success, said Lt. Cmdr. James Stockman, a spokesman for the Africa Command, based in Stuttgart, Germany. The Navy has taken some knocks over the years for resisting the onrush of drone technology. More drones mean less money to buy traditional manned aircraft, and fewer jobs for pilots. In that respect, many naval aviators are just as skeptical of drones as their brethren in the Air Force once were. Attitudes in the Air Force, though, have shifted since 2008, when then-Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates fired the civilian and military leaders of the Air Force, partly because he was unhappy that they didnt move more quickly to send drones to the war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although it no longer owns any Reapers, the Navy is not abandoning the drone business entirely. Its placing its bet on more expensive Global Hawks, a high-altitude surveillance aircraft that will eventually replace the Cold War-era U-2 spy planes. Its also investing heavily in the X-47B, a combat drone designed to take off and land on aircraft carriers. That model isnt scheduled to deploy until 2018. Meanwhile the Air Force has unboxed its early Christmas presents from the Navy and resumed Reaper flights from the Seychelles this month, Stockman said. ### A closer look at drones (LA Times) http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/opinionla/la-ed-drones-20110925,0,7508030.story 25 September 2011 Editorial The U.S. is expanding their use in targeted killings, but there are serious moral and legal questions. Reports that the United States is establishing bases for drone aircraft in the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula are the latest example of a transformation in the war on

terrorism that poses serious questions about overreach and accountability. According to the Washington Post, a "constellation" of bases would allow the targeting of Al Qaeda affiliates and other terrorists in Yemen and Somalia, new battlegrounds in the conflict with Islamic militants. Though some of the drones are supposed to be unarmed, the overall effort is designed for counter-terrorism, a term that encompasses both the gathering of intelligence and targeted killings. Bases are being established or have been established in Ethiopia, the Seychelles and Djibouti. Clearly the CIA and the Pentagon regard the campaign of assassination by air as a success. And in some ways, drone warfare is preferable to the alternative. For example, attacks by drones are less likely to result in the death of unintended victims than strikes by, say, fighter jets. That's not to say that there hasn't been collateral damage, but if one accepts the basic principle that assassination of enemy operatives is legitimate and that some innocent lives will be lost in the process, the use of unmanned aircraft doesn't change the moral calculus. But are these targeted killings in fact legitimate? One worrisome aspect is the geographical reach of the strategy. We're at war in Afghanistan (a conflict that has spilled over into Pakistan), but do we also have the right to kill people we think may pose a threat in Somalia or Yemen? And if we can do it in Somalia and Yemen, can we also do it in London or Los Angeles? Would we think it was acceptable if Russia gunned down a Chechen terrorist on the streets of New York? Granted, the battlefield in the war against terrorism transcends national borders, but surely there must be some limit? Instead, Congress is moving to expand the theater of operations. A defense bill approved in May by the House of Representatives authorizes force directed against "Al Qaeda, the Taliban, and associated forces," but doesn't include any geographical limitations whatsoever. We're also concerned about the process by which the military and the CIA determine who belongs on a target list. The United States should not be aiming its missiles at everyone who associates with Al Qaeda and similar groups, or at mere propagandists. (The U.S. government now considers Anwar Awlaki, the American citizen thought to be on a target list, an operative as well as a spokesman for Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.) Decisions about targeted killings should be reviewed at the highest levels of the administration and monitored closely by Congress. Targeted killings raise serious moral and legal questions, but the Obama administration seems determined to expand their use as the United States withdraws forces from Afghanistan. If the policy is to be pursued, it should be subject to more stringent oversight. That includes a greater effort to avoid civilian casualties an effort the administration insists it makes and a decision to limit aerial assassination to terrorist leaders who are actually planning attacks on the United States. The establishment of new drone bases accentuates the importance of such controls. ###

VIDEO REPORT: Antiwar.com editorial director Justin Raimondo appeared on FOX News Freedom Watch with Judge Andrew Napolitano tonight. He spoke about Obamas secret drone wars, stating the U.S. is expanding its drone wars into the core of Africa. http://www.antiwar.com/blog/2011/09/24/americas-quest-for-africa/

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