AFRICOM Related News Clips 11 August 2011

8/6/2019 AFRICOM Related News Clips 11 August 2011

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United States Africa CommandPublic Affairs Office11 Aug 2011

USAFRICOM - related news stories

TOP NEWS RELATED TO U.S. AFRICA COMMAND AND AFRICA

US group trains troops in Somalia(AP)10 Aug 2011 - On the front lines of Mogadishu's streets, Islamist militants battle AfricanUnion troops. Standing alongside the peacekeepers are members of an American-runteam of advisers, former military men who play a little-known but key role in the waragainst al-Shabab.

Mali launches $69 mln plan to control, develop north(Reuters)10 Aug 2011 - Mali has launched a 32 billion CFA franc programme to try and restorethe government's authority in its desert north where a mix of rebels and criminals havefomented insecurity through kidnappings, smuggling and uprisings.

U.S. Delegates Mobilize Global Response to Horn of Africa Crisis(U.S. departmentof State)9 Aug 2011 - Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Biden, has led a U.S. delegation to theHorn of Africa to mobilize a global response to the region's worst drought in more than60 years, which the United Nations estimates has left at least 12.4 million people inurgent need of food, water and medical care.

Was the food crisis in Kenya avoidable?(BBC)10 Aug 2011 - Around 10% of all Kenyans now need food aid - and the number is rising.But was this crisis avoidable?

Libyan TV shows footage of 'Khamis Gaddafi'(Al Jazeera)10 Aug 2011 - Libyan state television has shown what it said was footage of MuammarGaddafi's son Khamis visiting people wounded in an air attack east of Tripoli.

Gbagbo son charged in Ivory Coast(BBC)10 Aug 2011 - The son of Ivory Coast's former President Laurent Gbagbo is among 12people who have been charged over post-election violence which killed an estimated3,000 people.

African viewpoint: Caged comeuppance?(BBC)


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10 Aug 2011 - In our series of viewpoints from African journalists, film-maker andcolumnist Farai Sevenzo considers whether the former Egyptian President HosniMubarak's murder and corruption trial is a victory for justice.

Next Step - Clean Up the Niger Delta(All Africa.com)

10 Aug 2011 - The recommendations of the United Nations Environment Programme'sstudy on oil pollution in Ogoniland point to the need for a genuine shift in the prioritiesand practices of the oil industry and government regulatory agencies in the Niger Delta.

Ugandan police fire teargas at Besigye's supporters(Reuters)10 Aug 2011 - MASAKA, Uganda (Reuters) - Ugandan police fired teargas onWednesday to disperse thousands of supporters of opposition leader Kizza Besigyewho had gathered in the town of Masaka in southwest Uganda where he renewed callsfor protests against high food and fuel prices.

Obama administration establishes government board to prevent genocide(TheChristian Science Monitor)8 Aug 2011 - On Thursday, the White House announced some positive news in the fightagainst genocide and mass atrocities. The administration plans to create a newinteragency Atrocities Prevention Board that will coordinate a comprehensivegovernment approach to prevent mass atrocities and genocide . The board whoseexact authority, mandate, and structure will be under interagency review over the nextmonths will begin functioning within 120 days, according to the presidential directiveannouncing its creation.

U.S. Response to Humanitarian Crisis in the Horn of Africa(DoS State.gov fact sheet)10 Aug 2011 - More than 12.4 million peopleprimarily in Ethiopia, Kenya, andSomaliaare in need of emergency assistance in the Horn of Africa. The United Statesis deeply concerned by the humanitarian emergency in the Horn of Africa, the faminethat is underway in parts of Somalia, and the escalating refugee crisis across the region.

Somali famine: Ghana schoolboy raises aid money(BBC)10 Aug 2011 - An 11-year-old Ghanaian schoolboy has so far raised more than $500(300) for victims of the famine in Somalia.

UN News Service Africa BriefsFull Articles on UN Website

World must aid Somalia at historic juncture on its road to stability10 August Recent political and military improvements in war-torn Somalia offer anextraordinary moment of opportunity for progress and great challenges, includingfrom warlords and terrorists, the top United Nations envoy in the country said today,urging the world community to provide more financial and logistical support.


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Somalias education sector further threatened by famine exodus, UN warns10 August Immediate action and funding are urgently needed to prevent a dramatic

worsening of the educational situation in war- and drought-wracked Somalia, wheresome 1.8 million children are already out of school, with a knock-on effect on access to

health care, the United Nations warned today.

High food prices exacerbate crisis in drought-affected Horn of Africa UN10 August The prices of grain and milk in the drought-hit Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya

and Somalia have risen to record highs, exacerbating hardship for the estimated 12.4million people in the region who are facing severe food shortages and famine in someparts of Somalia, the United Nations reported today.

Results of Tanzanian survey on violence against children spur call to action by UN10 August The United Nations has encouraged Tanzania to urgently address the

problem of violence against children in the wake of a new Government-led survey inwhich almost three quarters of girls and boys said they had experienced physicalviolence before the age of 18 at the hands of an adult or an intimate partner.------------------------------------------------------------------------UPCOMING EVENTS OF INTEREST:

WHEN/WHERE: Aug. 11, 2011, at 2:00 p.m.; 799 United Nations Plaza, New York.WHAT: New York Foreign Press Center On-The-Record Briefing on Global SocialChange and new engagement in the Muslim world: Where we go from here and therole of youth and social media.

WHO: Farah Pandith, Special Representative to Muslim Communities, briefs.INFO: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/125492.htm

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------FULL ARTICLE TEXT

US group trains troops in Somalia (AP)By Katharine Houreld10 Aug 2011 - On the front lines of Mogadishu's streets, Islamist militants battle AfricanUnion troops. Standing alongside the peacekeepers are members of an American-runteam of advisers, former military men who play a little-known but key role in the war

against al-Shabab.

Aside from covert raids by special operations forces, the U.S. government has not beeninvolved militarily in Somalia since the intervention almost two decades ago thatculminated in the Black Hawk Down battle. But a Washington-based company has beenquietly working in one of the world's most dangerous cities to help an AU


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peacekeeping force protect the Somali government from al-Qaida-linked Islamistinsurgents.

While troops struggle to get control of this shattered capital that has been filling withrefugees fleeing famine in southern Somalia, The Associated Press got rare access to the

military advisers, providing a first look into their work.

The men employed by Bancroft Global Development live in small trailers nearMogadishu's airport but often go into the field. It's dangerous work two Bancroftmen were wounded last month.

Among the advisers are a retired general from the British marines, an ex-French soldierinvolved in a coup in Comoros 16 years ago, and a Danish political scientist.

Funded by the United Nations and the U.S. State Department, Bancroft has provided

training in a range of military services, from bomb disposal and sniper training tohanding out police uniforms.

Michael C. Stock, the American head of Bancroft, said his men share information withthe FBI about bomb materials and the DNA of suicide bombers, who sometimes turnedout to be Somali-American youths from the Midwest. Stock said his company receivesno recompense for sharing information with the FBI.

Stock strongly objects if "mercenary" is used to describe his men. Instead he describesBancroft as a non-governmental organization dedicated to finding permanent solutions

to violent conflict. His men say they are trying to stabilize a country ravaged by 20years of civil war and now a famine estimated to have killed 29,000 children in the pastthree months.

"We take calculated risks to be side by side with our protegees," said Stock, who visitsMogadishu only intermittently and for short periods of time, believing it is best not tohave Americans working in Mogadishu. "It gives us credibility with them. They knowwe know what we are talking about."

At their beach-side camp in Mogadishu, diplomats, journalists and aid workers swaptip-offs by the bar. Stories fly through the air faster than the bats that hunt in theshadows, a way to unwind after a day of tense work.

Richard Rouget, a cigar-smoking, poetry-quoting, whiskey-drinking former big gamehunter and right-hand man of French mercenary Bob Denard, has a long scar on histhigh from getting shot in Somalia last year. Another round slammed into the chestplate of his body armor.


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Much of Mogadishu in recent years has been held by al-Shabab, militants who havedenied many aid agencies access to their territory which is the epicenter of the famine.The AU force, which supports the weak U.N.-backed Somali government, only took fullcontrol of the bombed-out capital after the Islamists withdrew from their bases there onSaturday.

"They have gone from their bases but their fighters are still around. We're probablygoing to see them using bomb attacks, assassinations, a type of guerrilla war," said AUforce commander Maj. Gen. Fred Mugisha.

The Bancroft advisers camp out with AU soldiers on the front lines, training them tofight in urban areas and dispose of bombs. When the AU first arrived in 2008, therewere dozens of bomb attacks. Nearly 100 soldiers died in such attacks in that first year,and around 20 in the second. The AU hasn't lost a soldier to a roadside bomb in over ayear.

The U.S. State Department has funded the company's training in Somalia of soldiersfrom Uganda and Burundi, who comprise the AU peacekeeping force, inmarksmanship and bomb disposal. Other funding has come from the U.N. Thecontracts have totaled $12.5 million since 2008, the year the company started working inSomalia, Stock said.

Earlier this week, Martinus "Rocky" Van Blerk swept the road to Mogadishu's port forbombs, blew up a grenade found in a newly taken al-Shabab base and answered twocalls about suspected bombs. The defused mortar shells and bomb components lie

rusting in a pile near the airport; interesting or unusual devices and remains fromsuicide bombers are sent to the FBI for analysis.

"That's where I blew up the bodies of those two suicide bombers last week," Van Blerktold AP at a newly taken al-Shabab base, pointing to a dip in the sand and a charredwall spattered with dark residue. The bombers were shot before they could detonatetheir suicide vests.

Wearing government uniforms, they had attacked with machine guns. They shot one ofVan Blerk's South African Bancroft colleagues as well as a contractor from a deminingcompany and 10 Ugandan soldiers trained in bomb disposal. The demining contractorand six of the Ugandans died. Dark trails of blood smear the floor inside the housewhere the trainer crawled for cover. Another Bancroft employee was shot in thestomach the day before but survived.

Militants have carried out three such "forced entry" attacks by men wearing suicidevests and firing small arms in the last two months. It's a relatively new tactic by Somaliinsurgents, used successfully elsewhere by al-Qaida.


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"See here?" Van Blerk waved at to a row of roofless, bullet-scarred buildings inMogadishu. "This is where they rammed my vehicle with a car bomb," referring to anattack in 2008.

In June, Van Blerk's men found their first explosively formed projectile or EFP atype of bomb commonly used in Iraq and seen in Afghanistan that can penetratearmored vehicles. It had never been seen in Somalia before June and is evidence offoreign fighters training Somalia's Islamist militants. Western intelligence has longfeared that terrorists sought to use the lawless nation as a training ground.

The Bancroft team this week was discussing their marksmanship training program.Their idea was to encourage the peacekeepers to use sharpshooters instead of mortars,which sometimes hit residential neighborhoods and kill civilians. They train theBurundian and Ugandan soldiers in the AU force in marksmanship. Now a list of no-

fire zones is pinned to the wall of their office.

"We had a problem with indiscriminate indirect fire, so we encouraged the AU to usesnipers instead," said Rouget, referring to weapons like mortars. "It's discriminate,accurate."

Lt. Julius Aine, one of the Ugandan soldiers trained by Bancroft, said the training hashelped his men be more professional.

"The major lessons have been about fighting in built-up areas," he said, looking out at

the smashed ruins of houses so full of bullet holes they resembled concrete lace. "We areused to the bush, not fighting in the streets. This has really helped us."----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Mali launches $69 mln plan to control, develop north (Reuters)By Non-Attributed Author10 Aug 2011 - Mali has launched a 32 billion CFA franc programme to try and restorethe government's authority in its desert north where a mix of rebels and criminals havefomented insecurity through kidnappings, smuggling and uprisings.

The government is hoping to develop the north, which is potentially rich in resourcesand was once frequented by foreign tourists but remains impoverished and awash withgunmen, including groups linked to al Qaeda.

Having lost some $110 million in revenues from tourism over the last two years,President Amadou Toumani Toure said the government would hit back by redeployingsome administrative offices and providing infrastructure and development.


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"Poverty and insecurity are perfect breeding grounds for terrorism andfundamentalism," Toure said on Wednesday while explaining the two-year plan onstate television.

The influence of the central government in the isolated north has always been weak,

and nomadic Tuareg rebels launched rebellions there in the 1990s and in 2007.

But Mali, Niger and Mauritania have struggled to tackle the spreading insecurity,which has seen drug smuggling rise and dozens of Westerners kidnapped and mostlyend in the hands of al Qaeda's North African wing.

Mali's government said earlier this month the insecurity had cost the country some 50billion CFA francs in lost tourism receipts and 8,000 jobs over the past two years.

Western nations led by former colonial power France and the United States have led

efforts to provide military support to these countries but analysts say more progress indevelopment and tackling corruption is needed.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------U.S. Delegates Mobilize Global Response to Horn of Africa Crisis (U.S. departmentof State)By MacKenzie C. Babb9 Aug 2011 - Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Biden, has led a U.S. delegation to theHorn of Africa to mobilize a global response to the region's worst drought in more than60 years, which the United Nations estimates has left at least 12.4 million people inurgent need of food, water and medical care.

"The visit was important in terms of shedding light on the important efforts that areunder way and the importance of continued support from the internationalcommunity," Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees and Migration EricSchwartz said during an August 9, 2011 State Department briefing on the trip. Schwartzand Biden were joined on the visit by representatives from across the U.S. government,including U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator RajivShah, Special Assistant to the President Gayle Smith and former Senator Bill Frist.

The group's August 8 visit came as President Obama approved an additional $105million for humanitarian relief efforts, money the White House said will help fund "theurgently needed food, health, shelter, water and sanitation assistance for those whodesperately need help" across the region.

Biden's trip "underscored the commitment of the U.S. government -- the single largestdonor in the region -- to respond to the immediate crisis with life-saving assistance andinvestments in long-term solutions to hunger," Shah said in a USAID release August 9.


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"Ultimately, we know that it is smarter and cheaper to invest in food security than facethe consequences of famine and food riots."

To demonstrate U.S. support for agricultural development in the region, Biden visitedthe Kenya Agricultural Research Institute in Nairobi and met with Agriculture Minister

Sally Kosgei. U.S. officials say that, as a result of severe drought, the Horn of Africafaces widespread crop failure, livestock mortality and increased food prices.

The United Nations says Somalia has been hardest hit by the crisis, with famine nowaffecting five regions across the country and threatening to spread. The U.S. Agency forInternational Development estimates that more than 600,000 Somalis have fled toneighboring countries, many "walking hundreds of miles to refugee camps in search offood and water" in a migration that has put additional strain on drought-affected areasof Kenya and Ethiopia.

Biden visited the Dadaab Refugee Complex in eastern Kenya, which Schwartz sayscurrently hosts more than 420,000 Somali refugees, making it the largest refugee campin the world.

She also met with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odingaduring her trip "to discuss how the United States can work with international partnerson the best response to the crisis," the White House said August 8.

USAID said the United States has contributed more than $565 million to the Horn ofAfrica in 2011 alone, helping at least 4.6 million people in need.

But Smith said that while the United States has played a leading role in assisting theregion, U.S. leaders are also "aggressively reaching out" to the international communityfor support.

"We need other countries to step up with us," she said, adding that even as globalleaders begin to take action, the United States continues to encourage all donors to"ramp up their responses."----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Was the food crisis in Kenya avoidable? (BBC)By Will Ross10 Aug 2011 - Around 10% of all Kenyans now need food aid - and the number is rising.But was this crisis avoidable?

Etukoit Erupe has set up home on a sandy parched plain, where there is not a hint of

vegetation as far as the eye can see.


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As he returned with a herd of goats and sheep, his legs were clearly in pain after the

two-hour walk from the pasture near a river.

"I have lost relatives in this drought - elderly relatives have died. We haven't had any

proper rain here for three years," he told me, adding that this was the worst drought to

hit the area for five years.

"There's hardly any grass anywhere so the livestock have been swept away - half my

animals have died - 40 of them - it is the same story in every homestead."

For the Turkana, losing the livestock is bit like someone hacking into your bank account

and making off with your life savings. The animals are their primary source of food -

milk, meat and blood - as well as their store of wealth.

At night, Mr Erupe's four children cooked maize porridge over a fire - the only meal of

the day.

The food has to be carefully rationed in the hope that it will last until the next food

distribution - a three-hour walk away.

But the current dry spell was long predicted so some feel the crisis could have been

prevented.

"This is a governance drought. It is a situation caused by the failure of the government

to plan," said John Githongo, a well known anti-corruption activist who heads the Inuka

Kenya Trust campaign group.

"Drought is an act of God. Famine is an act of man. What we are going through - it's an

act of men.

"The Turkana have been catastrophically let down. We have watched them melting in

the sun like an ice cream for the last two years knowing this was coming," he said.

The drought has also led to an increase in cross-border armed conflict over resources

amongst pastoralist communities. The latest clash on 5 August left 21 Turkana dead in

Todonyang - an attack blamed on Ethiopian raiders.

Nearby, an elderly woman, Kamuran Akai, had built her simple domed shelter from

branches. She held out her hand to show me the wild fruits that were keeping her

going, staving off the hunger.


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"For the last four years we have been depending on this food because of the drought,"

she said as she crushed a small yellowy-brown berry with a rock to make it more

digestible.

People here complain that the food handouts have been irregular and the quantities too

small.

Much of the Turkana region is arid so these resourceful hardy pastoralist communities

are used to periods without rain.

But climate change is a deadly reality here. Now the droughts are hitting more often -

every two years - whereas in the past they struck once a decade, leaving people more

time to build up their herds during the good years.

Over the past two weeks Kenyan people, rather than the government, have led the way

in addressing the food crisis.

The "Kenyans for Kenya" appeal aimed to raise at least $5m (3.1m) to enable the Kenya

Red Cross to help victims of the drought.

There were generous corporate donations but masses of Kenyans donated whatever

they could afford using mobile phone money transfers.

The Kenyan government has in the past made the right noises about increasing

assistance to the most drought-prone areas of the country. In April 2008 it set up the

Ministry of State for Development of Northern Kenya and other Arid Lands.

But as trucks of food donated by Kenyans are flagged off from Nairobi, the Anti-

Corruption Commission has been asked by the government to find out where at least

$4m disappeared to from the same ministry - money meant to help people manage

during droughts and improve their livelihoods.

Meanwhile, in more fertile parts of Kenya, farmers complain that their crops are rotting

because the roads are so bad they can't transport their produce to markets.

Critics point to this as another example of government failure turning the drought intoa humanitarian disaster.

The Kenyan government says it was aware of the impending drought in September last

year but that it struck harder than expected. Government has silos containing just a

quarter of what is supposed to be there for these emergencies - a short-fall blamed on

high food prices.


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The lack of trust in the government was one factor which persuaded people to

contribute to the Kenyans for Kenya appeal.

The Kenyan government admits the drought struck harder than expected

"It's no use picking up the phone and calling the PM [Prime Minister Raila Odinga] orthe president [Mwai Kibaki] - it's a waste of time," Mr Githongo told me, before turning

to the issue of corruption.

"Drought is big business. Huge profits are going to be made off this drought. People get

rich off drought as it means very rapid procurement, people can cut corners and

favoured contractors can make a profit.

"It's a very cynical situation but that's the truth. It is really infuriating because it slows

down the ability to mitigate this kind of situation even when it has arisen because

everybody wants to cut a piece of the pie."

Mr. Githongo says people raising money are trying to bypass the government "because

they have no confidence the government will deliver to the people of Turkana."

In South Turkana, I did see some evidence that suggested some politicians were trying

to make a difference.

In this arid land I was shocked to find a bright green 60-acre crop of maize. This was

made possible by a government-aided irrigation scheme. The plan is to irrigate 10,000

acres of land near the Turkwel River.

"We have a lot of hope for Turkana because areas next to the Turkwel River are very

fertile with a lot of water," said Daniel Waweru of the Kenyan government's National

Irrigation Board.

"If we could open bigger areas to irrigation then we will see we don't need food aid in

Turkana and across northern Kenya."

Pushed by the effects of climate change, there is an urgent need to switch from relying

on the unreliable rain-fed agriculture to embrace irrigation systems.

The government has announced that some 10,000 acres will be irrigated over the next

few years but the question is, will the food grown there remain in the Turkana region?


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Another factor meaning that Turkana is likely to remain vulnerable to drought is that

efforts to encourage people to switch from their nomadic lifestyle - relying on their

livestock to survive - and become more settled farmers seem to be having little impact.

"Our pastoralist lifestyle will not change because it is what we are used to. The drought

is severe and prolonged so the problem is we lose lives and our livestock.

"But we are not thinking of moving to centres and abandoning life with animals. We

want to stay with our animals," Mr Erupe told me before setting off once again on the

daily search for the dwindling pasture.

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Libyan TV shows footage of 'Khamis Gaddafi' (Aljazeera)

By Non-Attributed Author

10 Aug 2011 - Libyan state television has shown what it said was footage of Muammar

Gaddafi's son Khamis visiting people wounded in an air attack east of Tripoli.

Rebels had said last week that Khamis had been killed. The government had denied

rebel claims that Khamis, commander of one of Gaddafi's most loyal and best-equipped

units, had been killed by a NATO air strike near Zlitan.

Libyan TV said the footage was recorded on Tuesday. If genuine, it would be the first

visual proof that Khamis was still alive.

Wearing a military uniform and an orange beret and bearing a striking resemblance to

Khamis, a man was heard chatting to people the network said were wounded earlier onTuesday in a NATO air strike on farmhouses near Zlitan.

The government said 85 civilians were killed in the attack. NATO said it hit a legitimate

military target and was investigating the incident.

"They bombed the house. You mean you did not expect to be bombed," Khamis could

be heard asking a woman lying in a hospital bed.

Earlier, state television showed the charred bodies of at least three children who were

allegedly killed by a NATO strike on Monday night in the village of Majar, about150km east of the capital, Tripoli.

Majar is near Zlitan, where NATO forces have been mounting attacks on troops loyal to

Gaddafi.

It also showed wounded women and children being treated in a hospital.


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The Libyan government announced three days of mourning for the victims, according

to state television.

Mussa Ibrahim, the Libyan government spokesman, said: "After the first three bombs

dropped at around 21:00 GMT on Monday, many residents of the area ran to the

bombed houses to try to save their loved ones."

"Three more bombs struck. Thirty-three children, 32 women and 20 men from 12

families were killed in the massacre," Mussa told reporters on an organised visit.

NATO said overnight air strikes near Zlitan in western Libya were "legitimate" and that

it had no evidence that the bombs killed 85 villagers.

"We do not have evidence of civilian casualties at this stage," Colonel Roland Lavoie,

the NATO spokesman for the alliance's Libya campaign, said at a video conference held

at its Naples headquarters.

The European Union on Wednesday imposed new sanctions on Gaddafi's regime -

targeting two "economic entities" linked to human rights abuse, said EU foreign policy

chief Catherine Ashton.

An asset freeze and visa ban were extended to "two further entities closely linked to the

perpetrators of the serious human rights abuses in Libya, given the gravity of the

situation," Ashton explained.

While neither of the two entities have been revealed, a French foreign ministryspokeswoman said earlier that the restrictions would target Al Sharara, which operates

in the oil sector, as well as an administrative organisation linked to Gaddafi.

To date, the EU has frozen the funds and financial resources of six port authorities, 49

entities and 39 people. None of the 39, which include Gaddafi and some of his family

members, are allowed to enter the EU.

NATO has rejected growing international criticism of its air strike on Libyan television

last month, saying it had no evidence the attack caused any casualties.

Spokeswoman Carmen Romero said the alliance had not deliberately targeted

journalists. She said the alliance "targeted equipment that had been used to incite

attacks against civilians".

Libyan officials said the strike on the eve of Ramadan, on the state television's satellite

transmitters killed three journalists and injured 15 others.


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International journalists' groups condemned the strikes, saying they violated a UN

resolution banning attacks on the media.

On Monday, the UN cultural and educational body also denounced the strike, saying it

violated the Geneva Conventions.

Meanwhile, NATO warplanes bombed a Libyan warship docked in Tripoli harbour

after reportedly observing that weapons were being taken from it.

NATO said it destroyed several Libyan naval vessels in air strikes in May. Warships hit

at that time included a Koni-class frigate and a Combattante class fast-attack ship.

Meanwhile, in the opposition capital of Benghazi in eastern Libya, the National

Transitional Council (NTC) sought to display a show of unity a day after dissolving its

executive board and asking Mahmoud Jibril, its chairman, to elect a new one.

NTC officials said the head of the council, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, dismissed several top

ministers - including those responsible for finance, defence and information - while

calling for root and branch reform.

The chairman of Libya's opposition has called for unity among members of the

Al Jazeera's Tony Birtley, reporting from the opposition stronghold of Benghazi, said on

Tuersday the reshuffling came not only as a suprise but as a direct result of the murder

of Abdel Fattah Younes, the commander of the opposition forces, more than a week

ago.

Our correspondent said this was a crucial time for the NTC.

"We are starting to see cracks both politically and militarily and the sacking of the

executive committee is a direct consequence of Abdel Fattah Younes' death.

"There has been considerable pressure brought to bear by Younes' tribe - with 4,000 well

armed fighters the Obeidis are one of the largest in the east - and they wanted

resignations.

"The 16-man executive committees have been pushed to one side and they will not

return in any shape or form.

"There are cracks developing but the NTC is taking steps to show that it is in control

and in command and is taking the necessary measures to show they have the strength

and the unity to continue the fight against Muammar Gaddafi," Birtley said.


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In an interview with Al Jazeera on Monday, Abdul Jalil said: "Administrative mistakes

have been noted in the NTC bureau performance in recent period, prompting the NTC

to take the decision to dissolve the bureau.

"A newly formed bureau would be entrusted with reviewing the 'conspiracy' that

involved the assassination of General Younes," he said.

"The members of the executive bureau did not dispose with the assassination issue in a

proper manner.".

Asked whether they were accusing anyone, Abdul Jalil said, "No member of the

opposition fighters would behave that way with the commander of the national army

and his colleagues, unless there is a conspiracy."

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Gbagbo son charged in Ivory Coast(BBC)By Non-Attributed Author

10 Aug 2011 - The son of Ivory Coast's former President Laurent Gbagbo is among 12

people who have been charged over post-election violence which killed an estimated

3,000 people.

Michel Gbagbo, who has dual French and Ivorian nationality, was charged along with

other close allies of his father.

They include the former prime minister and head of Mr Gbagbo's Ivorian Popular Front

(PFI), Pascal Affi N'Guessan.

The group was among dozens put under house arrest with Mr Gbagbo in April.

The BBC's John James in Abidjan says all the key figures arrested with Mr Gbagbo have

now been charged, except for the former president and his wife Simone.

They are being held in separate towns in the north - a stronghold of President Alassane

Ouattara - and could be investigated by the International Criminal Court, our reporter

says.

The 12 are charged with taking part in an armed insurrection and attempting to

undermine the state in the world's largest cocoa producer.

Human rights groups strongly condemned their four-month detention, calling for them

to be charged or released.


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Mr Ouattara has always insisted that those on both sides of the political divide would

face justice if they committed crimes during the five-month dispute.

So far, none of his supporters have been arrested or charged, even though human rights

groups have accused some of them of killing people suspected of backing Mr Gbagbo.

Mr Gbagbo's lawyer, Herve Gouamane, condemned the charges.

Pro-Ouattara forces have also been accused of committing atrocities during the conflict

"What we deplore is the bizarre nature of this - the lawyers aren't informed," he told the

BBC.

"At the same time they talk about reconciliation they go after those who were close to

Gbagbo and they're attacked simply for being linked to Gbagbo."

Twenty-six other allies of Mr Gbagbo have already been charged, while international

arrest warrants have been issued for those who have fled overseas.

They include militant youth leader Charles Ble Goude and Kone Malachie, a self-

proclaimed prophet who told the former president he was God's appointed ruler of

Ivory Coast.

Mr Gbagbo refused to accept defeat in presidential elections in November.

He was ousted from power after forces loyal to Mr Ouattara - the internationally

recognised winner of the polls - entered Abidjan and captured him with the backing ofUN and French troops.

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African viewpoint: Caged comeuppance? (BBC)

By Farai Sevenzo's

10 Aug 2011 - In our series of viewpoints from African journalists, film-maker and

columnist Farai Sevenzo considers whether the former Egyptian President Hosni

Mubarak's murder and corruption trial is a victory for justice.

We are in August already and looking back on this momentous year of revolutions andnatural disasters, it seems that the Gods have packed so much into these eight months

they might as well consider giving 2011 24 months, for who knows how much more we

have yet to see and if our eyes can take it all.


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Transitional Council has had its entire cabinet dismissed by Mustafa Abdel Jalil - all of

which point to divisions galore somewhere in the near future.

Then, as we focus our eyes on the Arab region, London, that bastion of order, goes up in

flames to gangs of youths and looters.

Still, we shall continue to watch the changing fortunes of Mubarak & Sons, which is not

a business in financial crisis but the fate of justice in revolution's hands.

Is it too much to expect that justice should reach beyond the head of one autocrat - to

the snipers, tank drivers, riot policemen and assassins?

Has the excuse of "I was only following orders", ceased to be a legitimate legal defence?

We await Cairo's lead.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Next Step - Clean Up the Niger Delta (All Africa.com)

By Deirdre LaPin.

10 Aug 2011 - The recommendations of the United Nations Environment Programme's

study on oil pollution in Ogoniland point to the need for a genuine shift in the priorities

and practices of the oil industry and government regulatory agencies in the Niger Delta.

The study makes clear that nothing less than ending pollution and full remediation of

Ogoniland and the whole Niger Delta region should be accepted as an end point, she

says.

The long-awaited report from the United National Environmental Program (UNEP) on

oil damage in the Ogoni area was presented to President Goodluck Jonathan on August

4 in Abuja. This important study, the first of its kind in the Niger Delta, was conceived

well before 2006 by the Federal Government as part of the Ogoni reconciliation and

peace process led by Father Matthew Kukah (recently named Bishop of Sokoto).

Intended as a major assessment of the impacts of oil production in the Ogoni region,

UNEP in an early statement described the aim as to "clarify and de-mystify concerns

expressed by local communities".

Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) suspended active production in

Ogoniland in late 1993 as a response to growing resistance to industry presence led by

the martyred freedom fighter and writer Ken Saro-Wiwa. However, the company

remained responsible during its withdrawal for monitoring and maintaining its

installations, and especially the critical Trans-Niger pipeline serving Bonny Terminal. It

also left behind a number of spill sites.


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What the report does not fully reveal are the hazards and missteps that threatened to

upend the study itself. President Jonathan rightly notes that "an environmental war" has

been waged in the region for 50 years.

Anyone familiar with the long, tortuous history of UNEP study will be moved to

commend the agency and the presidential committee under Father Kukah for their

perseverance and courage in seeking to bring the truth to light. Their success was no

less due to the peaceful and patient support of the long suffering residents of

Ogoniland. The technical and political processes driving the study were intrusive, time-

consuming, and at times unclear. For more than four years many strangers were

welcomed into Ogoniland and facilitated by men and women in countless ways, despite

deep felt grievances born of repeated past injustices from both public and private

authorities.

Mr. Steiner has described UNEP's decision to undertake the study a "calculated risk" inthe hope of spurring action to rectify what he perceives as a "scandal." Aware that they

were entering a "contested area," the project team from UNEP's Post-Conflict and

Disaster Management Branch in Geneva packed its toolkit of technical acumen and

good intentions and walked, somewhat naively, straight into a minefield.

The polemical dimension of the environmental war had created a seasoned cadre of

Ogoni activists wary of good intentions. Past experience made them quick to see a

hidden agenda behind nearly every initiative. They had also become masters of the

message, raising their suspicions in public statements and in the press.

Field-level preparations in the first phase of the environmental study gained some

momentum in late 2006. Almost immediately, it proved to be a false start. At a

stakeholder engagement meeting in Gokana in November 2006, Rivers State Governor

Peter Odili alluded to a lingering problem when he noted that "the exercise had nothing

to do with Shell's re-entry into Ogoni."

For some years a rumor had circulated throughout the area that the reconciliation

sought by Father Kukah's committee was in fact meant to pave the way for SPDC to

resume production in the area. Adding to this suspicion was the discovery that theUNEP Project Coordinator based in Geneva was an environmental assessment specialist

who had previously been employed in Oman by a national oil company advised by

Shell. For these and other reasons, the study was temporarily suspended until a revised

agreement was signed with the Federal Government on November 5, 2007.


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By October 2009 UNEP opened a project office in Port Harcourt for its second phase

under the direction of a field project coordinator, Mike Cowing. He was assisted by 23

international, national and local staff. A spirit of goodwill and transparency seemed to

infuse the project. A web page at the UNEP site offered regular "field news updates"

and reported the official "relaunch" of UNEP's environmental assessment in Ogonilandin November 2009. By May 2010 the scientific sampling of oil contaminated sites had

begun in collaboration with the Rivers State University of Science and Technology.

In early August 2010 Mr. Cowing shared preliminary results from the field study at a

UNEP press conference. His comments, among others, observed that 10 percent of oil

spills at the sites studied could be attributed to SPDC, implying that the others were

related to the illicit local oil activity.

This assessment was not inconceivable for a region that had no formal oil production

since 1993 but which did have an active ongoing informal oil bunkering and refining.However, given that the study had not been completed, the comment was premature. It

was also unwise because it failed to underscore the significance of industry

responsibility for its ageing infrastructure and slow remediation. Instead it appeared to

blame the victim. On August 23 2010 UNEP apologized for the statement.

MOSOP withdrew its support for the study and complained of inadequate stakeholderengagement. (The report, however, says that 264 meetings attended by 23,000 peoplewere held.) Nevertheless, the project continued undeterred. Its team studied over 4,000samples of sediments from creeks, surface water, rainwater, fish and air - including 142

samples from groundwater wells drilled specifically for the project and soil samplesfrom 780 boreholes. In addition, over 5,000 medical records were examined.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ugandan police fire teargas at Besigye's supporters (Reuters)


10 Aug 2011 - MASAKA, Uganda (Reuters) - Ugandan police fired teargas on

Wednesday to disperse thousands of supporters of opposition leader Kizza Besigye

who had gathered in the town of Masaka in southwest Uganda where he renewed calls

for protests against high food and fuel prices.

The east African country was rattled by widespread opposition led anti-governmentprotests in April and May, sparked by rising consumer prices, and Besigye was arrestedand charged in court and beaten severely by security agents.

Besigye's rally was part of a candle light memorial service near the home of a 6-year-oldgirl who was shot and killed during one of the violent protests, dubbed "walk to work".


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Police fired tear gas canisters at a procession of opposition supporters, dispersingopposition supporters and mourners who were making their way through Masakatown to her graveside to lay flowers.

A police officer grabbed a wreath of flowers that was intended to be laid at the

graveside and ripped it apart.

The previous protests provoked a government crackdown in which nine people werekilled and hundreds of others injured, according to Human Rights Watch, which alsoaccused the police of using excessive force against unarmed civilians.

"Walk to work starts today again and we are starting by mourning the victims of policebrutality in April and May," Besigye told the rally.

"So when you hear our call to come and walk you should all rise up in huge numbers

and we take over the whole of Kampala."

Police were not immediately available to comment.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Obama administration establishes government board to prevent genocide (The

Christian Science Monitor)

By Amanda Hsiao

8 Aug 2011 - On Thursday, the White House announced some positive news in the fight

against genocide and mass atrocities. The administration plans to create a new

interagency Atrocities Prevention Board that will coordinate a comprehensive

government approach to prevent mass atrocities and genocide . The board whose

exact authority, mandate, and structure will be under interagency review over the next

months will begin functioning within 120 days, according to the presidential directive

announcing its creation.

With the creation of the new board, the Obama administration is taking an importantstep in fulfilling its own strategy that was laid out in May 2010, which recognized thatthe prevention of mass atrocities and genocide is central to U.S. national security.

The establishment of an Atrocities Prevention Board will increase the number of policyoptions available to the U.S. government, and allow the administration to act morerobustly to prevent, rather than just react to mass violence. The directive said:

Governmental engagement on atrocities and genocide too often arrives too late, whenopportunities for prevention or low-cost, low-risk action have been missed. By the time


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assistance will not solve the underlying long-term problems in the region, the U.S.

government is also working on comprehensive responses, such as through the

Presidents Feed the Future initiative.

Humanitarian Assistance to Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons, and other Drought

Affected Populations: Reports from inside Somalia indicate the situation is growingincreasingly desperate. The $565 million the U.S. government is providing includesassistance for refugees in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti. Much of this assistance waspreviously planned for the region to meet continuing critical humanitarian needs. Thetotal U.S. government assistance to the region also includes funding for the Office of theUnited Nations High Commissioner for Refugees recent Emergency Appeal for Somalirefugees. Our diplomacy and our dollars leverage other donor support for internationalprotection and assistance efforts. These efforts are critical to saving lives andmaintaining access to safe asylum in Somalias neighboring countries, even as theythemselves struggle with a drought that has been described as the worst in 60 years.

The U.S. government assistance is also being provided for health, nutrition, agricultureand food security, economic recovery and market systems, humanitarian coordinationand information management, and water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions inEthiopia, Somalia, and Kenya. The U.S. government is funding nutrition programs thattreat malnutrition and support community-based education. The U.S. is working toaddress the immediate lifesaving needs of affected populations while also buildingcommunities resiliency to future shocks.

Food Security: Part of our funding will benefit those in need of food assistance in

Ethiopia and Kenya. Our assistance will allow WFP to expand geographic coverage andscale up feeding programs in drought-affected areas in Ethiopia and Kenya. In total, theUnited States is providing approximately $400 million in humanitarian food aid toDjibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia this fiscal year.

The U.S.-funded Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) and FoodSecurity and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU), which the United States supports, havemaintained a strong presence in the region for decades, enabling the humanitariancommunity to identify conditions based on an extensive analysis of historical andcurrent rainfall, cropping patterns, livestock health, market prices and malnutritionrates. FEWS NETs early warning of the crisis in the Horn of Africa has allowed theUnited States to alert other donors and to make sizeable, early food aid contributionsand scale up emergency programs to meet the increasing needs in the region.

Feed the Future: President Obamas Feed the Future initiativewhich helps address theroot causes of hunger and undernutritionis critical at this time. Increasing theresiliency and further developing the capacity of pastoralists to engage in acommercially viable livestock trade is crucial to breaking the disaster cycle across the


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Horn. By working with other donors and governments in the region, Feed the Futurewill increase overall agricultural production as well as increase the resiliency ofpastoralists who suffer most acutely from the effects of the drought.

For example, Ethiopias Feed the Future program emphasizes improving early warning

systems, disaster risk management, and livelihoods in pastoralist and agriculture areas.Feed the Future will invest in Ethiopias Pastoralist Livelihoods Initiative. This programhas increased the value and sales of livestock by improving livestock health services,institutionalizing early warning and response, and improving land and watermanagement. At the regional level, East Africas Livestock Trade program focuses onthe trade of live animals, increasing the quality and availability of trade information,improving animal health, and building capacity for private sector trade groups.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Somali famine: Ghana schoolboy raises aid money (BBC)


10 Aug 2011 - An 11-year-old Ghanaian schoolboy has so far raised more than $500

(300) for victims of the famine in Somalia.

Andrew Andasi launched his campaign last week after watching footage of people

walking in search of food.

He told the BBC he wanted to raise a total of $13m during his school holidays from

private donations.

After a meeting with the UN World Food Programme Bank director in Ghana to ask for

advice, Andrew set up a bank account for donations on Tuesday.

"I'm very very sure that I can raise it in just one month," he told the BBC.

"I want individuals, companies, churches, other organisations to help me get 20m

Ghana cedis."

He said that UN organisations had advised him to raise money rather than food for his

Save Somali Children from Hunger campaign.

"If they send it to Somalia they can buy it [food] somewhere around Somalia because

if we gather the food items it will take a long time and the plane will cost a lot," he said.

The BBC's Samuel Bartels in the capital, Accra, says the boy's determination has

impressed Ghanaians and he has been appearing as a guest on TV and radio shows in

recent days.

Ismail Omer, the WFP representative in Ghana, said he was impressed with his efforts.


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"He is doing a lot of work and that is laudable," Mr Omer told the BBC.

"When he came to my office and said this is what he is doing, I was so delighted - I

became emotional.

The UN says about 3.6 million people are at risk of starvation in Somalia

"I hope he can be a good leader to his generation."

Andrew, who has printed flyers and stickers for his campaign, said he was moved to act

by seeing the images of Somali women and children walking for days in search of food.

He said he wanted to use his time off during his summer school holidays to help them.

"There has been serious hunger and death for [a] long time [in Somalia] - and if it goes

on their country will be useless," he told the BBC at the headquarters of Ecobank Ghana

in Accra after setting up a special bank account for donations.

"If I get the opportunity to go to Somalia I will talk and I will let the UN to make an

announcement the warring groups in Somalia should stop because of the sick children

and women," he said.

The UN says about 3.6 million people are at risk of starvation in Somalia.

More than 11 million people across the Horn of Africa have been affected by drought

this year - the region's worst for 60 years.

AFRICOM Related News Clips 11 August 2011

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