AFRICOM Related-News Clips 28 Oct 2011

8/3/2019 AFRICOM Related-News Clips 28 Oct 2011

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U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office +49(0)711-729-2687 [email protected]

United States Africa CommandPublic Affairs Office28 October 2011

USAFRICOM - related news stories

Good morning. Please find attached news clips related to U.S. Africa Command andAfrica, along with upcoming events of interest for October 28, 2011.

Of interest in todays clips:

The Associated Press highlights the United States' growing role in conflicts in Africa,specifically regarding the use of advisors and technology as opposed to troops on the

ground.

Craig Whitlock from the Washington Post is once again drawing attention to drones as hedescribes the use of these armed weapon systems, based in Arba Minch, Ethiopia, andtheir missions to target Al-Shabaab.

According to Reuters the NATO mission to support the UN Mandate has come to an endwhile The Telegraph reports that those responsible for Qadhafis execution will bebrought to trial.

Reuters reports that Moammar Qadhafi's fugitive son, Saif al-Islam, wants an aircraft totake him out of Libya's southern desert so he can turn himself in to The Hague warcrimes court.

In Kenya: There are reports of a cross border attack on the Kenyan border town ofMandera. The attack by Al-Shabaab appears to be in retribution for Kenyas militarymovement into Southern Somalia.

In Sudan: Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir says his country gave military support tothe Libyan rebels who overthrew Col Moammar Qadhafi.

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U.S. Africa Command Public AffairsPlease send questions or comments to:[email protected] (+49-711-729-2687)

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Top News related to U.S. Africa Command and Africa

Somalia, Libya, Uganda: US increases Africa focus (Associated Press)http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-

increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.html27 October 2011By Jason StraziusoWhile putting few U.S. troops at risk, the United States is playing a growing role inAfrica's military battles, using special forces advisers, drones and tens of millions ofdollars in military aid to combat a growing and multifaceted security threat.

U.S. drone base in Ethiopia is operational (Washington Post)http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.html27 October 2011

By Craig WhitlockThe Air Force has been secretly flying armed Reaper drones on counterterrorismmissions from a remote civilian airport in southern Ethiopia as part of a rapidlyexpanding U.S.-led proxy war against an al-Qaeda affiliate in East Africa, U.S. militaryofficials said.

Libyan Fighters to Receive U.S. Medical Treatment (American Forces Press)http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=6585528 October 2011The U.S. government will bring two dozen Libyan rebel fighters to the United States formedical treatment they cannot receive at home, Secretary of State Hillary RodhamClinton and Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta announced this evening.

UN to end mandate for NATO military operations in Libya (Reuters)http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/27 October 2011By Louis CharbonneauThe U.N. Security Council plans on Thursday to end its authorization for a 7-month-oldNATO military operation in Libya that led to the ouster and death of Libyan leaderMuammar Gaddafi.

Libya's new rulers vow to prosecute those responsible for Col Gaddafi's death (TheTelegraph)http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.html27 October 2011By Ben FarmerLibya's new rulers have said they will prosecute the killers of Col Muammar Gaddafifollowing an outcry over his apparent execution.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=65855http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=65855http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=65855http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.html


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Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, vice chairman of the National Transitional Council (NTC), saidwhoever killed the former dictator, who was seized as he tried to break out of hisbesieged hometown, would be "judged and given a fair trial".

Gaddafi son seeks aircraft to surrender: NTC source (Reuters)

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X2011102727 October 2011By Samia NakhoulMuammar Gaddafi's fugitive son Saif al-Islam wants an aircraft to take him out ofLibya's southern desert so he can turn himself in to The Hague war crimes court, a sourcewith Libya's National Transitional Council said on Thursday.

Libyan oil suspension pushes down quarterly earnings at Germanys BASF(Associated Press)http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0

27 October 2011Germanys BASF SE said Thursday the suspension of oil production in Libya pusheddown in its third-quarter earnings, although the chemical company reported a healthyoverall rise in revenue and said it was able to pass higher costs for raw materials on tocustomers.

Somalia's al Shabaab vows war against Kenya (Reuters)http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q0AM2011102727 October 2011By Ismail Taxta and Abdi SheikhSomalia's al Shabaab rebels vowed on Thursday to fight Kenya after its troops enteredthe Horn of Africa nation and called on sympathisers to carry out major attacks in eastAfrica's biggest economy.

Kenya has right to pursue al Shabaab: Somali PM (Reuters)http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q06F2011102727 October 2011By Mohamed AhmedKenya has every right to pursue al Shabaab rebels in Somalia, but Somali governmenttroops must be in charge of operations against the Islamist rebels, Somalia's primeminister said.

Prince William supervisor campaigns spar on issues (Washington Post)http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.html27 October 2011By Jeremy BordenPrince William County campaigns began to turn up the heat this week.
http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X20111027http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q0AM20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q0AM20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q06F20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q06F20111027http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q06F20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q0AM20111027http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X20111027


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Democratic candidate Babur Lateef is planning to spend $25,000 to air a campaign adagainst Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart in the countys at-largerace. The advertisement, which will air on cable stations countywide,

Deaths in attack in Kenya border town (Al Jazeera)

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111027102754587827.html27 October 2011Attack is the latest violent incident in the East African nation since it launched offensiveagainst al-Shabab. Four civilians have been killed by unidentified assailants who attackeda vehicle with rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns near the Kenya-Somaliborder, police and officials with Kenya's Red Cross say.

West's double standards (Sowetan)http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/world/2011/10/27/west-s-double-standards27 October 2011By Hope Mankwana Papo

No sooner had news of Muammar Gaddafi's execution spread from Sirte than an outburstof celebration greeted commentary in some circles across the globe.When an aide showed her a picture of Gaddafi's dead body, an excited .

Sudan armed Libyan rebels, says President Bashir (BBC News)http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-1547173426 October 2011By James CopnallSudanese President Omar al-Bashir says his country gave military support to the Libyanrebels who overthrew Col Muammar Gaddafi.

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UN News Service Africa Briefshttp://www.un.org/apps/news/region.asp?Region=AFRICA

Libya: Security Council ends mandate for international military operations27 OctoberThe Security Council today ordered the end to authorized internationalmilitary action in Libya, more than seven months after allowing United Nations MemberStates to take all necessary measures to protect civilians during a popular uprisingagainst the countrys former regime.

UN encourages Ivorian candidates to register for upcoming legislative polls27 OctoberThe United Nations peacekeeping mission in Cte dIvoire todayencouraged all candidates who are interested to register for the legislative electionsscheduled for 11 December as part of the ongoing efforts to restore peace and stability.

UN project seeks to make use of Niles resources to fend off poverty and hunger
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111027102754587827.htmlhttp://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111027102754587827.htmlhttp://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/world/2011/10/27/west-s-double-standardshttp://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/world/2011/10/27/west-s-double-standardshttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15471734http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15471734http://www.un.org/apps/news/region.asp?Region=AFRICAhttp://www.un.org/apps/news/region.asp?Region=AFRICAhttp://www.un.org/apps/news/region.asp?Region=AFRICAhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-15471734http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/world/2011/10/27/west-s-double-standardshttp://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111027102754587827.html


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27 OctoberA United Nations report released today on the use and management ofwater in the Nile River basin calls for new methods to boost agricultural productivity andwarns that governments must take action to keep population growth and resourcedegradation from intensifying poverty.

Senegal: UN launches task force to help stem drug trafficking through airport27 OctoberThe head of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) haslaunched a task force to boost the capacity of the international airport in the Senegalesecapital, Dakar, to intercept narcotics smuggled through the facility, a major air traffic hubin West Africa.

(Full Articles on UN Website)

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Upcoming Events of Interest:

No new events currently listed in DC or New York

West Coast

WHEN: October 31, 2011, 12:00 p.m.1:30 p.m.

WHAT: Seminar on Chinas Financial Circles: Banks, Borrowers and the National

BudgetWHO: Carl E. Walter, Former CEO at JPMorgan Chase Bank China Co. Ltd.WHERE: Philippines Conf. Room, Encina Hall, Stanford UniversityCONTACT: Irene Hung, 650-724-9632 or e-mail:[email protected] contact:http://aparc.stanford.edu/events/chinas_financial_circles_banks

WHEN: Thursday, November 3, 2011, 6:00 p.m.WHAT: Panel discussion on We the People: Islam and U.S. PoliticsWHO: Camille Alick, Muslims on Screen & TV; Joel Brinkley, Stanford U., MichaelWolfe, Unity Productions Foundation and Vincent Barletta, Stanford UniversityWHERE: Cubberley Auditorium School of Education, 485 Lasuen Mall, StanfordUniversityCONTACT: 650-736-8169 or e-mail:[email protected] contact:http://events.stanford.edu/events/293/29351/

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New onwww.africom.mil
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://aparc.stanford.edu/events/chinas_financial_circles_bankshttp://aparc.stanford.edu/events/chinas_financial_circles_bankshttp://aparc.stanford.edu/events/chinas_financial_circles_banksmailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://events.stanford.edu/events/293/29351/http://events.stanford.edu/events/293/29351/http://events.stanford.edu/events/293/29351/http://www.africom.mil/http://www.africom.mil/http://www.africom.mil/http://www.africom.mil/http://events.stanford.edu/events/293/29351/mailto:[email protected]://aparc.stanford.edu/events/chinas_financial_circles_banksmailto:[email protected]


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U.S. Army Africa Personnel Describe Challenges, Opportunities of providingCommunications and Information Network Support on Two Continentshttp://www.africom.mil/getArticle.asp?art=7366&lang=027 October 2011By Rich Bartell -U.S. Army Africa

VICENZA, Italy, Oct 27, 2011Near 50 soldiers and civilians of U.S. Army Africa's(USARAF) G-6 have the responsibility of ensuring that Internet and hardware workcontinually, both at the USARAF headquarters in Vicenza, Italy and on the Africancontinent.

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FULL TEXT

Somalia, Libya, Uganda: US increases Africa focus (Associated Press)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.html27 October 2011By Jason Straziuso

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP)While putting few U.S. troops at risk, the United States isplaying a growing role in Africa's military battles, using special forces advisers, dronesand tens of millions of dollars in military aid to combat a growing and multifacetedsecurity threat.

Once again, the focus is Somalia, the lawless nation that was the site of America's lastlarge-scale military intervention in Africa in the early 1990s. By the time U.S. forcesdeparted, 44 Army soldiers, Marines and airmen had been killed and dozens morewounded.

This time the United States is playing a less visible role, providing intelligence andtraining to fight militants across the continent, from Mauritania in the west along theAtlantic coast, to Somalia in the east along the Indian Ocean.

The renewed focus on Africa follows a series of recent and dramatic attacks.

In August, a hard-line Islamist group in Nigeria known as Boko Haram bombed the U.N.headquarters in the capital, Abuja, killing 24 people. A year earlier, militants from theSomali group al-Shabab unleashed twin bombings in Kampala, Uganda, that killed 76.And a Nigerian man tried to blow up an airliner over Detroit on Christmas Day 2009during a flight that originated from Lagos, Nigeria.

Most worrisome to the United States is al-Shabab, an al-Qaida-linked group in Somaliathat has recruited dozens of Americans, most of Somali descent.
http://www.africom.mil/getArticle.asp?art=7366&lang=0http://www.africom.mil/getArticle.asp?art=7366&lang=0http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/from-western-to-eastern-africa-us-military-increases-focus-on-militant-threats/2011/10/27/gIQA5siYMM_story.htmlhttp://www.africom.mil/getArticle.asp?art=7366&lang=0


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"If you ask me what keeps me awake at night, it is the thought of an American passport-holding person who transits through a training camp in Somalia and gets some skill andthen finds their way back into the United States to attack Americans," Gen. Carter Ham,the commander of the U.S. Africa Command, said in Washington this month. "That'smission failure for us."

U.S. and European officials also worry that AQIMan al-Qaida group that operates inthe west and north of Africais working to establish links with Boko Haram and al-Shabab, the Somali insurgent group.

"I think the security threats emanating from Africa are being taken more seriously thanthey have been before, and they're more real," said Jennifer Cooke, the director of theAfrica program at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The U.S. is conducting counterterrorism training and equipping militaries in countriesincluding Algeria, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria,

Senegal and Tunisia to "preclude terrorists from establishing sanctuaries," according tothe U.S. Africa Command.

In Somalia, the U.S. helps support 9,000 troops from Uganda and Burundi to fightmilitants in Mogadishu, the Somali capital. In June, the Pentagon moved to send nearly$45 million in military equipment, including four drones, body armor and night-visionand communications gear, for use in the fight against al-Shabab.

The U.S. also announced this month it is sending 100 advisers, most of them specialforces, to help direct the fight against the rebel Lord's Resistance Army in Central Africaand efforts to kill or capture its leader, Joseph Kony, who is wanted by the InternationalCriminal Court. In Libya, U.S. fighter planes helped rebels defeat former dictatorMoammar Gadhafi.

In the latest attack against Africa's militants, Kenya deployed troops this month intosouthern Somalia to fight al-Shabab insurgents. The U.S. says it is not aiding Kenya'sincursion, but America has given Kenya $24 million in aid this year "to counter terroristsand participate in peacekeeping operations," the U.S. Embassy said.

The U.S. government "has had a burr under its saddle about Somalia" for years, dating tothe 1993 downing of two U.S. helicopters over Mogadishu in a battle that became knownas Black Hawk Down, said John Pike of the Globalsecurity.org think tank nearWashington. Eighteen U.S. troops were killed.

At that time, Washington had deployed thousands of troops to combat a famine, but themission escalated into a hunt for warlords.

These days, only a handful of U.S. troops are involved directly in Somaliaspecialforces troops who enter on kill missions. In 2009, Navy SEALs targeted and killed al-Qaida operative Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan in a helicopter raid. The Americans jumped out


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of the helicopters, grabbed Nabhan's body from his bullet-riddled convoy and flew off.The corpselike Osama bin Laden's two years laterwas buried at sea.

Pike, who monitors defense issues, said the Pentagon has ramped up operations in Africatremendously since the time of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who didn't

see Africa as being in America's strategic interest.

"The U.S. has really developed an interest in Africa that we just have never seen before,"Pike said.

"Between all the goings and comings in the Horn of Africa and all this snake-eater(special forces) Sahara stuff ... it's all over the place," Pike said. "Since I think an awfullot of it is being run out of Special Operations Command and out of (the CIA), I think itprobably far larger than anyone imagines."

U.S. drones launched from the Seychelles islands in the Indian Ocean also provide

intelligence, and the pilotless planes are capable of being armed.

Al-Shabab counts 31 American citizens among its ranks, a U.S. official in Washingtontold The Associated Press. They're mostly American-Somalis who left the U.S. to join thegroup. The U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitiveintelligence matters, said foreign fighters among al-Shabab's ranks want to attackWestern targets.

Intelligence has revealed sophisticated plans by al-Shabab to attack targets in Europe, theofficial said, but the operations have been disrupted by the recent stepped-up fighting inSomalia.

Ugandan and Burundian troops fighting al-Shabab militants in Mogadishu as part of anAfrican Union force have pushed back the insurgents in recent months and now controlmost of the capital. The Kenyan incursion has forced al-Shabab to fight on its southernflank as well.

Though the Kenyan invasion appears to further the U.S. goal of pressuring al-Shabab,U.S. officials say the American military is not providing assistance.

"The United States has supported Kenyan efforts to improve its ability to monitor andcontrol often porous land and maritime borders and territory exploited by terrorists andillicit traffickers, particularly along its border with Somalia," said Katya Thomas, aspokeswoman at the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi.

But, she added: "The United States did not encourage the Kenyan government to act, nordid Kenya seek our views. We note that Kenya has a right to defend itself against threatsto its security and its citizens."


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Some aspects of Kenya's military adventure appear poorly thought out. Troops moved injust as seasonal rains began and are now bogged down in the muda literal reminder ofthe potential quagmire for countries that intervene in Somalia, whose last nationwideleader was overthrown in 1991.

A paper published by the U.S. Army examining the ill-fated U.S. mission in Somalia inthe 1990s concluded that "the chaotic political situation of that unhappy land boggeddown U.S. and allied forces in what became, in effect, a poorly organized United Nationsnation-building operation."

It was a 2006 invasion of Somalia by Ethiopia that gave rise to the militants now knownas al-Shabab.

"That's the problem with Somalia, there is just no easy answer," said Cooke, the analyst."The problem is so huge and multi-faceted that tackling one aspect of it, i.e., beating backal-Shabab, just can't fix it. Part of the problem is that the government we have invested in

as our key partner in Somalia is a fiction of a government, and so Kenya can try to createsome space, but there is nothing to fill that."

The chairman of the Pentagon's Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, told theHouse Armed Services Committee this month that the U.S. must remain active in Africabecause terrorists are networked globally.

"One of the places they sit is Pakistan. One of the places they sit is Afghanistan. One ofthe places they sit is the African continent," Dempsey said.

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U.S. drone base in Ethiopia is operational (Washington Post)http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.html27 October 2011By Craig Whitlock

The Air Force has been secretly flying armed Reaper drones on counterterrorismmissions from a remote civilian airport in southern Ethiopia as part of a rapidlyexpanding U.S.-led proxy war against an al-Qaeda affiliate in East Africa, U.S. militaryofficials said.

The Air Force has invested millions of dollars to upgrade an airfield in Arba Minch,Ethiopia, where it has built a small annex to house a fleet of drones that can beequipped with Hellfire missiles and satellite-guided bombs. The Reapers began flyingmissions earlier this year over neighboring Somalia, where the United States and its alliesin the region have been targeting al-Shabab, a militant Islamist group connected to al-Qaeda.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.html


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Mindful of the 1993 Black Hawk Down debacle in which two U.S. military helicopterswere shot down in the Somali capital of Mogadishu and 18 Americans killed, the Obamaadministration has sought to avoid deploying troops to the country.

As a result, the United States has relied on lethal drone attacks, a burgeoning CIA

presence in Mogadishu and small-scale missions carried out by U.S. special forces. Inaddition, the United States has increased its funding for and training of Africanpeacekeeping forces in Somalia that fight al-Shabab.

The Washington Post reported last month that the Obama administration is building aconstellation of secret drone bases in the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa,including one site in Ethiopia. The location of the Ethiopian base and the fact that itbecame operational this year, however, have not been previously disclosed. Some basesin the region also have been used to carry out operations against the al-Qaeda affiliate inYemen.

The Air Force confirmed Thursday that drone operations are underway at the Arba Minchairport. Master Sgt. James Fisher, a spokesman for the 17th Air Force, which overseesoperations in Africa, said that an unspecified number of Air Force personnel are workingat the Ethio-pian airfield to provide operation and technical support for our securityassistance programs.

The Arba Minch airport expansion is still in progress but the Air Force deployed theReapers there earlier this year, Fisher said. He said the drone flights will continue aslong as the government of Ethiopia welcomes our cooperation on these varied securityprograms.

Last month, the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry denied the presence of U.S. drones in thecountry. On Thursday, a spokesman for the Ethiopian embassy in Washington repeatedthat assertion.

Thats the governments position, said Tesfaye Yilma, the head of public diplomacy forthe embassy. We dont entertain foreign military bases in Ethi-o-pia.

But U.S. military personnel and contractors have become increasingly visible in recentmonths in Arba Minch, a city of about 70,000 people in southern Ethiopia. Arba Minchmeans 40 springs in Amharic, the national language.

Travelers who have passed through the Arba Minch airport on the occasional civilianflights that land there said the U.S. military has erected a small compound on the tarmac,next to the terminal.

The compound is about half an acre in size and is surrounded by high fences, securityscreens and lights on extended poles. The U.S. military personnel and contractors eat at acafe in the passenger terminal, where they are served American-style food, according totravelers who have been there.


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Arba Minch is located about 300 miles south of Addis Ababa and about 600 miles east ofthe Somali border. Standard models of the Reaper have a range of about 1,150 miles,according to the Air Force.

The MQ-9 Reaper, known as a hunter killer, is manufactured by General Atomics andis an advanced version of the Predator, the most common armed drone in the Air Forcesfleet.

Ethiopia is a longtime U.S. ally in the fight against al-Shabab, the militant group thathas fomented instability in war-torn Somalia and launched attacks in Kenya, Uganda andelsewhere in the region.

The Ethiopian military invaded Somalia in 2006 in an attempt to wipe out a relatedIslamist movement that was taking over the country, but withdrew three years later afterit was unable to contain an insurgency.

The U.S. military clandestinely aided Ethiopia during that invasion by sharingintelligence and carrying out airstrikes with AC-130 gunships, which operated from anEthiopian military base in the eastern part of the country. After details of the U.S.involvement became public, however, the Ethiopian government shut down the U.S.military presence there.

In a present-day operation that carries echoes of that campaign, Kenya launched its owninvasion of southern Somalia this month to chase after al-Shabab fighters that it blamesfor kidnapping Western tourists in Kenya and destabilizing the border region.

Although U.S. officials denied playing a role in that offensive, a Kenyan militaryspokesman, Maj. Emmanuel Chirchir, said Kenya has received technical assistancefrom its American allies. He declined to elaborate.

The U.S. military deploys drones on attack and surveillance missions over Somalia froma number of bases in the region.

The Air Force operates a small fleet of Reapers from the Seychelles, a tropicalarchipelago in the Indian Ocean, about 800 miles from the Somali coast.

The U.S. military also operates dronesboth armed versions and models used strictlyfor surveillancefrom Djibouti, a tiny African nation that abuts northwest Somalia atthe junction of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. About 3,000 U.S. military personnelare stationed at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, the only permanent U.S. base on theAfrican continent.

The U.S. government is known to have used drones to mount lethal attacks in at least sixcountries: Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen.


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###

Libyan Fighters to Receive U.S. Medical Treatment (American Forces Press)http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=6585528 October 2011

WASHINGTON, Oct. 27, 2011The U.S. government will bring two dozen Libyanrebel fighters to the United States for medical treatment they cannot receive at home,Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon E. Panettaannounced this evening.

Clinton and Panetta released the statement seven days after Libyans captured, and thenkilled dictator Moammar Ghadafi, who ruled Libya for 42 years. The statement is inresponse to a request from the rebels Transitional National Council, the acting interimgovernment of Libya. Here is the statement in its entirety:

After months of struggle and sacrifice, the Libyan people have liberated their countrywith the support of the United States and the international community. The violentdictator and his regime have collapsed. But Libya's new freedom has come at a price inhuman life and suffering. Just as the United States and the international community stoodwith the Libyan people during the revolution, we continue to work with Libya to addressurgent humanitarian needs.

Saturday, in response to a request by the Transitional National Council, the United Statesis transporting 24 seriously wounded fighters to Spaulding Hospital in Boston,Massachusetts. An additional six critical cases will be transferred to Germany forimmediate care. All of these patients were injured as a result of recent fighting and sufferfrom conditions that cannot currently be treated in Libya.

The United States offers this humanitarian gesture of emergency medical evacuationassistance as a small token of our support, because we are committed to Libya's future.We will continue to stand by the people of Libya and support them as a partner and friendas they build a new, democratic future.

###

UN to end mandate for NATO military operations in Libya (Reuters)http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/27 October 2011By Louis Charbonneau

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 27 (Reuters) - The U.N. Security Council plans on Thursday toend its authorization for a 7-month-old NATO military operation in Libya that led to theouster and death of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.
http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=65855http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=65855http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/un-to-end-mandate-for-nato-military-operations-in-libya/http://www.defense.gov/News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=65855


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The plan to cancel the mandate comes despite a request from Libya's interim governmentfor the Security Council to wait until the National Transitional Council makes a decisionon whether it wants NATO to help it secure its borders.

The 15-nation council will meet at 10:00 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) to vote on a British-

drafted resolution, obtained by Reuters, that would terminate the U.N. mandate which setthe no-fly zone over Libya and permitted foreign military forces to use "all necessarymeasures" to protect Libyan civilians.

If the resolution is approved, as expected, the U.N. mandate would lapse Oct. 31 at 11:59p.m. Libyan time (2159 GMT).

Although the draft resolution does not specifically refer to NATO, the alliance's legalmandate to carry out the air strikes that enabled Libyan rebel forces to defeat Gaddafi'stroops was supplied by Security Council resolution 1973, adopted in March.

The NTC officially announced Libya's liberation on Oct. 23, days after the capture andswift death of Gaddafi.

Libyan Deputy U.N. Ambassador Ibrahim Dabbashi asked the council on Wednesday towait before terminating the mandate.

Dabbashi said the government needed time to assess the security situation in its countryand its ability to monitor its borders. [ID:nN1E79P0ZE]

Western diplomats, however, said council members planned to go ahead and terminatethe U.N. mandate. They said issues the NTC had suggested it would like NATO to helpwith, including border security, fell outside the U.N. mandate to protect civilians andenforce a no-fly zone.

The resolution does not lift the arms embargo or other U.N. sanctions on Libya that havebeen in place for half a year.

The Security Council in March authorized a no-fly zone and foreign military interventionto protect Libyans from security forces Gaddafi had deployed to suppress pro-democracyuprisings across the country.

The council is also expected to approve a Russian-drafted resolution this week that voicesconcern about the proliferation of shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles across Libyaand beyond its borders, U.N. diplomats said. (Editing by Jackie Frank)

###

Libya's new rulers vow to prosecute those responsible for Col Gaddafi's death (The

Telegraph)


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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.html27 October 2011By Ben Farmer

Libya's new rulers have said they will prosecute the killers of Col Muammar Gaddafifollowing an outcry over his apparent execution.

Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, vice chairman of the National Transitional Council (NTC), saidwhoever killed the former dictator, who was seized as he tried to break out of hisbesieged hometown, would be "judged and given a fair trial".

His comments came as the United Nations Security Council voted unanimously to end itsmandate for international military action in Libya.

Nato is now expected to declare an end to the seven-month-long air campaign which

played a significant part in toppling Col Gaddafi.

Col Gaddafi's apparent execution at the hands of a frenzied mob soon after he wasdragged from a drain where he had been cornered has been denounced by the NTC'sinternational backers.

Unease was over his death was deepened by the lengthy public exhibition of his body andaccusations that dozens of Gaddafi loyalist prisoners had been murdered by rebels in thedays before the city of Sirte fell.Philip Hammond, Defence Secretary, has said the death had "stained" the reputation ofLibya's fledgling interim government.

Mr Ghoga said: "With regards to Gaddafi, we do not wait for anybody to tell us.

"We had already launched an investigation. We have issued a code of ethics in handlingof prisoners of war. I am sure that was an individual act and not an act of revolutionariesor the national army."

Col Gaddafi was taken, bloodied, but alive, from the drain after his failed attempt to fleeSirte and mobile phone footage showed him being beaten and tortured as jubilant rebelssurrounded him.

He died on his way to hospital of bullet wounds to his head and chest according to a postmortem.

Until now, the official NTC account has maintained that the dictator was killed incrossfire in fighting with loyalists after he was captured.

However conflicting rebel accounts and mobile phone footage have instead identifiedseveral different men as Col Gaddafi's killer.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.htmlhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/libya/8853894/Libyas-new-rulers-vow-to-prosecute-those-responsible-for-Col-Gaddafis-death.html


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One piece of film taken soon after the killing shows an unnamed young fighter,brandishing a handgun, standing next to an ambulance bearing Col Gaddafi's body andbeing lauded by his comrades.

Fighters from the city of Misurata were the first to find Col Gaddafi and few have shownany sympathy for his death. Doctors estimate the city suffered more than 1,500 killedafter it rose against the Gaddafi regime.

Nasser Zintani, said: "If Gaddafi came back to life, I would kill him again a milliontimes. Gaddafi was sentenced to death long ago and the man who did it was merelycarrying out his sentence."

Yassin Humaid, commander of the Shuhada Square brigade, said: "I am happy Gaddafi isdead, but if the way he was killed was against human rights and the Geneva Convention,then they should go to court. We are with the law."

The UN voted to cancel its authorisation for military action at the end of October 31despite an NTC request that Nato continue operations until the end of the year to stop theloyalists escaping to neighbouring countries.

William Hague, Foreign Secretary, said the decision was "another significant milestonetowards a peaceful, democratic future for Libya".

He said: "Ending the no-fly zone and the civilian protection provisions demonstrates thatLibya has entered a new era."

The NTC had "a duty to uphold human rights and must prevent reprisals and revengeattacks" after Col Gaddafi's death, he added.

Meanwhile Abdullah al-Senussi, Col Gaddafi's fugitive intelligence chief, had passedfrom Niger into Mali, security sources from both countries claimed.

Mr al-Senussi and Col Gaddafi's son, Saif al-Islam, are both wanted by the InternationalCriminal Court (ICC) for their role in the repression of the uprising.

An NTC source claimed Saif al-Islam had requested an aircraft to fly him from Libya'ssouthern desert to the Hague, where he intended to hand himself over to the ICC.

###

Gaddafi son seeks aircraft to surrender: NTC source (Reuters)http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X2011102727 October 2011By Samia Nakhoul
http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X20111027http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q00X20111027


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DUBAI (Reuters) - Muammar Gaddafi's fugitive son Saif al-Islam wants an aircraft totake him out of Libya's southern desert so he can turn himself in to The Hague warcrimes court, a source with Libya's National Transitional Council said on Thursday.

A fearful Saif al-Islam, 39, went on the run at about the time his father met a grisly death

a week ago, apparently at the hands of vengeful Libyan fighters. He has indicated he isready to surrender to justice, as has ex-intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi, NTCofficials have said.

Both men are the subject of arrest warrants from the International Criminal Court, whereofficials have not been able to confirm any approach. They face charges of crimes againsthumanity for their response to February's uprising.

Conflicting reports of Saif al-Islam's whereabouts have circulated since he vanished fromthe Gaddafi stronghold of Bani Walid in the north of the country, with some accountsputting him, and Senussi, in Niger.

Confirmation from Gaddafi's surviving entourage has not been available. Oneinternational lawyer who says he represents a member of the family questioned thereliability of NTC accounts but declined comment on the report of a proposed surrender.

The NTC source said Saif al-Islam had not left Libya and was being sheltered by aprominent figure among the nomadic Tuareg people of the desert, whom he hadsupported financially in the past. The rugged and empty area close to the borders of Nigerand Algeria has offered an escape route to others in his family.

However, under ICC indictment, Saif al-Islam would find it harder than his relatives tosecure a safe haven abroad.

He was reported by an aide to be fearing for his life when he fled Bani Walid, and if hehas seen the gruesome video footage of his father's capture, he is likely to be under fewillusions about how he might be treated if he remains in Libya.

"Saif is concerned about his safety," the NTC source said. "He believes handing himselfover is the best option for him."

"AIRCRAFT"

The source said Saif al-Islam wanted the involvement of a third country -- possiblyAlgeria or Tunisia -- in a deal to get him to The Hague. "He wants to be sent an aircraft,"the source said by telephone from Libya. "He wants assurances."

Saif al-Islam's whereabouts and intentions had been tracked by monitoring satellite phonecalls, the source said, together with information contained in intelligence cables.


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The NTC lacks the logistical capabilities to intercept fugitives deep in the desert. It hasasked its NATO allies for further assistance after the Western mission winds upfollowing the death of the ousted leader. NATO officials have made clear, however, thatthey are keen to cut back their commitment now.

Saif al-Islam, often personable, English-speaking and London-educated, had been seenby analysts as his father's heir-apparent and a potential reformer, but his bloodthirstycomments about the rebels this year forced a rethink.

Gaddafi loyalist security officials in Bani Walid this week told how the son called hisfather frequently by satellite phone and became increasingly afraid of being hit byincoming fire.

"He was afraid of mortars," al-Senussi Sharif al-Senussi, a lieutenant in Gaddafi's armywho was also part of Saif al-Islam's personal security team, told Reuters this week.

"He seemed confused."

Senussi, who is not related to Gaddafi's former security chief, said that Saif al-Islam'sconvoy was hit by a NATO air strike as he fled Bani Walid but he escaped alive.

###

Libyan oil suspension pushes down quarterly earnings at Germanys BASF(TheWashington Post / Associated Press)http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=027 October 2011

BERLINGermanys BASF SE said Thursday the suspension of oil production inLibya pushed down in its third-quarter earnings, although the chemical company reporteda healthy overall rise in revenue and said it was able to pass higher costs for rawmaterials on to customers.

BASF restarted oil production in the Libyan desert in mid-October after a roughly six-month shutdown forced by fighting in the country. It said production is currently beingramped up but it cant say when it will be restored in full.

The company reported third-quarter net earnings of 1.19 billion ($1.66 billion). Thatwas down 4.3 percent from last years July-September profit figure of 1.25 billion, but itwas better than analysts forecast of 1.17 billion.

Earnings before interest and taxes, before special items, dropped 11.3 percent to 1.96billion from last years 2.21 billion. BASF said the 2010 figure included a contributionof 355 million from oil production in Libya.
http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0http://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/Libyan-oil-suspension-pushes-capress-3703334401.html?x=0


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BASF says it now has a production capacity in Libya of 20,000 barrels a day and it isntyet possible to say when it will reach its maximum daily production capacity of 100,000barrels.

As soon as enough crude oil has been collected in the fuel storage facilities, it will then

be transported via ship, the company said. Earnings will only be achieved once this hastaken placeprobably toward the end of the year.

BASF has joined companies such as Italys Eni and Frances Total in resumingproduction after Libyas civil war ended with the ouster of longtime leader MoammarGadhafi.

Based in Ludwigshafen, Germany, the company makes a wide range of chemical-basedproducts. It said Thursday that its overall quarterly revenue was up 11.6 percent to 17.6billion from last years 15.8 billion.

It said it was able to pass on sharply increased costs for raw materials in its prices.Cognis, a specialty chemicals firm acquired last year, made a strong contribution tosales growth, the company said.

BASF said demand remained high although growth slowed further as expectedcompared with the years first half.

Amid global economic uncertainty, it said customers were planning more cautiously,reducing inventories, and to some extent delaying orders in expectation of possible pricedeclines.

We remain cautious despite the current good performance as economic growth is likelyto slow further, weighed down by debt worries in Europe and the U.S. and by creditrestrictions in China, CEO Kurt Bock said.

He said BASF remains committed to further reducing costs and increasing efficiencyand expanding business in emerging markets.

BASFs net earnings for the years first nine months were up 46 percent, rising to 5.06billion from 3.46 billion. Revenue climbed 16.8 percent to 55.43 billion from 47.45billion.

BASF shares were up 3.5 percent at 52.37 in Frankfurtslightly outpacing the overallrise of the DAX index of blue-chip stocks.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not bepublished, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Somalia's al Shabaab vows war against Kenya (Reuters)http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q0AM2011102727 October 2011By Ismail Taxta and Abdi Sheikh

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Somalia's al Shabaab rebels vowed on Thursday to fightKenya after its troops entered the Horn of Africa nation and called on sympathisers tocarry out major attacks in east Africa's biggest economy.

The call to arms came 12 days after Kenya sent soldiers into Somalia to battle the alQaeda-linked rebels Nairobi blames for a string of kidnappings on Kenyan soil andfrequent border incursions threatening state security.

Unknown militants attacked a vehicle in northeastern Kenya near Somalia on Thursdaykilling at least four government employees, local officials told Reuters, the third strike in

the east African country this week.

Two separate grenade blasts in the capital Nairobi on Monday killed one person andwounded nearly 30. A Kenyan man has pleaded guilty to one of the attacks and being amember of al Shabaab.

There were also unconfirmed Kenyan media reports that gunmen had ambushed Kenyansoldiers near a town 60 km (40 miles) inside Somalia. Government spokesman AlfredMutua declined to comment on the reports.

"The time to ask Kenya to stop war has passed. The only option is to fight them. Kenya,you have started the war and so you have to face the consequences," Sheikh MuktarRobow Abu Mansoor, a top al Shabaab official, told a demonstration.

"The Kenyan Mujahideen who were trained by Osama in Afghanistan, stop throwinggrenades at buses. We need a huge blow against Kenya. Hand grenades hurled can harmthem but we want huge blasts," he told hundreds of people gathered in Elasha, near thecapital Mogadishu.

Kenya has long watched its anarchic neighbour warily and its troops have made foraysacross the porous border with Somalia in the past, but this month's assault marks the firstconcerted push to drive the rebels away from the frontier.

The recent kidnappings of Western tourists and aid workers on Kenyan soil risk dentingthe country's lucrative tourist industry and hampering humanitarian support for more than400,000 Somalis at a refugee camp in northern Kenya.

Al Shabaab has denied being behind the kidnappings, saying they were being used as apretext by Kenya to send troops into the country.
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"Now Kenya's planes are bombing us, and their tanks are inside Somalia. Let's fightcollectively and defeat them as we defeated the Christian countries who invaded usbefore," said al Shabaab's Mansoor.

###

Kenya has right to pursue al Shabaab: Somali PM (Reuters)http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE79Q06F2011102727 October 2011By Mohamed Ahmed

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Kenya has every right to pursue al Shabaab rebels in Somalia,but Somali government troops must be in charge of operations against the Islamist rebels,Somalia's prime minister said.

Kenya deployed troops inside the anarchic Horn of Africa nation 12-days ago in an

offensive against al Shabaab fighters it blames for a series of kidnappings on its soil andfrequent cross-border incursions. ID:nL5E7LG0KF]

Somalia's president cast doubt on his government's support for the incursion on Monday.On Wednesday, Mogadishu reiterated there was no deal with Kenya to send in its troops,but said the prime minister would now liaise with Nairobi.

"We support Kenya's operation inside Somalia because they support, train and provideother military support to our troops to defeat al Shabaab and we are very grateful toKenya," Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali said in an interview.

"But we have to understand one thing: Somalia has the lead, our military has the lead inall operations taking place inside Somalia," he said late on Wednesday.

The Somali government has so far stopped short of asking Kenyan troops to leave and theprime minister's comments show the authorities appear to accept the incursion, which hasthe backing of Western allies supporting the Mogadishu government.

"My government supports any self defence action Kenya takes against al Shabaab. AlShabaab has inflicted a negative economic impact on Kenya," the prime minister said.

"Kenya has suffered at the hands of al Shabaab who are Somali terrorists crossing fromthe Somali border to the Kenyan border. So, therefore, Kenya has the right to pursuethem inside Somali and defeat them," he said.

East Africa's biggest economy has long watched its anarchic neighbour warily and itstroops have made forays across the porous border in the past, but this month's assaultmarks the first concerted push to drive the rebels away from the frontier.
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The recent kidnappings of Western tourists and aid workers from Kenya soil risk dentingthe country's lucrative tourist industry and hampering humanitarian support for more than400,000 Somalis at a refugee camp in northern Kenya.

Al Shabaab has denied it is behind the kidnappings, saying they are being used as a

pretext by Kenya to send its troops across the border.

Kenyan troops are advancing on several fronts towards al Shabaab strongholds alongsideSomali government soldiers and allied militias in the region.

The Kenyan troops have taken several towns but have not yet had a major showdownwith al Shabaab fighters, who are regrouping and bolstering defences at strategic pointsin the south of the Horn of Africa nation.

Kenya continued to deploy more troops to Somalia on Wednesday. Trucks laden withweapons, military and police officers from the capital and camps in central and northern

Kenya were seen heading towards Somalia.

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Prince William supervisor campaigns spar on issues (Washington Post)http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.html27 October 2011By Jeremy Borden

Prince William County campaigns began to turn up the heat this week.

Democratic candidate Babur Lateef is planning to spend $25,000 to air a campaign adagainst Board of County Supervisors Chairman Corey A. Stewart in the countys at-largerace. The advertisement, which will air on cable stations countywide, features baseballsbeaning children and seniors not-so-subtle critiques of Stewarts stance on severalissues, including turning down federal stimulus money and that he snuck home withcampaign cash after the county approved funding to improve the Potomac Nationalsminor league stadium, according to the advertisement.

The Board did not turn down $17 million, Stewart wrote in an e-mail. We acceptedthe federal funding but saved the funds until the next fiscal year to avoid one-timefunding being used to cover ongoing expenses.

Corey Stewart (Dayna Smith - For The Post ) Stewart also said that the Board ofSupervisors allocated funds to fix up the Potomac Nationals stadium, the minor leagueaffiliate of the Washington Nationals, to prevent the Washington Nationals from movingthe franchise to another jurisdiction.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-state-of-nova/post/prince-william-supervisor-campaigns-spar-on-issues/2011/10/26/gIQAPBG0LM_blog.html


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Stewart said he plans to release his own ad against Lateef before the election. He saidmost of his campaign has been positive and his mailings to voters will remain so.

Because Lateef has hit me with a negative TV ad, I do think its fair to hit him with anegative ad as well, Stewart said. Hes not yet sure when his advertisement will begin to

air.

The Woodbridge supervisor race also saw its own tense exchange.

Supervisor Frank Principis (D) campaign said that Republican candidate Chris Roysewas less than honest when he said he was speaking with AFRICOM, about plans tomove the joint military commandand the thousands of jobs that would come with itto Woodbridge (captured in this video). Principi filed a Freedom of Information Actrequest with the Department of Defense, and that office found no indications that Roysehad reached out to AFRICOM for a potential move, a letter from the FOIA office shows.

Virginia Sens. Jim Webb and Mark Warner have advocated for AFRICOM to be movedto the Hampton Roads area to make up for the relocation of thousands of military jobsthere.

Royse said it would be completely inappropriate for him to reach out to AFRICOM asan unelected official. He has had unofficial conversations with former Virginia Rep. TomDavis and Martin Briley, Prince Williams former head of economic development, aboutthe possibility of bringing AFRICOM to Prince William, among other counties, he said.

If I get elected, and if the other supervisors and the chairman support the initiative, wedhave to launch an Olympic bid-type campaign to get AFRICOM to move toWoodbridge, Royse said.

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Deaths in attack in Kenya border town (Al Jazeera)http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2011/10/20111027102754587827.html27 October 2011

Attack is the latest violent incident in the East African nation since it launched offensiveagainst al-Shabab.

Four civilians have been killed by unidentified assailants who attacked a vehicle withrocket-propelled grenades and machine guns near the Kenya-Somali border, police andofficials with Kenya's Red Cross say.

The attack occurred on Thursday in Mandera, in Kenya's sparsely populated northeast,close to the porous borders with Ethiopia and Somalia.
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"The vehicle was carrying eight people but four of them have died," a police officer in theregion said on condition of anonymity.

The vehicle was reportedly carrying education and security officials ferrying secondaryschool examination papers. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack.

"We have just received reports that a grenade was hurled at a government vehicle, whichwas leaving Lafey and coming here to Mandera," a teacher at a Mandera school, who didnot wish to be named, said.

Three other Mandera residents told the Reuters news agency they had heard reports offour deaths. Nelly Muluka-Oluoch, a Kenyan Red Cross spokeswoman, said agencypersonnel who went to the site of the attack confirmed the number of casualties.

Al-Shabab attacks

Kenyan authorities have tightened security after Somalia's al-Shabab threatened to attackthe country in retaliation against its military offensive against them.

Al Jazeera's Peter Greste, reporting from Nairobi, said: "The main suspicion is going tofall towards al-Shabab [but] I think we need to be very careful about linking these tooquickly."

Nairobi was rocked this week by two grenade attacks that killed one person and woundeddozens. Kenyan security officials suspect al-Shabab, who have not claimedresponsibility.

"Al-Shabab tends to attack much more symbolic targets, with much higher body counts,"our correspondent said, "but, clearly, that link is one that the authorities are going to belooking at very closely."

A Kenyan suspect arrested after two grenade blasts earlier this week in Nairobi admittedin court that he was involved in one of the attacks, and said he is a member of al-Shabab.

Elgiva Bwire Oliacha, 28, also known as Mohammed Seif, pleaded guilty to ninecharges, including involvement in Monday's explosion at a busy bus stop which left oneperson dead and several more injured.

An officer with the anti-terror police unit who brought Oliacha to court on Wednesdaysaid authorities would bring more charges against him in court on Friday.

The officer, who wanted to remain anonymous, said that Oliacha was expected to pleadguilty to all of those charges as well.

Source: Al Jazeera and agencies


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West's double standards (Sowetan)http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/world/2011/10/27/west-s-double-standards

27 October 2011Hope Mankwana Papo

NO SOONER had news of Muammar Gaddafi's execution spread from Sirte than anoutburst of celebration greeted commentary in some circles across the globe.

When an aide showed her a picture of Gaddafi's dead body, an excited US Secretary ofState Hillary Clinton exclaimed: "Wow!" And in poor taste, she announced: "We came,we saw, he died."

Her boss, President Barack Obama, described the occasion as a "momentous day."

French President Nicolas Sarkozy described the execution as a "disappearance" and saidit was "a major step forward in the battle fought for more than eight months by theLibyan people to liberate themselves from the dictatorial and violent regime imposed onthem for more than 40 years".

The number one peace tribune and international civil servant, United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said the execution "marks a historic transition for Libya" while atthe same time calling for "healing and rebuilding ... generosity of spirit, not for revenge".

These comments prompted Russian ambassador to the North Atlantic TreatyOrganisation (Nato), Dmitry Rogozin, to write on Twitter: "The faces of the leaders of'world democracies' are so happy, as if they remembered how they hanged stray cats inbasements in their childhoods."

As happened after the execution and dumping at sea of Osama bin Laden by US SpecialForces, the unintelligible narrative of Gaddafi's execution reflects a world that has cometo accept double standards and outright distortion as a function of power.

Gaddafi "disappeared"; he was not executed. The change of regime in Tripoli waseffected by the Libyan people, not Nato.

Facts have been twisted. The execution becomes a "momentous day", one that "marks ahistoric transition for Libya".

That the execution is a manifestation of (and will exacerbate) social divisions and thecontroversial role of some major world powers is glossed over.

Similarly overlooked are the troubling ethical and political dimensions relating tointernational law, global governance and the future of the world itself.
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Nato member states, Libya's National Transitional Council's (NTC) backers (or is ithandlers?), claim that their intervention is an altruistic venture driven by lofty values ofhuman rights, democracy, free speech and rule of law - the exact opposite of Gaddafi.

But once captured, Gaddafi became a prisoner of war, with legal and moral implicationsfor his captors.

Article 13 of the Geneva Convention to which Nato is a signatory states: "Prisoners ofwar must at all times be protected, particularly against acts of violence or intimidationand against insults and public curiosity."

Where then are the values of the rule of law in the execution of a political opponent?Why did they not bring Gaddafi before an impartial court of law? Do the celebratorychants by NTC backers not betray their rhetoric?

The crisis could have been resolved without much blood-letting and the destruction ofinfrastructure if the African Union's (AU) proposals had been heeded. But Nato 'sprimary consideration was to remove Gaddafi to create a client state, which would makeit possible for the West to access its oil , as recent revelations of secret oil deals betweenthe NTC and the West suggest, and to orient Libya into the West's sphere of influence inthe region.

Nato states pursue AU-type approaches to conflict resolution when it suites them . Itadopted this approach in Bahrain, were the monarchy earlier this year responded topopular uprisings in the same fashion as Gaddafi did .

In sharp contrast, the US, said Clinton, "made clear that security alone cannot resolve thechallenges facing Bahrain. Violence is not the answer, a political process is".

The difference in approach is that Bahrain is a US ally, home to its navy's Fifth Fleet andpart of Washington's geo-political architecture in the region.

Further, in contrast, Gaddafi demanded the US withdrawal in Tripoli in June 1970,denying it a strategic military facility in the Maghreb, the Sahel and the Middle East.

So, when US President Ronald Reagan called Gaddafi "This mad dog of the Middle East"in 1986, he was expressing more than outrage at the Libyan leader's alleged involvementin terrorist attacks against the US. Beneath this street-level and un-presidential crudenesswas a subterranean ideological grudge, Gaddafi's inconsistencies notwithstanding.

In the last 10 years, the US has pressured African governments to establish military basesin Africa under the auspices of the US Africa Command (Africom). With Gaddafi gone,Libya is most likely to be an Africom host nation, alongside Uganda, which recentlyinvited 100 US military advisers to help hunt down Joseph Kony's Lord's ResistanceArmy.


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South Sudan is another potential Africom host. Sixteen days after independence in July,Africom Commander, General Carter Ham met President Salva Kiir Mayardit to discuss"military partnership" (read "military tutelage") .

Given (North) Sudan's belief that the US seeks to effect regime change in Khartoum, anAfricom presence in South Sudan will further tensions between the two countries.

No doubt, the world will be fed familiar Afro-pessimist narratives of a conflict-proneAfrica, ignoring the role others play in promoting conflict on the continent.

Papo is ANC Member of the Gauteng provincial legislature and SACP Gauteng PEC.This is written in his personal capacity.See Part Two tomorrow

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Sudan armed Libyan rebels, says President Bashir (BBC News)http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-1547173426 October 2011By James Copnall

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir says his country gave military support to the Libyanrebels who overthrew Col Muammar Gaddafi.

In a speech broadcast live on state television, Mr Bashir said the move was in response toCol Gaddafi's support for Sudanese rebels three years ago.

Sudan and Libya have had a complicated and frequently antagonistic relationship formany years.

Libya was declared liberated on Sunday, two days after Col Gaddafi's death.

'Opportunity to reciprocate'

President Bashir said the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), a Darfuri rebel group,had attacked Khartoum three years ago using Libyan trucks, equipment, arms,ammunition and money.

He said God had given Sudan a chance to respond, by sending arms, ammunition andhumanitarian support to the Libyan revolutionaries.

"Our God, high and exalted, from above the seven skies, gave us the opportunity toreciprocate the visit," he said.

"The forces which entered Tripoli, part of their arms and capabilities, were 100%Sudanese," he told the crowd.
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f i d bli ff i ffi 6 f i il

His speech was well received by a large crowd in the eastern Sudanese town of Kassala.JEM leader Khalil Ibrahim lived for some time in southern Libya.

Now he is back in Darfur, in western Sudan, where an eight-year-old civil war continues.

Mr Bashir's remarks show a desire to forge firm links with Libya's new government.

But the easy availability of weapons in Libya, and that country's porous border withDarfur, are also of great concern to the Sudanese authorities.

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END REPORT

AFRICOM Related-News Clips 28 Oct 2011

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