U.S. secretly backing Somali warlords

More than a decade after U.S. troops withdrew from Somalia following a disastrous military intervention, officials of Somalia's interim government and some U.S. analysts of Africa policy say the United States has returned to the African country, secretly supporting secular warlords who have been waging fierce battles against Islamic groups for control of the capital, Mogadishu.

The latest clashes, last week and over the weekend, were some of the most violent in Mogadishu since the end of the American intervention in 1994, and left 150 dead and hundreds more wounded. Leaders of the interim government blamed U.S. support of the militias for provoking the clashes.


U.S. officials have declined to directly address on the record the question of backing Somali warlords, who have styled themselves as a counterterrorism coalition in an open bid for American support. Speaking to reporters recently, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the United States would "work with responsible individuals . . . in fighting terror. It's a real concern of ours -- terror taking root in the Horn of Africa. We don't want to see another safe haven for terrorists created. Our interest is purely in seeing Somalia achieve a better day."

...

"We would prefer that the U.S. work with the transitional government and not with criminals," the prime minister, Ali Mohamed Gedi, said in an interview. "This is a dangerous game. Somalia is not a stable place and we want the U.S. in Somalia. But in a more constructive way. Clearly we have a common objective to stabilize Somalia, but the U.S. is using the wrong channels."

Many of the warlords have their own agendas, Somali officials said, and some reportedly fought against the United States in 1993 during street battles that culminated in an attack that downed two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters and left 18 Army Rangers dead.

"The U.S. government funded the warlords in the recent battle in Mogadishu, there is no doubt about that," government spokesman Abdirahman Dinari told journalists by telephone from Baidoa. "This cooperation . . . only fuels further civil war."

www.washingtonpost.com...
(keep in mind that you have to register with the washington post to read the entire article)

now my question is, is this not the same mistake the US made with Iraq and Sadadm, knowing that he was a horrible person, doing inhumane things to his own population, yet supplying him with weapons anyway to further their own goals, no matter the extent of human suffering was caused as a result? and if that wasn't bad enough to be helpin these people who rape, murder and generally terrorize the population of this country, the US government is now aiding the folks who were responsible for killing 18 Army personnel back in 1993?

Why does the US Government keep doing things like this? why support groups and individuals who knowingly have no issues terrorizing their own population, then turn around and wonder why "everyone hates the US and their 'freedom'"??

...or did i miss something?


[edit on 17-5-2006 by karby]

Hey, I'm not surprised... after all, it is the United States of America.

Even studying up to 10th grade US History, one can draw a conclusion that the US, is not the pillar of liberty and freedom as it seems.

However, I do believe, the gov't has it's reasons in doing so, and we, without FULL knowledge of the situation, should not bash on the gov't for it's actions... yet.

Not surprising the given Somalia's uranium reserves, strategic place on the Horn of Africa, and the below links reference to the Balkanisation of Somalia:

www.sudantribune.com...

It will be interesting to see what else comes up to explain all this....

Originally posted by karby
Why does the US Government keep doing things like this? why support groups and individuals who knowingly have no issues terrorizing their own population, then turn around and wonder why "everyone hates the US and their 'freedom'"??

Probably because this falls under the principles of a choice between two evils and taking the side of the lesser evil.

The US is supporting aspects of some Somali warlords, those which are fighting the Islamists, who started this whole mess in Somalia.
Alliance of Somali Warlords Battles Islamists in Capital






seekerof

Probably because this falls under the principles of a choice between two evils and taking the side of the lesser evil.

The US is supporting aspects of some Somali warlords, those which are fighting the Islamists, who started this whole mess in Somalia.

yes, but what happens when, or even if, the US meets their goals? chances are that when they have what they want or need, they'll pull out of the region leaving it still poor and still destitute. and honestly, i think that's the best idea, to pull out of that area leaving as little influence as possible. but the fact that the US has such a big impact on pretty much every corner of the world means two things:
one, when US presence is detected, the people of that area will expect them to do somethng positive for the population and
two, when something goes wrong, the American government will soak up most of the blame, regardless of how more or less responsible they are.

when both of those situations collide, chances are that the US will have a whole new enemy to add to their list, with the region probably becoming more sympathetic to islamc fundies. now i got no problem with the US government fighting real terrorism threats however they can. however going so low as to help the warlords of the region not only lessens the credibility of the US, it leaves them open to taking a whole lot of heat, with blood winding up on their hands. i agree with the prime minister of Somalia, saying that the US should have worked with the transitional government to help combat threats of terrorism instead of running to the warlords. at least at that point, if everything goes down the hole, they will at least be able to deflect some of the blame to the regional government, as well as keep the trust of the people.