‘Big Countries’ (NATO) Sought to Help Fight in Somalia

[Robb]

Source: NYT

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Kenya and Somalia on Monday called for other nations to help in their fight against Islamist insurgents, as an aid organization said that five civilians were killed and more than 50 wounded when a military aircraft hunting the militants struck a displaced-persons camp in southern Somalia.

(snip)

In a meeting in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, delegations from Somalia and Kenya, which has sent hundreds of soldiers backed by tanks and gunships into Somalia in a premeditated assault to vanquish the Shabab Islamist militant group, called for a naval blockade on the Shabab-controlled seaport of Kismaayo.

(snip)

While the official did not name any countries specifically, he did say that Somalia was interested in help from NATO, whose United Nations-backed intervention in Libya officially ended on Monday.

A spokesman from the Kenyan government said the two countries had “already requested the other countries and partners” with consistent interest in Somalia to help further. Those countries, he said, included “European countries, and the United States.”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/01/world/africa/aid-group-says-refugee-camp-in-somalia-was-hit-by-airstrike.html

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Apparently someone noticed NATO's dance card freeing up.

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

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[tabatha]

2. Your story is crooked.

[truth2power]

3. Guess I'll be looking, later on today, to see what natural resources

(minerals, oil etc.) are in Somalia. :evilfrown:

[pasto76]

4. Not many. In case your highness didnt notice, there has been straight up genocide in Somalia for yea

we were busy in iraq though.

stopping genocide is a fight worth fighting.

[jakeXT]

5. Somalia : How Colonial Powers drove a Country into Chaos

Interview of Mohamed Hassan by Grégoire Lalieu and Michel Colon Somalia had every reason to succeed : an advantageous geographical situation, oil, ores and only one religion and one language for the whole territory ; a rare phenomenon in Africa. Somalia could have been a great power in the region. But the reality is completely different : famine, wars, lootings, piracy, bomb attacks. How did this country sink ? Why has there been no Somali government for approximately twenty years ? Which scandals stand behind those pirates who hijack our ships ? In this new chapter of our series “Understanding the Muslim World”, Mohamed Hassan explains for us why and how imperialist forces have applied in Somalia a chaos theory.

...

US soldiers were indeed defeated by a Somali nationalist resistance. Since then, American policy was to keep Somalia without any real government, even to balkanize it. This is the old British strategy, already applied in many places : setting weak and divided states in order to better rule them. That is why there has been no Somali state for almost twenty years. The United States has implemented a chaos theory in order to stop any Somali reconciliation and keep the country divided.

In Sudan, due to the civilian war, Exxon has had to leave the country after having discovered oil. So isn’t letting Somalia plunge into chaos contrary to American interests, which cannot exploit the discovered oil ?

Oil exploitation is not their priority. The United States know that the reserves are there but doesn’t need it immediately. Two elements are much more important in its strategy. First, prevent the competitors from negotiating with a rich and powerful Somali state. If you consider Sudan, the comparison is interesting. The oil that the American companies discovered there thirty years ago, Sudan is selling it today to China. The same thing could happen in Somalia. When he was president of the transition government, Abdullah Yusuf went to China although he was supported by the United States. US mass media had strongly criticized that visit. The fact is that United States have no guarantee on that point : if a Somali government is established tomorrow, whatever is its political color, it could probably adopt a strategy independent of United States and trade with China. Western imperialists do not want a strong and unified Somali state. The second goal pursued by this chaos theory is linked to the geographical location of Somalia, which is strategic for both European and American imperialists.

http://www.michelcollon.info/Somalia-How-Colonial-Powers-drove.html?lang=fr

[ieoeja]

6. "US soldiers were indeed defeated by a Somali nationalist resistance."

When did this happen?

We sent the Marines into Somali. We fed the people. The Marines pulled out and Special Forces moved in to try to capture the leader of the forces trying to starve his opponents.

A new President was elected. After reviewing the situation he decided to leave Somalia. While drawing up plans for the withdrawal, a Special Forces raid captured dozens of high-ranking members of the target clan. In the process they also killed thousands while losing only two helicopters and a couple dozen men.

The enemy clan tried to hold a captured helicopter pilot hostage. Informed the United States would be returning the Marines to Somalia, the enemy clan returned the pilot unharmed and without receiving any ransom.

Operations continued in Somalia until the withdrawal plan could be approved and executed.

So when did this great defeat occur?