Ethiopia invades Somalia - Political Forum

CHUQ · 12-23-2006, 07:07 AM

I would have posted this in the World section but since it gets little play there I thought I would try to expand a little.

NAIROBI, Kenya — As fighting intensified Friday between Somali Islamists and an Ethiopian intervention force, Western diplomats and experts warned that U.S. policy in the Horn of Africa - intended to curb Islamic radicalism - may not only be fueling this newest conflict, but also may be making it easier for al-Qaida to gain a foothold in the strategic region.

McClatchy Washington Bureau | 12/22/2006 | U.S. policy in the Horn of Africa may aid al-Qaida, experts warn

And now the justification for intervention is being formed.

Brother Oz · 12-23-2006, 04:27 PM

And of course if they intervene, it will fuel accusations of US interference which will brew more anti-US feeling. In terms of US action, there is no solution to this issue.

CHUQ · 12-24-2006, 04:58 AM

IMO, no good solution is available. As I have said in other threads, it should have been addressed by the West sooner.

francois60 · 12-24-2006, 10:11 AM

Ethiopia attacks Somalia Islamic council - Yahoo! News

For those who haven't been following events, Somalia has in the last couple of years fallen at least partly under a Taliban-type government. They are also sheltering Al Qaeda members.

A few weeks ago, Gen. John Abizaid flew to Ethiopia to confer with their military officials. This is probably the result.

As far as the military aspect goes, Ethiopia vastly outmatches the Islamic Courts. THey don't have to defeat the Islamic Courts, they only have to hurt them enough so that the US-supported government and warlords can regain the upper hand in Somalia's civil war.

Once the Islamic Courts are defeated, it would probably be a good idea to restore the UN mission there from the early 90s, only this time stay until the job is complete no matter what the level of violence. 9/11 was an act of war, and Al Qaeda is in Somalia. So we need to be there too.

Tumbleweed · 12-24-2006, 12:59 PM

I haven't read much about the US involvment behind the scenes in this conflict but it sounds like another case of us sticking our nose into a situation where we do more harm than good.

This is a UN problem. IMO.

CHUQ · 12-24-2006, 01:25 PM

For more background the Africa section has a Somalia section--I posted a lot of background before the cross border trip by Ethiopia,

CHUQ · 12-24-2006, 01:37 PM

I agree that the UN should step in NOW, it had ignored the situation for long enough.

Brother Oz · 12-24-2006, 01:54 PM

I think you massively over-estimate the ease with which Ethiopia could beat the ICM. The ICM have strong mass support. Even though they are considered extreme, most people would rather have them than the Un-backed "government", basically the warlords who used to fight over the country, and are pretty universally hated.

Brother Oz · 12-24-2006, 07:03 PM

They also want to incorporate Somalis in eastern Kenya. Most Somalis do.

And WEB, has it occured to you that there are no bad guys, or rather no good guys? The Islamists are generally a lot better domestically than the warlords, the problem is foreign affairs.

francois60 · 12-24-2006, 09:15 PM

I'm having trouble figuring out who the bad guys are here: the Islammic Council or "internationally-recognized" Somali warlords.

There are no good guys. This is another Hitler vs. Stalin type deal.

I do like to think that there is a lesser of two evils though.

Yup.