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By Peter
Heinlein
Addis Ababa, July 11, 2009 – Somalia's neighbors are pleading for
urgent international help to prevent the strategic Horn of Africa nation
from falling into the hands of foreigners bent on turning it into a
haven for terrorists. Regional foreign ministers held an emergency
session to rally support for a last ditch effort to defend the
transitional Somali government against a foreign invasion force.
Six Horn of Africa countries comprising the Intergovernmental
Authority on Development, or IGAD, met in extraordinary session Friday
with representatives of the African Union and the United Nations. The
subject was how to save Somalia's embattled government from imminent
collapse.
A day after the U.N. Security Council threatened sanctions
against regional rogue state Eritrea, Ethiopia's Foreign Minister Seyoum
Mesfin said Somalia's conflict has changed from a civil war to a foreign
invasion by forces hoping to create a radical Islamic state.
"The fighting is no longer between and among Somalis," he said.
"It is a war of aggression on Somalia by external enemies, including
al-Qaida."
Somalia's Foreign Minister Mohamed Abdillahi Omaar warned that
radical Islamist fighters are arriving by the thousands.
"The current war in Somalia is a foreign war, led and supported
by from outside the country," he said. "The leaders and the commanders
of the armies are foreign, money comes from outside, ideology and
political intentions, and programs are foreign based."
The U.N. Security Council is considering a request by the African
Union and IGAD for tough measures to stop the foreign influx, including
a naval blockade and a no-fly zone. Experts, however, say those measures
will take months to implement, and would likely have limited effect in
patrolling Africa's longest coastline.
What may be more timely is a rapid infusion of new forces to the
African Union Peacekeeping force known as AMISOM, which is currently at
only a little more than half its authorized strength of 8,000, and
giving them authority to use force rather than simply to defend
themselves.
In May, Somali troops backed by AMISOM repulsed a ferocious al-Shabab
military assault aimed at toppling the transitional government. But AU
Peace and Security Council director El-Ghassim Wane told the ministers
the radical forces have regrouped and appear to be ready for a second
wave.
"Even though the insurgents have so far not achieved their
objectives, there is credible information that they are moving their
forces into strategic positions in preparation for another major
offensive," said Wane. "This of course calls for enhanced continued
response by the AU and IGAD with the support of our partners in the
international community."
Uganda and Burundi provide almost the entire AMISOM force at
present. Both have pledged to send more, but the dispatch of troops has
been delayed by technical issues. Other potential troop contributions
appear to be month or years away.
The IGAD countries, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Uganda, Djibouti and
Somalia, are appealing to the U.N. Security Council to repeal part of an
earlier resolution that prohibits Somalia's neighbors from contributing
troops to AMISOM.
The United States recently delivered a $10 million package of
weapons and training to Somali government forces. But military experts
say it will take much more, including air and naval capability, to stop
the well-trained and well-financed foreign fighters.
Source: VOA
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