Djibouti, September 26, 2009 (SL Times) – Most countries that have been too involved in Somali politics, whether it is the US, Ethiopia, Kenya, or Uganda suffered some deadly repercussions for their involvement.

The only exception so far is Djibouti. The main reason Djibouti was spared was because it had close links with the Mogadishu-based perpetrators of violence including the religious fundamentalists and clan leaders from that area. Djibouti often projected itself as an entity that is opposed to Somaliland and is trying to resurrect a Mogadishu-based government. This approach worked for Djibouti for a long time, but it seems not to be working anymore. Now instead of Djibouti being perceived as an ally, it is seen by the extremists in Mogadishu and throughout the terrorist controlled central-south Somalia, as a center from which political and military attacks on them are planned and executed.

The latest evidence of this shift in Djibouti’s status in southern eyes was the recent message by al-Shabaab in which it warned Djibouti not to send its troops to Somalia.

http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-09-18-voa45.cfm

Ironically, even though Djibouti tries to sabotage Somaliland every opportunity it gets, a big reason why Djibouti has so far succeeded in not being subjected to the spillover violence from Somalia is because it has no borders with Somalia, and instead has borders with Somaliland where al-Shabaab are not welcome. But that does not mean that al-Shabaab does not have other options to slip into Djibouti, other than the Somaliland-Djibouti border. Al-Shabaab is already known to have infiltrated the Somali government’s militias that switch back and forth between the extremists and the so-called government of Somalia.

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