Ainashe.net

Edith M. Lederer of the Associated Press writes:

Somalia’s transitional government urged the Security Council on Friday to speed up its planning for the possible deployment of a U.N. peacekeeping force to replace African Union troops in the war-wracked nation. Somalia’s U.N. Ambassador Elmi Ahmed Duale endorsed a recent appeal by African heads of state to the council “to urgently take steps for the early deployment of United Nations peacekeeping operations to further enhance peace in Somalia.”

Ms. Lederer went on by saying:

Somalia has not had a functioning government since clan-based warlords toppled dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 and then turned on each other, sinking the poverty-stricken nation of 7 million into chaos. Its weak transitional government, backed by Ethiopian troops, is struggling to quash an Islamic insurgency that has killed thousands of civilians this year. The 1,800 Ugandan peacekeepers who arrived in Somalia in early 2007 are supposed to be the vanguard of an 8,000-strong African Union peacekeeping force, though only Burundi in December sent an advance team of 192 soldiers.

I think the TFG is riding on the wrong horse again! First they asked for Ethiopian troops with all destruction and mayhem that followed in the aftermath of the invasion. Unfortunately, the TFG does not seem to have learned from the mistakes of the past. The solution to Somalia’s tragic political conflict is not bringing more foreign troop to the country. The key to a lasting peace is open and sincere political dialogue whereby the Somali people can sort out their difference through Somali, Arab and Islamic channels!

As the saying goes, “Qofna intuu kuu jiro kuuma soo dhaafo”! Somalia must rediscover its cultural and religious roots.

Click here to view the full dispatch on the Miami Herald.

In a Press Release issued recently, the World Bank says:

The Horn of Africa is one of the regions that has been most prominently impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. This area is characterized by sizeable mobile populations of transport workers, migrants, refugees, internally displaced persons, and cross-border populations, populations that are most vulnerable to contracting HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases.

However, the Horn of Africa is also where there is hope that something can be done to bring about change. Countries like Kenya and Uganda are bringing down their HIV/AIDS prevalence rates — from 15% and 18.5% respectively in the 1990s to about 6.1% and 6.7% today. The efforts that have seen these figures come tumbling down have been mainly at country level.

The Press Release went on by stating:

Recognizing that movement of vulnerable populations is a major challenge in the region, on June 28, 2007 the World Bank and IGAD signed a $15 million grant to support the IGAD Regional HIV/AIDS Partnership Program (IRHAPP). The program seeks to mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS among cross-border and mobile populations in IGAD’s member states: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda. The four-year project, which aims to reduce the vulnerability of these mobile populations, was initiated with the support of the World Bank and will be the first to be financed by the Africa Catalytic Growth Fund (ACGF).

By the way, it is worth noting that very little is known about the actual number of HIV/AIDS infected people in Somalia. However, many Somalis went to Eastern African countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Ethiopia as refugees and those who have returned may have brought the disease to the country. Also, Ethiopian soldiers in Somalia have high number of HIV/AIDS infected among their ranks and that is probably the biggest threat facing the nation at the present time.
Click here to view the full PR on World Bank’s External Website.

SALIM LONE writes:

In the wake of the awful attacks of September 11 2001, Tony Blair’s passionate denunciation of impoverishment in Africa as “a scar on the conscience of the world” convinced many that the west would propel the issue of mass poverty and injustice to the top of the international agenda in the cause of a more stable world.

This week’s news only confirms that it was a misplaced hope. Not a single country in sub-Saharan Africa has met the criteria set by the UN’s millennium development goals on poverty alleviation, the centrepiece of the project. Some observers believe the number of poor, and the intensity of the poverty, has actually risen in almost all countries.

(more…)

Salahuddin Kasem Khan writes:

An Islamic Common Market is a concept which has a firm basis in Islamic History. The establishment of the Islamic State in Medina founded the first Common Market. The dismantling of tribal, cultural and racial barriers by Islam led to a society based on religious brother-hood which transcended geographical boundaries, and as a natural collorary, economic barriers were also simultaneously removed. This new system was to unleash the entrepreneurial and trading energies of the Muslim Arabs, who with the passage of time were determined to establish the greatest economic organisation the world has seen stretching from Morocco to Indonesia.

Click here to view the full report on the Islamic Economic Forum.

The Somalia Prime Minister; Cali Maxamed Geedi was quoted as saying:

We are very grateful for the sacrifice made by the Ethiopians. Ethiopia is the number one friend of this country.

This is where Cali Maxamed Geedi and the fast majority of the Somali people, including myself turn sharply to different and opposing directions. Contrary to what the Prime Minister said, and I must say, with all accounts, Ethiopia has always been, and continues to be Somalia’s worst enemy. Unless one is blind-folded by myopic tribalist agenda, personal greed or irrational self hate, no one need to be a brain-surgeon to understand that Ethiopia is far from being Somalia’s “best friend” as the Prime Minister ignorantly stated. (more…)

In an editorial the Dubai based Khaleej Times newspaper says:

WITH Ethiopian military incursions into the Somalian territory, in the name of fighting Islamic militants, the situation in the Horn of Africa is getting increasingly dangerous. Regional peace is under serious threat. And it looks like Somalia, one of the hotspots of the continent, would now be used for a proxy war between largely-Christian Ethiopia and its bitter rival, Eritrea, a nation that backs the Islamists.

The paper continued by saying:

Ethiopian incursions are now undermining these efforts. Amid the rolling in of the Ethiopian tanks and the air strikes that followed, the bitter memories of the past two wars have come to haunt the people. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi’s stand that his government has a ‘legal and moral obligation’ to support and defend Somalia’s government is dangerously flawed.

The paper concluded by saying:

The best solution to Somalia’s problems is allowing the country to solve its own problems. Interference from Ethiopia or other nosey neighbours and big powers will only exacerbate the crisis.

I could not agree more! I hope more Arab and Muslim papers will flow suite by highlighting the plight of our people.

Click here to the full editorial on Khaleej Times.

Melez Zenawi the Ethiopian Prime Minister made it clear to everyone that he wants Somalia annexed by forces.

Mr. Zenawi was quoted as saying that:

Our patience was considered as weakness and we were forced to go to war and the alternative left to us is to speedily bring the war to a successful and victorious end in the shortest time possible.

Well, this sounds like a twisted logic! Somalia did not invade Ethiopia.

Kassa Ayalew; the chairperson of Ethiopian American Civic Advocacy writes:

The undemocratic Ethiopian parliament declared war against Eritrea under the pretext that Ethiopia must “stop Eritrean aggression and punish the terrorist invaders” not long a ago. As result of that declaration, about 100,000 innocent soldiers were killed in battlefields and ten of thousands of families and individuals faced tragic deportations and dire humanitarian consequences. The same parliament that has not yet learnt from its past blunder echoed again the readiness and preparation to invade the eastern neighbor Somalia in the name of protecting Ethiopians and the rest of the world from terrorists’ threat.

Mr. Ayalew continued by saying:

The truth of the matter in waging this war against Somalia is the regime’s desperation to stop the uprising resistance movement within and outside Ethiopia which has been intensifying since the May 2005 election. The elaborate scheme (fighting the terrorists’ threat) by the dictatorial regime that attempts to justify war against Somalia may play out different this time given the fact that the Ethiopian rulers’ trustworthiness credential has been shattered and their decade’s long democratic pretension has hatched for worse.

Interesting perspective to look at Zenawi’s desperate attempt to deflect attention from the political and economic crisis at home.

Click here to view the full article on the Sudan Times.

Islamic Courts Union spokesman Abdi-Rahiin Ali Mudey was quoted as saying:

Ethiopia has recently asked us to start talks with them so the deadline was basically meant to tell the Ethiopians to withdraw from Somalia, then talks they offered would be possible.

Does this mean that the threat of all out war is receding? I am not so sure but I hope that is case. We must give peace a chance.

Click here to view the full article on the BBC News.

The Toronto Globe and Mail newspaper reports:

Nearly 200 troops serving Somalia’s weak Western-backed government defected to the Islamic courts movement, an Islamic official said Sunday, as both sides braced for impending war. Sheik Mohamed Ibrahim Bilal, head of the Islamic court in the Al-Bayan region, said the troops switched sides there late Saturday. Sheik Bilal told the Associated Press by telephone that the former government soldiers “are ready to be incorporated into the Islamic courts forces.” The court movement has promised to launch a holy war Tuesday unless troops from neighbouring Ethiopia, who are supporting the government, leave Somalia. Islamic fighters have surrounded the southern Sudanese town of Baidoa, the only town the government controls. Al-Bayan, where the defections are said to have taken place, is about 80 kilometres from Baidoa.

This is a major political and security setback for the TFG and their Ethiopian masters. However, the Islamic Courts forces should not make any military movement that the other side could perceive as an attack. They must hold their fire for now!

Contrary to what Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf said, there is still a room for dialogue.

Click here to view the full report

Stephanie Hanson of the US Council of Foreign Relations writes:

In the disputed border area between Ethiopia and Eritrea, tensions have been high all year but neither side appears willing to break the stalemate. Instead, both countries have been amassing troops in neighboring Somalia in what appears to be a proxy war. The build-up threatens to tip the entire Horn of Africa into a regional war (CSMonitor). Such a conflict appears increasingly imminent: this week Somalia’s Islamists threatened they’ll attack (BBC) if Ethiopian troops don’t leave within seven days. Ethiopia—a Christian nation with a significant Muslim population—sent troops into Somalia in support of the country’s weak, but internationally recognized, transitional government. Since the Islamists’ seizure of Mogadishu in June and the expansion of their area of control, Addis Ababa has been concerned their influence could inflame Ethiopia’s Muslims. Eager to support the enemy of its enemy, Eritrea has provided arms and troops to support the Somali Islamists, as well as other anti-Ethiopian forces in Somalia.

Ms. Hanson does not seem to understand the internal political dynamics of the Somali people. The external political and security factors certainly add more fuel to the tragic somali conflict but they are not the cause of the current conflict as Ms. Hanson mistakenly seem to imply!

Click here to view the full note on the Council of Foreign Relations.

Ehsan Masood writes on Open democracy:

On 30 November 2006, Pakistan announced what must count as one of the more far-reaching educational reforms for a generation: from September 2007, English will replace Urdu as the language in which science and mathematics will be taught in all state schools. At a stroke, the government has chosen to reverse the policy introduced two decades ago under the military regime of General Zia ul-Haq (1977-88), whereby English is not formally taught in state schools until a child reaches the age of 10.

I think English will bring more cultural pollution and destruction of traditional Pakistani values. Hence, I believe Pakistani pupils will be better off by sticking with their mother tongue; Urdu!

Click here to view the article on the Open Democray.

Simon Tissdall of the Guardian newspaper writes:

Watching Somalia right now is like standing on a beach, waiting for a category five hurricane to hit. The storm is approaching fast, there seems little that can be done, and the ensuing destruction will be terrible - and far-reaching. The looming Somali cataclysm threatens to spark a regional war, suck in east African and Arab actors, and create a dangerous new theatre in the polarising, global contest between western power and Islamist jihadism. Somalia has the potential to make Darfur look like a little local difficulty.

Mr. Tisdall went on by saying:

Three outcomes were possible at this juncture, the western source said. One was that UN-backed, on-off talks between the UIC and Baidoa government resumed, the African protection force deployed, and a “proper political process” got underway. Another, less improbable scenario was that Ethiopia used its military superiority to secure Baidoa and “clobber” some UIC training camps, enabling the government to negotiate from a stronger position. But a third, nightmare outcome was that “the Ethiopians do the full monty, go in in strength, and get stuck”, the source said. That could lead to spreading, al-Qaida-fuelled guerrilla warfare akin to Iraq, Sudanese-style Arab-African conflict, and ultimately, pressure for direct western intervention.

Click here to view the full analysis on the Guardian.

The International Herald Tribune writes:
Somalia’s president (Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf ) said Friday that peace talks with the country’s Islamic movement are no longer an option because the group’s leaders have declared war on his government

The paper writes that Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf of the TFG was quoted as saying:

They are the ones who effectively closed the door to peace talks and they are the ones who are waging the war.

The Colonel continued by saying:

The fighting can happen at any time now.

War should not be the first option. Somali political leaders must make peace and they should not threaten to wage war that could certainly cause the death of thousands of innocent Somalis.

Click here to view the full article on IHT.

David Gollust of Voice of America wries:

In a bleak assessment of the Somali situation, Assistant Secretary Frazer says radicals including al-Qaida figures have taken control of the Islamic Courts movement, and that it may be too late for a plan approved by the U.N. Security Council earlier this month to stabilize the situation. On December 6, the Security Council approved a resolution granting an exemption to the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia to allow an East African military mission to enter the country and shore up the country’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG) based in Baidoa which is under siege from the Islamic Courts. Uganda has agreed to take part in what is termed a protection and training mission by the regional Intergovernmental Authority on Development, IGAD, but the process of assembling the force has been slow. In a talk with reporters, Assistant Secretary Frazer said the United States has lent diplomatic support to the effort, but that it may be too late to achieve the objective of Resolution 1725 - to bolster the transitional government in order to prompt the Union of Islamic Courts to return to talks on the country’s future: “It could possibly be too late,” said Jendayi Frazer. “And I think we need to be very clear that the Africans believe they asked for these two and a half years ago. When the TFG first went back to Somalia from Nairobi, they asked for this exemption. And so there are some African countries that will definitely state that we waited too late.”

Click here to view the full article on Dehai.

Sheikh Yusuf Mohamed Siad “Inda’ade”; the defense chief of the Somali Islamic Nationalists issued an ultimatum and asked Ethiopian troops to leave all Somali territories that they currently occupy within a week or face an all-out war.

Personally, I do not believe that war should be rushed to as it only brings misery and bloodshed. In addition, the TFG is so weak and powerless that it is only a matter of time before it collapses under its own weight. Hence, toppling it by forces will only create more chaos.

Peace must be given a chance!

Sheikh Yusuf Mohamed Siad “Inda’ade”; (on the right).
Copy Right: Shabelle Media/Reuters News Agency.

The Irish Breaking News network reports:

Thousands of Islamic militants today surrounded the only town Somalia’s government controls, the prime minister said. It came as a top Islamic official promised to attack within a week unless troops from neighboring Ethiopia leave the country. The surrounded town of Baidoa was today teeming with soldiers patrolling the city and manning checkpoints. Ethiopian troops are believed to be based around Baidoa.

I think the Somali Islamic Nationalists should not attack Baydhabo; the provincial seat of the failed TFG. However, I do believe that Somalia’s territorial integrity must be respected. More importantly, I do believe that Somalis must have, like everyone else, the right to self defense and they must be allowed to push back Ethiopia’s aggressive attempt to annex Somalia by military force.

I also believe that the TFG must disband and choose honorable exit. Otherwise, they will be forced to go away. Hopefully, that will happen through the ballot box rather than the barrel of the gun.

Click here to view the full article.

Oryem Okello; the Ugandans Minister of State for Foreign Affairs was quoted as saying:

We have decided that at this particular time, we should not go to Somalia.

The Minister went on by saying:

The situation has deteriorated rapidly — it risks all-out war.

This is a great victory for the Somali people. No country should help facilitate Ethiopian invasion of Somalia. I hope other countries will act wisely and follow Uganda’s lead.

Click here to view the article on the Reuters’ Alertnet.

Liam Bailey of Desicritics writes:

The 15 Member United Nations Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 1725 Dec. 6 2006. The U.S led resolution authorizes a regional force from the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the African Union (AU) to establish a protection and training mission in Somalia. And the lifting of the UN arms embargo in relation to supplying the peacekeeping force. The previous UN mission in the country, started similarly but ended in a bloody battle and the death of 18 Marines attempting to disarm rival factions. The current resolution states its intention to consider taking measures against those that seek to prevent or block a peaceful dialogue process, overthrow the Transitional Federal Institutions by force, or take action that further threatens regional stability. Suggesting that, like its predecessor it could become far more than a protection and training mission, which may well have an adverse effect regional stability.

I agree entirely with Liam. The UN resolution is just a farce!

Click here to view the full article on Desicritics.org

The Economist magazine writes:

Although Somalia’s Islamists say that their aim is nothing more threatening than to remake the country as a peaceful and tolerant Islamic state, Somalia’s internationally recognised (but dreadfully weak) transitional government insists that they are an “al-Qaeda network”. A recent suicide bombing which narrowly missed the transitional president, Abdullahi Yusuf, and the killing of an elderly Italian nun working at a Mogadishu hospital, probably in retaliation for Pope Benedict XVI’s remarks on violence and Islam, confirmed the worst fears of some, including the United States. The Kenyan coast already has direct experience of al-Qaeda’s brand of violence—in 2002 it bombed a hotel full of Israelis in Mombasa, killing 16, and tried to shoot down an Israeli airliner—and the Nairobi-based intelligence community expects more. So people are nervous.

The paper went on by saying:

Kenya’s Muslims feel disenfranchised. They have had little access to national power, in contrast to neighbouring Tanzania, where Islamist rhetoric has been blunted by socialism and Muslims have held most of the high offices of state (see article). So far, however, Muslims on the Kenyan coast have usually been repulsed by jihadist rhetoric. But a revival of Arabic and access to Arab satellite television, linking local backwaters to a sometimes inflammatory message of Islam under siege, could change that.

The Economist is right to say that one of the reasons the Kenyans are nervous is the fact that “Kenya’s Muslims feel disenfranchised”. However, there is another reason which is far more important than anything else: Kenya occupies a large portion of Somali territory! And the Somali islamic nationalists want that territory to be FREE from Kenyan oppression.

Click here to view the full article on the Economist magazine.

The Houston Chronicles quoted a resident of the Somali port town of Kismaayo as saying “We welcome the Islamic courts”. The paper also reported Hirale’s deputy, Yusuf Mire Mohamud, as saying “the Juba Valley Alliance has collapsed today.”.

Could Bosaaso and Berbera be next? It is unbelievable to see the speed of political and military advancement of the Islamic Courts Union (ICU)!

Click here to view the article.

The BBC News reports:

The African Union has approved plans to send 8,000 peacekeepers to Somalia to support the interim government. An alliance of Islamic courts which controls the capital and much of central and southern Somalia says it will oppose any deployment by force. A meeting at AU headquarters in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, agreed that the first soldiers should be in place by the end of the month. But obstacles remain as the AU does not have the funds to pay for the troops. The approval for the force by the African Union Peace and Security Council also appears to fly in the face of a shaky agreement between Somalia’s interim government and the Islamic courts not to allow any foreign intervention.

This is a big political mistake that could potentially ignite new armed confrontation between Somali Army on one side and Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf and his tribal militia with Ethiopian army on the other side. As I wrote before, Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf and the failed TFG must understand that the political legitimacy cannot be achieved through the barrel of the gun. It must be earned through popular support!

The Somali people must defend their country against the looming threat of foreign invasion!

Click here to view then full dispatch by the BBC.

The Kenya Broadcasting Corporation reports:

An Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has reaffirmed support for the ongoing initiatives to promote dialogue for sustainable peace in Somalia. However the meeting at State House Nairobi today under the chairmanship of President Mwai Kibaki, the noted that the prevailing situation posed a threat to peace and gravely undermined the ability of the Transitional Federal Institutions in Somalia to consolidate the gains made so far to achieve long-term stability. The meeting, attended by President Abdulahi Yusuf of Somalia and Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia re-affirmed support for the Transitional Federal Charter and Federal Transitional Institutions as an embodiment of the common will of the Somali people. In a communiqué issued at the end of the consultation, the IGAD forum expressed support for the ongoing dialogue between the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and encouraged both parties to strive to overcome any differences by actively pursuing genuine reconciliation. The forum further reiterated that any dialogue must be based on the will of the Somalia people and preserve the sanctity of the Transitional Federal Charter and Federal Institutions which provide a solid political framework to achieve a lasting solution to the Somali problems. They endorsed the revised Igad Mission to Somalia (IGASOM) deployment plan as approved by the African Union (AU) peace and security council and further called on the AU to provide the requisite funds to enable the implementation of the first phase of the plan.

IGAD is a dysfunctional organisation run by depots, dictators and the enemy of the Somali Nation (Ethiopia and Kenya). Hence, no one should be surprised by this act! They want the tragic Somali conflict to continue!

Click here to view the full article.

Wangui Kanina of the Reuters news agency writes:

East African leaders pushed ahead on Tuesday with a contested plan to send peacekeepers to Somalia, despite a separate military deal between the country’s rival powers that appeared to block foreign intervention. The regional Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), which led talks that produced Somalia’s interim government in 2004, urged the African Union to speed approval of the proposed peacekeeping mission, release funds and help raise more money to support the deployment of troops. IGAD also called on the U.N. Security Council to meet “urgently” to consider lifting its arms embargo on Somalia, torn apart by factions fighting for control of the Horn of Africa nation since warlords ousted Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. Late on Monday, Islamist and government delegates meeting in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, agreed in principle to join their military forces if they could agree on sharing political power. The pact stressed that neither side would accept military interference inside Somalia by neighboring countries and seemed to set up yet another possible conflict between the government and the Islamists.

The TFG must put screeching halt on this ill-thought and counter-productive plan. Col. Cabdullaahi Yuusuf and Cali Geedi cannot say we want to negotiate peace while at the same time they keeping fueling the conflict by pushing for African troop deployment in Somalia.

Somali peace talks need more honest peace brokers from the Arab and Islamic countries. As the saying goes “ Baadida ninbaa kula daydayi, daalna kaa badin, aan doonahayn inaad heshana daaying abidkaa”. Both Ethiopa and Kenya are working tirelessly for permanent break up of Somalia and further fragmentation of the Somali Nation.

We cannot and we must not allow Somalia’s enemies to sit on the driver’s seat as we did in the past!

Click here to view the full article onn Reuters.

The International Herald Tribune writes:

Somalia’s virtually powerless government and an Islamic militia that has seized control of much of southern Somalia have signed an agreement to eventually form a unified national army, officials said. The deal late Monday, which came after two days of peace talks in Sudan, did not specify when the agreement would take effect. Talks were to resume Oct. 30 in Khartoum. “The Islamic courts have met the expectations of our people,” said Abdullahi Sheik Ismail, one of several deputy prime ministers in the government. Both sides also agreed to form a peace committee in order to determine how to implement the plan. Ibrahim Hassan Adow, who signed on behalf of the Islamic courts, said: “We are pleased we came to this agreement within two days.” Another major point was that the Islamic courts will not take any more territory and will instead wait for the Oct. 30 talks. Both sides also agreed to stop the use of propaganda against each other.

I wonder what the TFG offered.

Click here to view the full report on the IHT.

Above story is reported also by Al Jazeera, LA Times and Ottawa Citizen.

The Dubai based Gulf News newspaper reports:

A copy of the agenda obtained by AP shows that the talks, expected to continue for several days, are to revolve around a June agreement to discuss political, security, social and economic issues as well as reconstruction. Negotiators have said they hope to discuss Cabinet positions for the Islamists and seats in the transitional parliament as well as the transitional charter. The Islamists could argue that they control a significant part of the country and on that basis should share power with Somali President Abdullahi Yousuf’s transitional government.

If true, this is really a big mistake by the ICU. I mean the ICU does not need to hold cabinet posts in the failed TFG. They already control the most strategic sectors of the country including Mogadishu. They should go ahead and assemble their own government by consulting with Somali people and its local leaders. The TFG had its chance to lead the country and it failed.

Somalia needs a fresh start!

Click here to view the full article on the Gulf News.

C. Bryson Hull of the Reuters news agency writes:

Anarchic Somalia has confounded U.S. foreign policy once again, leaving Washington struggling to find a coherent approach to a state whose internal turmoil threatens to destabilise the Horn of Africa. The Bush administration appears to have realised that its “one-size-fits-all” approach to countering global terrorist threats failed in Somalia. But it is groping for an appropriate response to the new situation, diplomats and analysts say. Though overshadowed by the Middle East and Iraq, anarchic Somalia has long worried Washington because of fears its coastline — Africa’s longest — and proximity to the Arabian Peninsula could be exploited by militants posing a threat to U.S. interests and looking for a gateway into east Africa. A covert counter-terrorism initiative in which the United States threw its support behind secular warlords fighting Islamists in Mogadishu backfired spectacularly in June. The U.S. involvement actually worked to strengthen the Islamists’ hand and helped them conquer the capital, analysts say. Now with an internationally recognised interim government’s hopes of survival flagging in the face of a well-armed and organised Islamist movement, Washington’s only play so far has been to promote talks to bring the Islamists into the administration.

As I have argued here, here, and elsewhere in this blog, the Bush Administration’s foreign policy towards Somalia is at best, counter-productive and at worst destructive!

Click here to view the full article on Reuters.

Speaking in Khartoum, Sharif Xasan Aadan, the man who brought the failed TFG to its knees was quoted as saying:

We are brothers, we can achieve a lot. We want to focus on ways and means to take Somalia out of its current debacle.

Certainly, we are brothers and sisters as Somalis. However, I wonder why Sharif Xasan Aadan failed to recognize that simple fact in the past! I do not think any Somali will buy that cheap, immoral and deceptive statement. Sharif Xasan Aadan cannot say we are brothers only when it suits his selfish political agendas.

The International Heard Tribune reports:

Sudan Negotiators for Somalia’s transitional government and its Islamist rivals met face to face behind closed doors Sunday for key talks in the Sudanese capital on political, security and economic issues. The talks — aimed at steering Somalia away from anarchic violence and toward peace and stability — revolve around a June agreement to discuss political, security, social and economic issues as well as reconstruction, according to a copy of the agenda obtained by The Associated Press. Somali parliament speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden was seen leading delegates from the U.N.-backed Somali government into the talks with Islamic courts representatives led by Ibrahim Hassan Adow, the group’s foreign affairs chief.
Negotiators have said they hope to discuss Cabinet positions for the Islamists and seats in Parliament as well as the transitional charter in talks that are expected to last several days.

The paper went on by saying:

Aden and Adow made no statements Sunday before going into the meeting but reaffirmed Saturday that they are committed to peace. Adow warned, however, that foreign interference in Somalia would be “a recipe for the renewal of civil war,” alluding to reports that Ethiopian troops had taken up position in three Somali towns.

As I have argued endless times in the past, I do not really understand the point of wasting time talking with the failed TFG and its Ethiopian Viceroy; Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf Axmed! Now, what will Col. Cabdullahi Yuusuf offer to the ICU or to the Somali people in return for allowing him to continuing as a head of state? The answer to the question is simply NOTHING! Yes, I am aware of the fact that the Colonel has threatened to help full Ethiopian invasion of Somalia if he is asked to leave power and go home to Addis Abba. However, I do not think that there is anyone in Somalia today who is taking that threat very seriously other than the Colonel himself!

Having said that, I think, it is wise of the ICU leaders to show that they mean peace and that they are willing to talk to anyone in order to end the tragic political conflict in our beloved country. Nonetheless, no one should be under any illusion about the outcome of the inane talks in Sudan. It is just a farce!

Click here to view the full report on the IHT.