nazret.com Merkato Blog

The United States occupation of Iraq and all its implications squarely rests on George Bush and the public is informed daily on the casualties of this occupation and its cost to the tax payers and the 2008 election will much be determined on who will bring the troops back home safely.

Today is the first anniversary of occupation of Somalia by "Ethiopian" soldiers and in direct opposite to the occupation of Iraq, let alone the public the so called parliamentarians do not now the number of "Ethiopian" soldiers who died in this adventure and where the money is coming for this war, and how much this occupation has cost so far?

We have not heard debate in the Ethiopian "parliament" similar to the USA Congress to fund the war and this surely proves that this money is not coming from tax payers of Ethiopia and it is probably tied up with the so called counter terrorism agreement with the USA administration.

Do we have the names of the dead ? Is that also a military secret like most things in Somalia? Can anyone tale me how many Somalis were killed? we are hearing sometimes hundreds of dead Islamic fighters and does anyone believe that Somalia is much stable and is free of "terrorists" than it were a year ago?

It is in fact the opposite. After one year of illconceived adventure the Islamists have many Somalis on their side fighting for their "national" pride and one thing this occupation did is to bring all Somalis together.

The impact of this occupation for the future instability is great. Somalia either will go to the 1990s clan fight or Islamists will capitalize on the current Somali nationalism and rally the people and establish an Islamic state hopefully which has no ambition for neighbores territories.

I have no doubt, like the Hamas of Palestine and Hezbollah of Lebanon tested in war times they will also be popular in Somalia. However, the Somali Islamists should not miscalculate and call for Jihad on neighboring countries especially Ethiopia encouraged by outsiders who are now only giving lip service to their resistance.

The "Ethiopian" army unceremonious departure by next year will be filled possibly by India and Muslim countries to stop the killing and Somalis have to be ready to live with the Islamists and the Islamists have to realize their dream in their own territory and declaring "jihad" across the border against Ethiopia will sabotage Ethiopian people struggle for freedom and equality and be an excuse for the dictatorial regime of Melese Zenawi to stay in power.

Ethiopians are true friends of Somalia and the hundred thousands of Somalis displaced by war never felt as foreigner living in Ethiopia and no matter who comes to power in Somalia that should be the foundation of our future relationship.

Burundian soldiers in a military transport plane after their arrival in Mogadishu (AFP)

Somalia - UN Somali Envoy’s Ominous Message

By Mulugeta Alemu

The 100 or so Burundian soldiers joined 1600 Ugandan troops already stationed in Mogadishu. Burundi had pledged 1700 troops. It is expected that additional troops will be contributed by countries such as Nigeria. As the first batch of these troops arrives in the Somalia capital, the international community is yet to muster the required resources to bolster the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). Given the indolence of the international community in supporting AMISOM and the complex problems within Somalia, AMISOM’s future is still fuzzy and alas, the message coming from the United Nations is indeed ill-omened.

In his recent report to the Security Council and press statement afterwards, Ban ki Moon’s Special Envoy to Somalia, Mauritanian national Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, outlined his vision for Somalia. He proclaimed his plan to introduce a ‘two-tracked approach’ and declared the end of ‘business as usual’ response. His declaration made a lip service to AMISOM, but is accompanied by a rather curious proposal which raised eyebrows at the UN headquarters. He suggested that Saudi Arabia should play a leading role in Somalia. Why should Saudi Arabia be invited to Somalia? He bizarrely responded that the Saudis host Islam’s two holist sites, and have a moral ‘authority’ and ‘prestige’. He also elaborated on the need for Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Indonesia, Bangladesh and Jordan to contribute troops to Somalia. He made a lame political balance by halfheartedly raising the possibility that one or two NATO countries may consider sending troops. As expected, few understood his proposals and rationale behind them.
Ban Ki Moon had ignored the UN Security Council to develop a UN contingency plan on Somalia, and even made a controversial statement in November suggesting that Somalia is too risky for a UN mission.

Shouldn’t Mr. Ould-Abdallah’s new enthusiasm be encouraged?
Countless problems loom large in his proposals. Firstly they are excessively vague and half-backed. His recommendations, probably treading incalculable sensitive geopolitical issues, were crafted in such generalities that members of the Security Council were forced to ask for more details. While talking about the need to establish an all-inclusive ‘government of national unity’, he avoided any mention of the peace and reconciliation conference held in Somalia through the auspices of the TFG, and its outcome. Among his chief proposals, however, there is one which stands out having a particularly significant potential impact on AMISOM. And this proposal relates to his call for Saudi Arabia’s role, and a strange naming of Islamic countries as potential contributors of troops to Somalia. The envoy’s message is clear and it is this Somalia’s crisis is primary an arabic and islamic issue and thus it should be handled as such.

Are the Saudis interested to send troops to Somalia? There is no indication that they are. So far Saudi’s role has been limited to hosting Somalis for peace talks, and probably sending a lot of money to the Islamists. One such talk occurred in October 2007. They are also active in Organization of Islamic Conference contact group on Somalia. But the odds are high that they are probably testing the waters for a more pronounced influence in Somalia. Mr Ould-Abdallah’s happy-go-lucky statements made that very clear indeed.

For several years, the Islamists enjoyed a strong support from Gulf States and business interests. A carefully crafted campaign projecting Ethiopia’s intervention in Somalia as American attack on Islam through a Christian satellite in Africa was evident. So far these messages were veiled. It is remarkable how the message is being sent through quite innocent sounding diplomatic briefs.