US MILITARY JUST HIT SOMALIA... MSNBC, breaking

[MADem]

Will get link ASAP....
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/
Here, it's in the headline...

They apparently are targeting al Qaeda, some who may have been responsible for the Embassy bombings. They want Haroon Fasul, the supposed mastermind of the Kenya/Tanzania bombing, and the Mombasa hotel bombing of Israeli tourists, and other actions.

The US apparently got the intel from the Somalis and Ethiopians. Likely they paid a good penny for it.

[Jackpine Radical]

1. Dupe

[uppityperson]

4. dupe is in GD here is link. OK to have in LBN here too

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x3070812

[MADem]

18. I actually did do the 'good citizen' thing and checked LBN before I posted.

I'd say this is LBN if anything is. Monkey is "wagging the dog" perhaps? Looking for a "war" he can WIN, maybe?

[Jackpine Radical]

49. Mea culpa.

Mea maxima culpa.

[humbled_opinion]

48. So Pre-emptive stikes on all countries is what the U.S. is doing now?

When will people wake up the Bush Doctrine is what is getting us in trouble in the world and here we go with more of the same... Pleas Nancy stand up to the madman at the helm it is the only way America can survive. I have very little hope these days. Only waiting for the final shoe to drop when he proclaims Marshal Law in the U.S. and starts rounding up us disadents.

[saigon68]

87. Killing a few Islamic men who wear things on their heads

You know those "Darkies"

</sarcasm>

[UndertheOcean]

2. WHAAAT ?????

is this for real ?

[musette_sf]

3. link

Report: U.S. airstrike targets al-Qaida in Africa
Pentagon won't confirm action by helicopter gunship in southern Somalia

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16531987/

[Monkeyman]

5. What they won't do to push troops

[bigworld]

10. At the risk of incurring some wrath on this board...

IF the information received was ironclad, IF our bombs are accurate, well, I can't condemn going after Al Qaida. Of course, I'm doubting all that given the administration's history since 2001.

[Monkeyman]

12. It was Ironclad its the timing I ?

[MADem]

22. There is such scant information at this point, it's premature to prejudge, really.

That said, given how this regime has had a habit of managing the news to suit their own political purposes, and lying like rugs (Kooo-want-ta-tees of URANIUM....from AAAAAAH-free-kaaaaaah!!!!) whenever they want, I suppose it's best to maintain a soupçon of skepticism....and see how it all shakes out.

[leesa]

55. Since when have our bombs been accurate?

What a nightmare this is!

[pberq]

83. Don't forget that Al Qaida is a creation of the CIA

[primavera]

97. I guess sovereignty doesn't mean what it used to

So when the Israelis unearth a lead to a terrorist cell hiding out in Brooklyn, it's okay for them to bomb New York, right?

[Nitrogenica]

6. War is an easy sell.

That's a fact! Cindy Sheehan may have some thoughts on that.

[babylonsister]

7. Let's just start war EVERYWHERE, or is this another

poorly thought-out distraction? :grr: :banghead: :nuke:

[musette_sf]

11. i'm voting for "distraction"

especially since Thom Hartmann chatted a bit this morning about "magic" (sleight of hand), and how you've gotta make ppl look at your right hand waving the brightly colored scarves, while the left hand releases the bunny into the hat. Thom is quite prescient.

[babylonsister]

13. And how many Somalians have we killed and/or pissed off?

:(
Someone needs to take dimson's toys away; he's far too dangerous.

[Purveyor]

8. CBS also reporting (first I think)...

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/08/world/main2335451.shtml

(CBS/AP) A U.S. Air Force gunship has conducted a strike against suspected members of al Qaeda in Somalia, CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports exclusively.

The targets included the senior al Qaeda leader in East Africa and an al Qaeda operative wanted for his involvement in the 1998 bombings of two American embassies in Africa, Martin reports. Those terror attacks killed more than 200 people.

The AC-130 gunship is capable of firing thousands of rounds per second, and sources say a lot of bodies were seen on the ground after the strike, but there is as yet, no confirmation of the identities.

The gunship flew from its base in Dijibouti down to the southern tip of Somalia, Martin reports, where the al Qaeda operatives had fled after being chased out of the capital of Mogadishu by Ethiopian troops backed by the United States.

[ShortnFiery]

67. Correct me if I'm wrong, but those Gunship Rounds are NOT supposed to be

used to kill personnel?!? Are they not instead specifically tasked to disable Armor and Equipment? I bet many of those people were LITERALLY cut in half. :puke: Oh well, at least death came quickly - but what a horrid way to go. :(

[goforit]

9. I smell OIL.

[Civil war surgeon]

53. The only

oil in Samolia is in the trucks sitting on the side of the road.

[CJCRANE]

80. The oil is next door in Sudan.

Because of this Somlia could be strategically important at some point.

[RamboLiberal]

14. If they really went after the embassy bombing terrorists

Then I don't have a problem with it. I'll wait to get more info before jumping in to condemn. I got sick of the "Wag the Dog" crap the RW spewed every time President Clinton took military action against al Qaeda.

[Monkeyman]

16. It was him but think they said they been watching for a month

I just don't like the timing here. If they got him the world better off

[NI4NI]

24. I don't either, as long as it's AlQaeda

especially since OBL was partnered up with the warlords who hacked and dragged American GI's through the streets after Black Hawk Down.

[Frank Cannon]

78. But how do they know it was Al Qaeda they hit?

Did they have their Al Qaeda "gimme" caps on? :shrug:

[Nihil]

82. Don't you know by now?

"If they're dead or in pieces then they were terrorists/insurgents/Al Qaeda"

Standard rules of engagement ...

[orleans]

38. this crap really should impress the american people when fuckhead

makes his surge speech, don't you think?

[ShortnFiery]

68. I must admit that you are not ever going to win the hearts and minds

of the people, whatever side you wish, if we (USA) continue to launch Targeted Assassinations.

Damn, that's just f**king sick. You better believe if they had our capability, they'd do the same to our leaders. And yes, we'd rightly be screaming from the highest rafters, "bloody murder."

No wonder seemingly the entire world community both loathes and fears us. :thumbsdown:

[Catchawave]

15. Cnn reporting too

Oy vey...bombs away :cry:

[DoYouEverWonder]

17. Don't they remember the last time

we used military intervention in Somalia? Has I recall it turned into a disaster.

[Monkeyman]

19. Yep

[gumby]

37. Wasn't that "Poppy's" Disaster?

See, the Boy-King is AOK. He's the Decider who has decided to makeover the world in HIS image.... and push Daddy aside... doncha know..

[MADem]

41. It was Poppy's turd, but Clinton got smeared with it... NT

[Megahurtz]

116. Poppy's behind it and

the Decider is just his puppet, his "Fall Boy". Don't think for a minute that Poppy's not in the game.

[HuffleClaw]

20. when the dust settles we'll inevitably learn 70 civilians died, including

a bunch of kids, but bush will, on wednesday, claim 'the NUMBER 2 AL QAEDA GUY WAS KILLED.'

[MADem]

42. I sure hope not. It's just too sad seeing kids killed and maimed in war...

If they were going after a particular group, I only hope they got it right. I understand that it wasn't just a helo, there was a C-130 gunship involved as well. Those things can shoot to beat the band and do a lot of damage very quickly.

[LeighAnn]

63. Can't they just arrest people anymore?

I can't imagine using these kinds of law-enforcement tactics on our own soil.

[muryan]

94. some people dont want to be arrested

many of the senoir AQ officials have been known to wear suicide vests around so that they are ever found, they just blow up and take everyone around with them

[otherlander]

117. How many Number 2 Al Qaida guys are there?

:shakes head:

[orleans]

21. wtf? i thought osama was behind that....that's why we indicted him

on november 4 1998 for "ordering the attacks" according to wiki

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_U.S._embassy_bombings#Capture.2C_prosecution.2C_deaths_of_perpetrators

where's bin laden?
WHERE'S BIN LADEN? HE ORDERED THESE ATTACKS AND SO WE'RE BOMBING SOMALIA?

someone on msnbc said our cia must have had good intel....yeah, sure. like they had on IRAQ??

i'm having a saddam/iraq/wmd deja vu!

[Kagemusha]

26. Bin Laden doesn't exactly work alone

and it's been said for some time now that people linked to the bombings - under Bin Laden's overall authority - were in Somalia. Now whether you buy that or not is up to you.

But it's not that it doesn't make any sense.

[orleans]

28. i understand that. the news on msnbc is saying we were going after

this guy "responsible" for the attacks.

hummm.....

[Mz Pip]

23. They probably missed

they usually do. I remember they were 0 for 50 a while back on their attempts on specific targets (like Al-Zarqari) in Iraq.

Not that I would mind if they nailed this guy, but they don't have a particularly good batting average on this kind of thing.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[MADem]

27. They hit SOMETHING...else they wouldn't have mentioned it. - More from MSNBC

If they got their buddy Hasoon, that's another story, but they made things go boom...

WASHINGTON - A senior Pentagon official confirmed for NBC News Monday that a U.S. helicopter gunship conducted a strike against two suspected al-Qaida operatives in southern Somalia. It was not immediately known whether the mission was successful.

The U.S. Air Force helicopter, operated by the Special Operations Command, flew from its base in Djibouti to the southern tip of Somalia, where the al-Qaida suspects were believed to have fled from the capital, Mogadishu, CBS News reported.

U.S. officials say that the United States received assurances from both the Ethiopian and Somalian governments in the last two weeks that, should they obtain intelligence concerning the whereabouts of the al-Qaida operatives, they would pass it on to the United States.

The operatives are believed to be responsible for the 1998 bombings in Kenya and Tanzania as well as 2002 attacks on Israeli tourists in Kenya and the attempted downing of an Israeli aircraft the same day.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16531987/

MSNBC is reporting they think the operation was successful...

[Mz Pip]

61. Well, they alway hit SOMETHING

a restaurant, a house...whether it was the right thing is another story. They do have a tendancy to get ahead of themselves on patting themselves on the back for a successful hit.

Mz Pip
:dem:

[MADem]

64. We have no real knowledge at this stage, but Tom Ricks at WAPO

is suggesting that there's some success to report. There's really nothing that you could call confirmation in this info though--and we know they've been wrong before (remember Jessica Lynch?) so it is probably best to take everything with a grain or two of salt until more reports become available. Of course, I'm sure he's getting it from the guys at the Pentagon...the piece is authored by Karen DeYoung, but I think he's the one that grabbed that tidbit--either he or Robin Wright, they've got the heavy sources out that way: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/08/AR2007010801822.html

The strike took place near the Kenyan border, according to a senior officer at the Pentagon. Other sources said it was launched at night from the U.S. military facility in neighboring Djibouti. It was based on joint military-CIA intelligence and on information provided by Ethiopian and Kenyan military forces operating in the border area......Sources said last night that initial reports indicated the attack had been successful, although information was still scanty.

"You had some figures on the move in a relatively unpopulated part of the country," said one source confirming the attack, who, like several others, would discuss the operation only on the condition of anonymity. "It was a confluence of information and circumstances," he said. The attack was first reported by CBS News.

One target of the strike, sources said, was Abu Talha al-Sudani, a Sudanese who is married to a Somali woman and has lived in Somalia since 1993 -- the year of the attack against U.S. troops that was chronicled in the book and movie "Black Hawk Down." In a 2001 U.S. court case against Osama bin Laden, Sudani was described by a leading witness as an explosives expert who was close to the al-Qaeda leader.

More recently, Sudani was identified by U.S. intelligence as a close associate of Gouled Hassan Dourad, head of a Mogadishu-based network that operated in support of al-Qaeda in Somalia. Dourad is one of 14 "high-value" prisoners transferred last September from CIA "black sites" to the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence then disclosed that Dourad "worked for the East African al-Qaeda cell led by . . . al-Sudani" and carried out at least one mission for him, related to a plan to bomb the U.S. military base in Djibouti....

[Ian David]

25. Maybe it's the 14 masterminds of the Cole bombing that "escaped" from prison? n/t

[Monkeyman]

32. Our Guys must be out of danger DOD Confirmed

[MADem]

35. Well, one of the guys was Cameroonian...theyre saying these are the 98 Embassy bombers NT

[Original Jack]

29. US MILITARY JUST HIT SOMALIA... MSNBC, breaking

bump

[kitty1]

30. Are we surprised; Somalia is located in the newly oil rich....

horn of Africa.It is also just miles across the Red Sea from Saudi Arabia and Yemen, overlooking the daily passage of large numbers of oil tankers and warships through that waterway.
The Bush Administration has been anxious to get rid of the Islamists there for some time now.
Let's face it folks, if it wasn't for the potential oil resources there, Somalia wouldn't be given the time of day by the U.S government. Different African factions have been mutilating each other for years, and the West has looked the other way. Need I mention Sudan and Romania.

[kitty1]

36. Sorry, I meant Rwanda

[EFerrari]

31. Bombing is so much faster than capturing and trying people.

I hope we're using those SMART bombs. :sarcasm:

[Ian David]

34. People we capture have this nasty tendency to turn out to be innocent.

And others somehow manage to "escape," or as in the case of that last guy, to simply walk out of an Iraqi prison and get on a plane to Detroit.

Ooops.

[EFerrari]

45. That's so embarrassing. n/t

[DemoTex]

33. Revenge, served 9-years cold.

Pierre Ambroise Francois Choderios de LaClos (1741-1803) originally said "Revenge is a dish best served cold" (in French) in his 1782 book Les Liasons Dangereuses: "La vengeance est un plat qui se mange froid."

But 9 years cold? More war for the WarBoy.

[Little Wing]

39. Considering Bush HAD to go back and finish daddy's war, it's no surprise

he HAS to go back and finish daddy's other war, especially Clinton ended it before it could be won, and daddy likes Clinton better anyway

[MADem]

40. What a cogent point....it's as though he broke the Ming vase in the dining room, but

damn if he ain't gonna do a bang-up job cleaning up daddy's den to make up for it!

The question is, though, does anyone think Daddy will thank him for REMINDING everyone that Somalia was his and Powell's on-the-cheap fiasco, and Clinton was the poor bastard who got stuck holding the bag?

[go west young man]

43. Too convenient coinsidering the troop escalation coming up.

I don't believe anything they tell us anymore. The things you can count on are that they are probably lying and that they are probably using something for political purposes and once it's disclosed they are lying they will attack the messenger. Ironically enough the ones we are "helping" in Somalia now are the same ones that were killing us during the Black Hawk down scenario. Where do our priorities lie. With the oil.

[MADem]

47. Good grief, what a busy day it has been today, eh?

We had the suspicious stink in NY and NJ, followed by the suspicious package in Miami, and then the Somalia thing, and now, there are WILDFIRES on one side of the PCH in Malibu, and they're buring like MAD on tv--MORE breaking news....

[humbled_opinion]

50. So this then is the beginning. More troops escalation...

Somalia attacks so Bush can hollar at America on Wednesday night and tell us to be afraid of Terra and that he must remain in control.... So much Terra and I am the only one that understands how to protect you.... Nancy now more then ever we need you to stand up this government is about shared powers... Shared decision making not a DECIDER.

[MADem]

52. Well, the NYC and Miami stories both fizzled. They were "Be Very Afraid"

exercises that turned out to be nothing.

The NYC thing was too much 'stink' added to the gas, that got in the subway or something....and the Miami thing was a great big false positive after hours of "Oooooooh, ahhhhhhh...."

We will have to wait to see what happens with Somalia, and hope the Californians can stop those Malibu fires, I guess!

[daleo]

58. A good point, and one that a lot of people don't realize

"Ironically enough the ones we are "helping" in Somalia now are the same ones that were killing us during the Black Hawk down scenario."

[BadgerKid]

44. "I look forward to working with the full Congress...

to provide the tax relief necessary to grow our economy and create jobs" *cough*inexchangeformoretroops*cough*

[IndianaGreen]

46. Bush has allied himself with the warlords that gave us Black Hawk Down

in order to oppose the Islamic Courts militias. This is the moral equivalent of joining the Nazis to fight the Italian Fascists.

[MADem]

51. Well, I dunno about that. I haven't been following this closely, so I don't know for certain and am

open to correction, but I heard that the Ethiopians booted out that bunch, and his intel is coming from the crew they installed as well as the Ethiopians.

[IndianaGreen]

54. Ethiopian Generals and Somali Warlords

Never too late to educate yourself!

Ethiopian Generals and Somali Warlords
The Bush Administration's Dubious Allies in the Horn of Africa
Posted on Wednesday, August 2, 2006. By Ken Silverstein.

SourcesAdd Ethiopia to the list of countries cashing in on their cooperation with the Bush Administration's “war on terrorism.” Two weeks ago, with the world's attention focused on the Israel–Hezbollah war, several thousand heavily-armed Ethiopian troops tiptoed into neighboring Somalia. Their mission was to halt the advance of a radical Islamic group that already controls most of the country and to provide support for the weak transitional government based in Baidoa. It's not clear if the Ethiopian army's move into Somalia had the tacit approval of the Bush Administration, but the U.S. certainly did not ardently oppose its intervention.

The Islamic militia is mustered in the mullah-led Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which the United States characterizes as a Taliban-style movement with ties to Al Qaeda. In June the UIC drove a U.S.-supported coalition of more secular (but nasty) warlords from Mogadishu, Somalia's capital.

The warlords had marketed themselves as the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counterterrorism, and had received money and assistance from the CIA. “Everybody is playing the counterterrorism card on the Bushies,” said one former intelligence officer who has followed the situation. “All you have to do is say 'counterterrorism,' like this silly alliance in Somalia, and you'll be given guns, money, and trucks. It's becoming a sick joke.”

Like the Somali warlords, Ethiopia has proved adept at the game. Following the 9/11 attacks, the country emerged as a key American ally in the Horn of Africa. The Pentagon has a large base in neighboring Djibouti and has worked closely with the Ethiopian military, conducting joint exercises and keeping a watchful eye on events in the region, especially in Somalia.

http://www.harpers.org/sb-ethiopian-generals-200608024848.html

In Somalia, a reckless U.S. proxy war

NAIROBI: Undeterred by the horrors and setbacks in Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon, the Bush administration has opened another battlefront in the Muslim world. With full U.S. backing and military training, at least 15,000 Ethiopian troops have entered Somalia in an illegal war of aggression against the Union of Islamic Courts, which controls almost the entire south of the country.

As with Iraq in 2003, the United States has cast this as a war to curtail terrorism, but its real goal is to obtain a direct foothold in a highly strategic region by establishing a client regime there. The Horn of Africa is newly oil-rich, and lies just miles from Saudi Arabia, overlooking the daily passage of large numbers of oil tankers and warships through the Red Sea. General John Abizaid, the current U.S. military chief of the Iraq war, was in Ethiopia this month, and President Hu Jintao of China visited Kenya, Sudan and Ethiopia earlier this year to pursue oil and trade agreements.

The U.S. instigation of war between Ethiopia and Somalia, two of world's poorest countries already struggling with massive humanitarian disasters, is reckless in the extreme. Unlike in the run-up to Iraq, independent experts, including from the European Union, were united in warning that this war could destabilize the whole region even if America succeeds in its goal of toppling the Islamic Courts.

An insurgency by Somalis, millions of whom live in Kenya and Ethiopia, will surely ensue, and attract thousands of new anti-U.S. militants and terrorists.

With so much of the world convulsed by crisis, little attention has been paid to this unfolding disaster in the Horn. The UN Security Council, however, did take up the issue, and in another craven act which will further cement its reputation as an anti-Muslim body, bowed to American and British pressure to authorize a regional peacekeeping force to enter Somalia to protect the transitional government, which is fighting the Islamic Courts.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/12/26/opinion/edlone.php

Published on Friday, December 29, 2006 by The Progressive
U.S. Should Not Support Ethiopia’s Invasion of Somalia
by Amitabh Pal

The United States has been concerned about Islamist fundamentalist militias operating in Somalia. These militias contain some extremely vile elements and allegedly have ties to Al Qaeda. They have laid siege to the Ethiopian-backed interim Somali government and have not only threatened to impose Shariah law on the country but also to export their agenda. The Ethiopian government cites the Islamist threat as the reason for its operation. The United States has not only given its approval to the invasion, but has troops in Ethiopia training the country’s soldiers, and is providing intelligence to the Ethiopian armed forces.

The Bush Administration is so spooked by the specter of Islamic fundamentalism that it’s willing to overlook the dangers of the conflict sparking off a larger conflagration.
Alas, there are no good guys in this war. Ethiopian President Meles Zenawi is a nasty piece of work. He has been a darling of the United States ever since the Clinton Administration’s time, when he was hailed as being part of the “African renaissance.” The war on terror has drawn Zenawi, a Christian leader of a religiously mixed but Christian-dominated country, closer to the Bush Administration. African renaissance man or not, he has been ruthless in his exercise of power. For instance, Ethiopian security forces killed nearly fifty people in November 2005 in a crackdown on protests. They also arrested thousands, including politicians, journalists, and activists.

“Government officials and security forces in much of Ethiopia make routine use of various forms of human rights abuse to deter and punish dissent,” Human Rights Watch states. “Many independent journalists, editors, and publishers continue to endure harassment and intimidation, and criminal penalties for a range of speech-related penalties remain on the books.”

In fact, opposition groups speculate that Ethiopia’s invasion has less to do with the threat from its neighbor and is more an attempt to unite the country around the leadership of the unpopular Zenawi regime. Somalia and Ethiopia have been at loggerheads for a long time, and fought a full-fledged war in 1977. Attacking Somalia is a way for Zenawi to score cheap political points, with (hopefully for him) minimal casualties for the Ethiopian army.

http://www.commondreams.org/views06/1229-21.htm

[go west young man]

56. Excellent find Indiana Green.

I hadn't read that before. Thanks for posting it.

[MADem]

57. My understanding is these aren't the same warlords, though.

It may be "meet the new boss, same as the old boss" but these aren't the same guys as before--unless my memory is failing me totally (seriously, the only name ringing a bell is John Prendergast, in the 2nd article below). Ever since they kicked out the Head Bastard in 91, it's been a clusterfuck and a revolving door, it looks like. I dig through this and still have a helluva time figuring out who's who, but it seems to me that the names are new since BHD: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/16413308.htm
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-hunt9jan09,1,2506820.story?coll=la-headlines-world

What I don't get is these clans who were sheltering the AQ guys...if they were practicing Muslims, it's a major no-no to 'out' your guests. It's a Koranic thing to ask for and receive protection--you don't welsh on that deal (no offense to the Welsh, mind) or there's hell to pay in the afterlife. And if they weren't, why did these guys go to them for help? Were they simply well situated? So I'm just a bit confused. I thought they went with Koranic law, completely, when they bothered with law at all. Were these clans working solely on a cash basis? For enough, money, we'll hook you up? It just doesn't make sense at first blush, unless they waited until they started running before ratting them out. Near as I can tell, the Ethiopians pulled the rug out from under the terrorists, and the US went after them as they ran for the border, with the help of intel from the Ethiopians and the Kenyans as well:

One target of the strike, sources said, was Abu Talha al-Sudani, a Sudanese who is married to a Somali woman and has lived in Somalia since 1993 -- the year of the attack against U.S. troops that was chronicled in the book and movie "Black Hawk Down." In a 2001 U.S. court case against Osama bin Laden, Sudani was described by a leading witness as an explosives expert....Sudani is among several senior al-Qaeda operatives who, the Bush administration said, were being sheltered by Islamic fundamentalists who last year seized control of Mogadishu, Somalia's capital. Late last month, the fundamentalists, who controlled much of southern Somalia, were driven out of the capital and were pushed toward the Kenyan border by Ethiopian troops, who installed an internationally backed transitional government.

Other al-Qaeda figures who allegedly had taken refuge in Somalia, U.S. officials said, included three participants in the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya.

The United States has been leading an international diplomatic effort to stabilize Somalia, including organizing an African peacekeeping force to replace the thousands of Ethiopian troops occupying the southern part of the country. It has called on leaders of the transitional government to negotiate a power-sharing arrangement with moderate members of the Islamic leadership who are not seen as terrorist facilitators and who are supported by a significant segment of Somali clans.

Neither effort has met with much success.....Sources would not confirm that U.S. forces are operating on the ground in the Somalia-Kenyan border area, although one emphasized that "we are working very, very closely" with Kenyan forces.

In remarks to reporters late last week, a senior U.S. general with expertise in East Africa said there were no plans to deploy U.S. troops to Somalia.....The U.S. Navy presence in the Indian Ocean was stepped up for the strike, with the USS Eisenhower, an aircraft carrier, being deployed to provide air cover and, if needed, evacuate downed airmen and other casualties. The Eisenhower joined several Navy ships from the Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain, that have been patrolling the area to prevent al-Qaeda elements from fleeing war-torn Somalia by sea, a Navy spokesman said.....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/08/AR2007010801635.html

Eh, Jim Leher will sort it out eventually for me, I imagine.

[plant]

77. Wonder how many

are the same from the 90's

[babylonsister]

60. Sigh. Who said it couldn't get worse? nt

[bobthedrummer]

59. In 1993 William Boykin was the Army's combat commander in Somalia

wonder what he's up to tonight???

General William G. Boykin profile from Source Watch
http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=William_G._Boykin

[MADem]

62. General "Asshole" Boykin? General "Nuisance" Boykin? The "Let me put on my uniform and go to

church, and stand my ass up in the pulpit, and talk trash, in violation of military regulations that young kids learn in the fifth week of boot camp" Boykin???

I was appalled that he wasn't properly disciplined for his behavior. The promotion was insult to injury. It was that event that made a lot of us realize that DOD was in WAY worse shape than many wanted to believe.

Of course, the sleazy bastard probably knows where a few bodies are buried: http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/09/23/1520209

[bobthedrummer]

118. FWIW, it was Boykin behind this latest Somalia attack.

DoYouEverWonder posted the latest update on this fact, I'll crosspost it.
"Gates Cleans House"
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2682176

Yep, General Boykin is going to be retired again-by BFEE's Robert Gates. Boykin will probably get a position in one of the mercenary armies employed by BFEE.

[MADem]

120. Jesus, Cambone the Hambone isn't GONE yet? They announced his retirement eons ago

I know people who were giddy with glee at the announcement. UGH...that whole section is a disaster...a veritable embarrassment of incompetence...Lord help us all!!!!

[maddezmom]

65. "Sources say a lot of bodies were seen on the ground after the strike," CBS News said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070109/pl_afp/somaliaunrestusqaedaattacks_070109052520

[ShortnFiery]

66. Dropping bombs, IMO, is a real chicken-shit way to kill people

I know, I know, war is NOT ever fair. But hell, these folks don't even have an Air Force. I'd love to fly a jet, if I were capable, but could not press the button to drop the bombs. :( My father told me that when he was on and off the front lines during WWII, he feared dying from Arty or Aerial Strikes as the most horrid way to die. No lie, people are blown to "kibbles and bits." Horrific. :scared: :cry: :thumbsdown:

[slackmaster]

69. Yeah, let's bring back battle axes, maces, swords, etc.

Or at least a good old fashioned bayonet charge.

[ShortnFiery]

70. Naw, but it does not lessen our reputation for being "bullies"

of the World.

Onward Christian Soldiers! (with big-ass weapon systems)

[slackmaster]

84. Anything we do, short of leaving, harms our reputation

I doubt that we have much of a disagreement on that.

[primavera]

98. Sounds like a good reason to leave to me - n/t

[slackmaster]

99. I think so too, but even that would piss somebody off

:nuke:

[TX-RAT]

90. Or we could just count Coup as the Native americans did.

[MADem]

100. Actually, those 130 gunships don't drop bombs, they just fire bigass bullets

at an impossibly fast clip. They're great when you are pinned down by enemy shooting at you--they come along and just blow the oppositon away. My understanding is that this was entirely a 'gunship' operation--using fixed wing and helo assets. I could be mistaken, but that was what I heard.

Now, that doesn't necessarily mean less loss of life (often it can mean more) but it does reduce the 'big boom' factor.

[maddezmom]

71. U.S. launches 2 airstrikes in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The U.S. launched at least two airstrikes on different locations against terror targets in Somalia, an official and witnesses said Tuesday.

A U.S. AC-130 gunship attacked suspected al-Qaida terrorists near Ras Kamboni in southern Somalia, the Somali Defense Minister said.

Earlier an eyewitness told The Associated Press that a gunship hit targets near Afmadow, 155 miles north of Ras Kamboni.

"The strike took place in Ras Kamboni," Defense Minister, Col. Barre "Hirale" Aden Shire told the AP.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070109/ap_on_re_af/somalia

[ShortnFiery]

72. Anti-Terror Operations = Targeted Assassinations and Killing at Will.

We are killing suspected terrorists.

Let's pray they steer clear of Wedding Processions. :puke:

[The Witch]

73. Team America World Police!!1!!one!

at least they're hitting a little closer to al qaeda than iraq this time...

hey... can you blame me for looking for a silver lining? :eyes:

[Eugene]

74. Reuters: U.S. strikes at al Qaeda in Somalia, "many dead"

U.S. strikes at al Qaeda in Somalia, "many dead"
09 Jan 2007 10:22:35 GMT
Source: Reuters

By Guled Mohamed

MOGADISHU, Jan 9 (Reuters) - A U.S. attack plane killed many people with barrages
of gunfire in a remote Somali village occupied by Islamists thought to be hiding
at least one al Qaeda suspect, a Somali government source said on Tuesday.

In the first known direct U.S. military intervention in Somalia since a failed
peacekeeping mission that ended in 1994, an AC-130 plane rained gunfire on the
desolate southern village of Hayo near the Kenyan border late on Monday.

"I understand there are so many dead bodies and animals in the village," the senior
source told Reuters.

-snip-

"The Americans are saying an al Qaeda member heading operations in east Africa is
among the Islamists there," the source said. He did not know the man's name or
whether he died.

-snip-

Full article: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L092788.htm

[ShortnFiery]

76. One Suspected Al Qaeda Agent ?!?

So, let me get this right?

We destroyed an entire village to kill as few as ONE (1x) *suspected* Al Quaeda member.

Reminds me of the Vietnam War propaganda. "We had to destroy the village in order to save it." :puke:

Wow, doesn't this make you proud to be an American? :thumbsdown: :(

[plant]

75. Figured this would be soon

They were chatting it up on FOX last week.

[Massachusetts]

79. Dip shits approval ratings

are still under 30%. Keep on truckin georgie boy.

[saigon68]

111. A third War in A Third Place

Delightful

</Sarcasm>

[CJCRANE]

81. This is a half-hearted Wag the Dog bullshit distraction.

Just like when they bombed the Pakistani village a year or two ago.

The neocons aren't serious about going after al-Qaeda - they could've done that five years ago.

They're doing exactly what Condi accused Clinton of doing "swatting at flies".

On edit: Saddam's dead - so no more mileage from court appearances etc, they've caught all the Iraqi #2's, flight diversions don't cut it any more, so what else are they left with?

[nolabels]

86. Going after al-Qaeda with air strikes is like going after housefly with sludge hammer

That is all they are left with, trying start another war :shrug:

[The Stranger]

85. So they are bombing those they think "may have been responsible" for bombings?

You do realize that this is a violation of every law conceivable, don't you? Especially since it also results in the murder of others "who may not have been responsible" for bombings.

And not to mention the fact that the innocents murdered in the U.S. bombing are going to have relatives, and relatives of relatives, who will not look kindly on the U.S. for this, despite the fact that U.S. citizens either oppose this or have no knowledge of it.

[entanglement]

88. Was it a wedding procession or an aspirin factory this time?

:puke:

[robcon]

89. Success is claimed....

UK terrorists captured in Somalia
Tuesday January 9, 2007 12:13 PM

"British terror suspects have been injured or captured in the recent military action against Islamic extremists in Somalia, it has been claimed.

The African country has seen fierce fighting in recent days between Islamist militants and soldiers from Ethiopia and Somalia's transitional government.

The US is also carrying out air strikes in southern Somalia against Islamic fighters suspected of links with al Qaida. America claims that Somali Islamists sheltered al Qaida operatives linked to the 1998 US embassy bombings in East Africa.

A large number of people have been killed in the raids.

Ethiopia's prime minister said on Tuesday that many international terrorists had been killed, injured or captured in the fighting in Somalia.

Meles Zenawi was quoted by the French newspaper Le Monde as saying that suspected terrorists from Britain were among them.

"Many international terrorists are dead in Somalia," Meles was quoted as saying.

"Photographs have been taken and passports from different countries have been collected. The Kenyans are holding Eritrean and Canadian passport holders. We have injured people coming from Yemen, Pakistan, Sudan, the United Kingdom."

Ethiopia forces invaded Somalia last month to prevent an Islamic movement from ousting the weak, internationally recognised government from its lone stronghold in the west of the country.

There were reports at the weekend that British passport holders were involved in the fighting. However, the Foreign Office said it could not confirm the latest claims that Britons were among those injured."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uklatest/story/0,,-6332782,00.html

[Nihil]

92. They are so brazen that they boast about murderous crimes?

> "Photographs have been taken and passports from different countries have
> been collected. The Kenyans are holding Eritrean and Canadian passport
> holders. We have injured people coming from Yemen, Pakistan, Sudan, the
> United Kingdom."

They appear to be *happy* that they have "injured" people from these
countries despite the fact that there were no arrests, no charges and
no attempt to discriminate between "suspect" (=uncharged possible criminal)
and innocent civilian.

:mad:

Yet I bet they'd soon bleat "terrorist, terrorist" if anyone acted in
revenge (or even "pre-emptive defence") against them.

[ShortnFiery]

102. I swear the MSNBC news model was almost orgasmic as the military adviser

told her that we LITERALLY pulverized "the bad guys" during our aerial strikes with 101 millimeter CANNONS!?! :wtf:

Microscopic parts of these people will continue to rain down all day. :wow: :puke: :puke:
Sweet Sweet Retribution ... truly a proud day to say you're an American. :sarcasm:

[Rosa Luxemburg]

91. did our new congress allow this?

were they consulted?

[Nihil]

93. They were probably watching a football match ... (n/t)

:eyes:

[muryan]

95. even if they arent linked to AQ

theres about a 99.9% chance they are with the group of islamists who had previously attempted to start up a sharia based government there, and had even started executions. the word innocent doesnt apply to those people and i expected the military to take out targets in the area. clinton would have done the same thing

[ShortnFiery]

103. Sure, and in that entire village that was DESTROYED in one attack,

all the infants, children and attending mothers are absent. :grr:

We are condoning MURDER with 101 mm CANNONS. Do you have any idea what that OVERKILL (should be used to disable tanks, not on personnel) weaponry does to human flesh? :(

We're drippin' in blood lust and I want off this INSANE ride. :thumbsdown:

[muryan]

106. might as well throw puppies and kittens in that sentence too

i havent seen one confirmed report of who got hit/killed. so until ill just wait to make accusations

[ShortnFiery]

107. Absolutely, live stock lies in CHUNKS in the wake of a 101 mm Cannon.

Plus it's not just accusations: Read post #8 for a site reference.

"The AC-130 gunship is capable of firing thousands of rounds per second, and sources say a lot of bodies were seen on the ground after the strike, but there is as yet, no confirmation of the identities.

The gunship flew from its base in Dijibouti down to the southern tip of Somalia, Martin reports, where the al Qaeda operatives had fled after being chased out of the capital of Mogadishu by Ethiopian troops backed by the United States."

[The Stranger]

109. I am trying to believe what I am reading in this post.

You propose the mass murder of people who you claim "previously attempted to start up a sharia based government"?

And you believe that "the word innocent doesnt apply to those people" because they are "Islamist"?

Let me try to get this mindset straight, because I am having a fucking hard time believing I am reading it here.

This is the support of the murder of people based on their religion.

[Marie26]

96. Again?

The AP article says we've launched "new" attacks in Somalia - the first attacks were on Monday.

"MOGADISHU, Somalia - U.S. helicopter gunships launched new attacks Tuesday against suspected al-Qaida members, a Somali official said, a day after American forces launched airstrikes in the first offensive in the African country since 18 U.S. troops were killed there in 1993."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070109/ap_on_re_af/somalia_275

There wasn't a hint of this in the news yesterday, was there? It's a little scary to think that the US could launch a major offensive w/o the media even noticing it. The only reason they're reporting it now is because the military officially notified them.

[MADem]

104. This is a "low personnel count" exercise. It's special forces and folks in aircraft

After the last debacle there, we're not going to put conventional forces in urban environments without a reliable government and security structure in place. And this was a rural and isolated village, according to first reports anyway.

The difference between this and a cruise missile aimed at Osama is that we have people who have actual, real eyes on the target, not just grainy footage that ends with a boom, where we have to rely on a satellite for the rest of the story. We can really see what happens and get contextual reports back.

I hope that the targets WERE those Embassy bombers, and our forces weren't conned into carrying out executions of problamatic individuals that the ETHIOPIANS want to get rid of.

The fucking Shi'a/Dawa in Iraq have pulled that shit WAY too often with us--"See that guy? He's uh, uh, a Ba'athist who is a pipe bomber!!! Uh, uh...an insurgent, yeah, that's the ticket, getting IED parts from...uh...Syria, yeah, that's it!! Go kill him, Americans!!!" And, stupid us, that's what we do. Talk about fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me...it's more like 'Fool me a million times, because I am a fucking idiot....'

At least that's how they look at it as they laugh their asses off at us...of course, the Monkey, early on, didn't even realize that Islam actually had SECTS, he must have thought the briefer said SEX (Heh, heh, uv course'n they dew, they got all them kids, don't they? Heh, heh...).

[Zhade]

119. "we're not going to put conventional forces in urban environments without..."

Unless your cities are in Iraq.

The fucking Shi'a/Dawa in Iraq have pulled that shit WAY too often with us--"See that guy? He's uh, uh, a Ba'athist who is a pipe bomber!!! Uh, uh...an insurgent, yeah, that's the ticket, getting IED parts from...uh...Syria, yeah, that's it!! Go kill him, Americans!!!" And, stupid us, that's what we do. Talk about fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me...it's more like 'Fool me a million times, because I am a fucking idiot....'

SOME of the Shia is what you mean, of course.

[MADem]

122. Well, of COURSE I was being situational with regard to Somalia

owing to BHD. The US population would have more problems with us putting five thousand troops in Somalia than they would putting fifty thousand more in Baghdad. After all, they saw the movie. And that's how history is taught in this country.

And no, I actually meant all the Shi'a in Iraq, not some--or at least all of those that matter, that can influence events. Muqtada is calling the shots. No one else has the inflence he has, they are all marginalized. It's pathetic that no one is paying any damned attention to the most senior cleric, al-Sistani, unfortunately, and he's the only one making any damn sense nowadays, though he's thrown up his hands on more than one occasion.

Al-Sadr's running Dawa, hell, he IS Dawa, and that is the party of al-Maliki, his stooge, and when al-Maliki asks George for 20K more pairs of boots on the ground, he's asking because al-Sadr TOLD him to. It's easier to consolidate power when there's security in place, and you can use those Americans to roust your enemies.

Al-Sistani has been pleading with people to eschew violence and disarm the militias...I'm sorry, I simply can't see our pal al-Sadr disarming his crew. He might SAY he's doing that, but he'll "disarm" them by putting them in the Army and the Police, able to be recalled to do his bidding at a moment's notice.

[ShortnFiery]

101. No worries, there's "not much" left of your body when you have

been ripped to shreds by a 101 mm f**king CANNON. :shrug: :eyes:

All that's left un-vaporized can be picked up with a squeegee and tweezers. How's that for an accurate visual? :wow:

[bikebloke]

105. Grenada - The Sequel

They can now proclaim an easy "victory" for Little Lord Prissy Pants' speech. A diversion from losing the Iraqi catstrophuck.

[noonwitch]

108. Maybe this will back Ethiopia off of Kenya's borders

I hate it when this kind of stuff happens, because there are always innocent civilians killed. But it could be worse if the actions of al Queda in Somalia contribute to the problems along the Ethiopian/Kenyan border.

[The Stranger]

110. You are cheering this on?

[ShortnFiery]

113. Each one of the 50+ innocents we have killed (collateral damage)

over the past couple of days, will end up creating an Al Quaeda (or two) to avenge their loved one's senseless killing.

I'm sickened by this WRONG notion that we can "kill them all."

Hello? You kill civilians, you create new enemies for the next generation to come. :thumbsdown:

[Eugene]

112. Intelligence thinks they got an al-Qaeda guy. They're not sure who he is.

Qaeda suspect thought killed in Somalia-US official
09 Jan 2007 18:27:55 GMT
Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - U.S. intelligence believes a Sunday air strike in Somalia
killed one of three al Qaeda members suspected in the 1998 bombing of U.S. embassies
in Kenya and Tanzania, an official said on Tuesday.

The intelligence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it was not clear
which al Qaeda member died in the strike, which he described as a targeted operation
against the militant network's leadership.

"We don't know which one is the one at the moment," the official said. "I don't think
we got all three. Of the senior guys, people are looking at one."

U.S. officials have long sought al Qaeda suspects Abu Talha al-Sudani of Sudan, Fazul
Abdullah Mohammed of Comoros and Kenyan Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan in Somalia.

-snip-

Full article: http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N09154509.htm

[ShortnFiery]

114. I bet whoever it is - he's a super secret #2 Al Quaeda guy or at least an aide.

:eyes:

[Nihil]

121. After that raid ...

... there probably isn't enough left to identify.

All they can do is see who pops up again in the next day or two.
If the "targets" simply lie low then they will be assumed to have been
killed in the raid. By the time the truth comes out, the US public will
be onto the next shiny thing waved in front of them.

> The intelligence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said
> it was not clear which al Qaeda member died in the strike, which he
> described as a targeted operation against the militant network's
> leadership.

"A targetted operation to prop up the militant president's leadership"
would be closer to the truth.

And people wonder why American tourists are at risk abroad?

[ama]

115. the other bombers?

The GW Bush DOJ arranged for the early release of convicted FBI and CIA provocateur Ali Mohammed in July 2005. When released Ali had not served a full sentence commensurate with his convictions for the 1993 WTC and Kenyan and Tanzanian bombing attacks
Ali Mohammed worked for the FBI, CIA and Army Special Forces and with Bin Laden and 9/11 mastermind Khalid Mohammed, all at the same time! After Ali’s conviction during Clinton’s Presidency, DOJ AG Janet Reno made a special deal with Ali Mohammed and only held him under house arrest and never with the prospect of Ali having to serve out his full sentence
http://www.newswithviews.com/Briley/Patrick18.htm
A former US Army sergeant has admitted involvement in the 1998 bombings of two US embassies in Africa in which 224 people were killed, 12 of them Americans.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/982069.stm