Posted on 01/09/2007 7:47:49 AM PST by TexKat
Many people are said to be dead following air strikes in southern Somalia by a US warplane in an attempt to target a suspected al-Qaida cell.
The US government has long suspected Somalia of housing a small number of terrorists involved in the 1998 embassy bombings in Tanzania and Kenya.
The attack took place late on Monday night as an AC-130 gunship targeted a village in the far south of the country.
A senior government official told the Reuters news agency: "There are so many dead bodies and animals in the village."
There has been no indication by the US or Somalia to confirm if the air strikes have been successful.
The attacks come at a fragile time for Somalia. Recent weeks have seen Somali and Ethiopian troops on the streets of the country and the Islamic courts quickly forced out of their strongholds in Mogadishu in an attempt to bring stability to the country which has been mainly lawless for 15 years.
The Somali Islamists have continually denied any links to al-Qaida.
The UN has backed plans for a peacekeeping force of 8,000 people to bring harmony to the horn of Africa.
I love it...hope you don't mind, I just stole it.
LOL, no you know that would never happen :)
I like that one too!
10: GetA$:IF A$="BASIC" GOTO 30
20: END
30 PRINT "Shrug. I am OLD!"
40 END
C-47s, military version of DC-3, have been out of service for at least 20-30 yrs. They were a pre WWII design and quite numerous then. They are probably still flying passenger routes in third world contries. IIRC they use the same engines as the B-17 (but only two instead of four). This should give you an idea of their age.
"Pukin Dogs" is my favorite squadron nickname. You gotta have a self-effacing sense of humor.
Puff was aka Spooky. The name has been resurected for the AC-130U. Ther AC-47s are long gone, even during Vietnam there were being replaced by AC-119s. (C-119 == Flying Boxcar). AC-130A, if any still exist are used by the AF Reserve, active duty air force flys AC-130H and AC-130U.
The AC-130 is based in Djibouti, just a hop-skip-jump away from Somalia.
M. O'BRIEN: Now to Somalia and the first acknowledged military action there by the U.S. since the deadly Black Hawk Down incident back in '93. At least one American air strike on al Qaeda operatives near the border with Kenya.
Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, is in Nairobi with more.
Hello, Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Hello to you, miles.
Well, a U.S. Air Force Special Operations AC-130 gun ship has conducted an air strike inside Somalia against an al Qaeda training camp. U.S. intelligence and African intelligence services had been keeping an eye on al Qaeda for many months now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STARR (voice over): U.S. officials here in East Africa tell CNN that al Qaeda operatives were developing the ability to attack U.S. targets just as they did in 1998 when U.S. embassies were bombed in Kenya and Tanzania, killing hundreds. Intelligence shows that after an Islamic militia took power in Somalia in June, al Qaeda stepped up its operations there. Camps taught radical Islam to young men, weapons flowed in from East European arms dealers, and money from the Middle East.
One official said, "We just couldn't live with it anymore. We were worried."
REAR ADM. RICHARD HUNT, COMMANDER, TASK FORCE HORN OF AFRICA: And that's what we were really concerned about, is there seemed to be much more recruiting, much more training going on. They were positioning themselves to expand their area of influence beyond the Somali borders.
STARR: Three al Qaeda operatives accused in the embassy bombing have been hiding in Somalia for years. The U.S. believes they were closely tied to the Islamic group the ICU.
Neighboring Ethiopia was also worried by the prospect of a hard- line Islamic regime next door. Its invasion to oust the Islamic militia met with no objections from Washington. The new Somali foreign minister says his country now wants U.S. troops back more than a decade after they withdrew.
ISMAEL HURREH, SOMALI FOREIGN MINISTER: More than anything else, we want the Americans -- Americans to help us to train an efficient security force.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: Miles, you know, these al Qaeda operatives had already been on the run for several weeks since the Islamic militia had been thrown out of power in Mogadishu. There are about five, actually, that there is a manhunt on for, but even if they find them, even if they capture or kill them, here in East Africa, nobody really thinks al Qaeda is gone.
There is still money and arms flowing into this region. And here in Kenya, of course, they have already experienced an al Qaeda attack. People here tell me today they are very pleased that the U.S. has taken this action. They really want to see al Qaeda gone, but nobody's counting on it -- Miles.
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0701/09/ltm.01.html
thank ye.
Lol, agree!
Maybe they were talking about that "newly wed. Note school is mentioned as well. To the media, this is a quant little village.
It sounds like a terrorist camp and recruting training center to me. What else could a "islamic school" be? The Koran teaches nothing but violence, Mohammads methods of attacking villages and camel caravans, treatment of prisoners, hostage ransoming, terrorism in general.
Too late, they are already alleging a wedding party. See story on Fox news.
So now we know. Thanks for the response.
Or the AC-130U Spooky. Spectre and Spooky are now a team.
Look at the griffin on their logo. Doesn't it look like it's puking.
As an aside when my buddy was in the "Dogs" they weren't allowed to call themselves the "Pukin' Dogs" because it wasn't P.C.
That didn't stop the wives from printing t-shirts that said "Pukin' Bitches" on them. That is humor.
Updated: 1/9/2007 11:29:03 AM
A published report says one of the targets of a U.S. military strike in Somalia is a suspect in the bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa.
The Washington Post has identified the man.
The Pentagon says it can't confirm or deny reports of the strike.
But a government official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the operation's sensitivity, says at least one AC130 gunship was used in the attack against several suspected members of al-Qaida in Somalia.
The 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania killed more than 250 people.
Other media report the same operatives are also believed responsible for a 2002 attack on Israeli tourists in Kenya and an attempt to shoot down an Israeli aircraft the same day.
The 2002 attack on an Israeli-owned hotel in Kenya killed 15.
"How long before some of the Dems weigh in, accusing Bush of using this attack as a distraction, or insisting that it is proof that Bush is incompetent?"
I actually heard from a moonbat that they thought the Dems had ordered the attack, because Bush doesn't want to fight al Qaeda. When I showed them a story dateline about US forces assisting Ethiopian helo gunships from BEFORE the dems took office, they hemmed and hawed. Then I pointed out that congress doesn't command the military, and that even if they did, they'd have to actually show up for work to do so. ;)
It didn't endear me to the 'bat. Let's put it that way.
RATS ordered the attack? HAHAHAHAHA!
do they really think they are a proxy 'commander in chief' now? Run out of Pillow-zee's office?
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