"Many dead" as US hits Somali 'al-Qaida'

inthenews.co.uk ^ | 09 Jan 2007

[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.

[TexKat]

U.S. Denies New Attacks in Somalia - Washington Post

Two days after a U.S. gunship attacked suspected al-Qaeda members in Somalia, American military officials categorically denied reports that another attack had taken place or that U.S. military helicopters were involved in continued strikes.

[chesley]

They used to have a slogan "The Marine Corps builds men". This must have been before Murtha's time.

[TexKat]

This handout photo provided by the U.S. Navy on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2007, shows the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Anzio, background, steams behind the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower as an SH-60F Seahawk from the Nightdippers of Helicopter Antisubmarine Squadron 5 prepares to land on Eisenhower's flight deck Monday, Jan. 8, 2007. The U.S. military said Tuesday it had sent the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower to join three other U.S. warships conducting anti-terror operations off the Somali coast. The aircraft carrier is part of the Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy, Miguel Angel Contreras)

[expatpat]

Now to Somalia and the first acknowledged military action there by the U.S. since the deadly Black Hawk Down incident back in '93

Revenge is sweet, and best served cold.

[dashing doofus]

"Revenge is sweet, and best served cold"

Not to be a doofus, but dem' metaphors be mixed:

1. Revenge is sweet
2. Revenge is a dish best served cold.

;-)

[Hat-Trick]

Gotta love them C-130s

Yep, and I would have loved it if they had been approved for the TO&E for Somolia in October 1993.

[ryan71]

I wonder where this AC-130 flew from?

From the Eisenhower.

Just kidding.

That would be cool, though.

What if we put mini-guns and FLIR on a C-2? The "killer cod". Have 3 or 4 per carrier. Deliver mail one day and kick some ass, the next.

[dashing doofus]

"Yep, and I would have loved it if they had been approved for the TO&E for Somolia in October 1993"

Yeah, but Les Aspen sits when he pees.

[SlightOfTongue]

The Somali Islamists have continually denied any links to al-Qaida.

They won't, however, be denying it anymore. At least not the the vaporized ones.

[TexKat]

[TexKat]

A FRAGILE QUIET IN SOMALIA As Islamists Leave, Mogadishu Faces New Threat - Spiegel

A Strike against Al-Qaida's Hornet's Nest - Spiegel

AP/ USAF The hunt for al-Qaida in Somalia: The US used a C-130 in the air strikes.

[SunkenCiv]

The UN has backed plans for a peacekeeping force of 8,000 people to bring harmony to the horn of Africa.

Yeah, that should do it. Thanks for the ping.

[ghostrider]

I get to watch the gunships (and occasionally A-10's) shoot on the firing range just north of my house. It never gets old!

Been there, done that! You are correct - it never gets old. Brrrrrrrrrrr, Brrrrrrrrr & Boooop!

[TexKat]

Terrorists captured in Somalia 'are British'


SOMALIA: Suspected terrorists from Britain, Canada, Pakistan and elsewhere have been among those taken prisoner or injured in the military operations in Somalia, Ethiopia's prime minister said today.

Meles Zenawi said he did not know the exact number of prisoners in Somalia "because it changes constantly" and added: "But many international terrorists are dead in Somalia."

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.

continued...The US and Ethiopia accuse the Islamic group of harbouring al Qaida suspects.

America yesterday launched at least two air strikes on different locations against terror targets in Somalia.

It was the first overt military action by the US in Somalia since the 1990s.

Publication date 09/01/07

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/display.var.1110926.0.terrorists_captured_in_somalia_are_british.php

[expatpat]

#1 ain't a metaphor, doofus. ;>)

[dashing doofus]

you be right, me be wrong.

[dashing doofus]

The Euro-trash excuse-makers/apologists have begun:


http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1764748/posts?page=34#34

[SunkenCiv]

I'm curious about "Putland" and "Somaliland" on that map, so I did a few searches:

http://www.puntlandpost.com/englishnewspage.php?articleid=7261

Last summer, a senior Pakistani intelligence official told ABC News that his government had collected information on the movement of dozens of al Qaeda militants from Pakistan to Somalia, a migration Pakistani officials believe is part of an elaborate al Qaeda operation not only to provide military and financial resources to the UIC but also to establish bases and training facilities in Somalia. Last October, Yemeni authorities arrested eight foreigners, including three Australians, a British national, a German and a Dane, for running an al Qaeda-sponsored weapons and human smuggling network to Somalia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ogaden_National_Liberation_Front

When Ethiopia tried to force ONLF to accept a new constitution and ONLF refused, the regime in Ethiopia declared war on ONLF. The ONLF continues to operate in the Ogaden as of 2006 and is the target of full scale military operations by the Ethiopian army after ONLF stated that it will not allow Malaysian oil company Petronas to extract oil from the Ogaden... Although members of the group are composed of different clans, these are overshadowed by the huge proportion from the ogaden clan, which understandably forms the highest population of the Ogaden area. This, along with the name of the organisation being called the Ogaden national liberation front has left a feeling of alienation with many people of the region from other clans, who have a culture of identifying themselves with their clan, and has given a false impression of it being only for people of the ogaden clan.

http://www.puntlandpost.com/englishnewspage.php?articleid=6985

[Dec 18] Reporters Without Borders today condemned the arrest of Omar Faruk Osman, the secretary general of its partner organisation in Somalia, the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), and Ali Moalim Isak, the NUSOJ organising secretary. The two journalists were arrested by the security forces of the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) at Mogadishu airport yesterday morning and were held all day at the Waberi district police station without being charged or being told the official reason for their detention.

[SunkenCiv]

http://www.unpo.org/article.php?id=6105

A return of violence and turmoil to the troubled state of Somalia has refocused international attention on the unrecognised state of Somaliland, as its people continue to witness events from their relatively peaceful northern territory.

British Somaliland was granted independence in 1960, and after a brief period of independence, joined former Italian Somalia to form the Somali Republic. Civil war and widespread unrest put increasing pressure on this union, which was exasperated further by the eventual collapse of the Somali Republic in 1991, following the overthrow of its military dictatorship.

In response, clan elders led the former British protectorate to announce an end to the union with Somalia, thus declaring formal independence for Somaliland in 1991. A 2001 referendum reaffirmed this status and also provided its government with a new democratic constitution. Despite these successful efforts to enhance its legitimacy and democratise its institutions, international recognition of Somaliland’s independence has not been forthcoming.

[processing please hold]

[Gotta love them C-130s.]

For all you A-10 lovers on FR who don't like pretty, but, bad...

After looking at all the wonderful pics, Scroll all the way down.

The most beautiful ugly machine created