Via
Crooks & Liars, I saw
Kristen Breitweiser give a very humble reminder for everyone to consider regarding the priorities in the fight against terrorism. But this goes beyond finding "you know who"; it speaks to the the priority of addressing the problem of terrorism. It speaks to the reluctance to acknowledge the crisis as big as the continent of Africa. And yes, it even goes beyond addressing the AIDS crisis there. It speaks to the unwillingness of our leaders to acknowledge the problem of the resurging
Charles Taylor, exiled in Nigeria, all the way to the eastern shores of the continent.
It is there that our abandonment occurs despite our military presence.
Somalia has been priming itself for hosting the Olympics of Terrorism. The conditions have never been better, with "unsecured borders, unpatrolled ports and no central government". Then what exactly have we been doing there? The
Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa, which we head (or as of late
headed), has a mission "to detect, disrupt and defeat terrorists who pose an imminent threat to coalition partners in the region. It also works with host nations to deny the reemergence of terrorist cells and activities by supporting international agencies working to enhance long-term stability for the region." The "host nations" include Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti (in which it's based) and Yemen.
The waiting game has been its biggest accomplishment. The Commander of the task force, as reported on Dec. 20, 2003 stated of Somalia:
The general noted it is possible that as more pressure is applied to terrorist groups in Iraq and Afghanistan, some of those people will flow to the region. "We believe that's why (Osama) bin Laden and al Qaeda left the architecture they left so they'd have a place to flow back to," he said.
Robeson said that when he arrived in the region seven months ago, officials thought there were between 20 and 40 al Qaeda operatives in the region. Today dozens of terrorists have been captured or killed and there are "hundreds we know by name that we need to talk to."
(emphasis added)
And that was almost two years ago. But it's been known. On March 8, 2002, a senior Defense Department official gave a
press conference regarding the widespread nature of terrorist inhabitation of architecture:
As I said, I'll also mention Sudan briefly, given its presence in the region. Generally, the terrorist presence in Sudan has declined since bin Laden departed the country for Afghanistan in 1996 at Sudanese urging. Al Qaeda members slowly dwindled following bin Laden's departure.
However, terrorists continue to use Sudan as a safe haven. Terrorists there include individuals from al Qaeda, Egyptian and Palestinian terrorist organizations.
Most groups use Sudan primarily as a secure base for assisting their compatriots elsewhere.
Given Osama bin Laden's stay in Sudan from the early '90s up to 1996, it's possible Sudan might be a relocation from some al Qaeda terrorists fleeing Afghanistan in the current campaign.
Since September 11th, Khartoum also has voiced opposition to terrorism and offered cooperation in the war on terrorism. The country is clearly interested in being removed from its current position on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism. Khartoum has arrested a small number of extremists since 11 September as well.
....
Q: Two questions: Do you believe that there are active al Qaeda cells inside Somalia? And secondly, can you describe for us your understanding of AIAI's links to al Qaeda?
Defense Official: Active terrorist cells in Somalia -- bin Laden certainly has referenced Somalia a number of times in some of these open remarks that he has made to the world. That in and of itself, I think, is pretty clear evidence bin Laden's interested in Somalia. His -- that is clearly on his radar scope.
That particular transcript is full of informative detail. But think of the USS Cole in Yemen, The
bombings in Nairobi, Dar-es-Salaam (Tanzania), as well what happened in Mogadishu. Is a force of roughly 1400 adequate for this area? And will anyone ever get serious about Africa?
To echo Kristin Breitweiser's sentiment, that Porter Goss thinks we will not bring Osama to justice is an insult to at least 3000 people. But like Goss, I too, have an idea where Bin Laden, but more importantly terrorism itself is hiding.