April 11, 2006: The U.S. admitted that it was backing, with cash, equipment and weapons, a coalition of Somali warlords that are fighting the militia of the Islamic Courts movement for control of Mogadishu. The Islamic Courts are something like the Afghan Taliban. The Islamic Courts enforce Islamic law in order to bring some sense of peace and stability to the country. The Islamic Courts are run by Islamic conservatives who are friendly with Islamic terrorists and al Qaeda. This prompted the U.S. to back clan leaders and warlords who oppose the Islamic Courts (which are dominated, in turn, by a few clans and tribes). American Special Forces have been inside Somalia collecting information, and is certain that the Islamic Courts provide al Qaeda with an opportunity to establish bases in Somalia. It's believed that some high ranking al Qaeda leaders have already taken refuge in Somalia, and are protected by the Islamic Courts.
Some members of the pro-U.S. (or "Counter-terrorist) militias were flown to Kenya to receive some military training, and more equipment. These clan leaders were probably also briefed on the high ranking al Qaeda believed to be in Somalia, and the multi-million dollar rewards for the capture or killing of these al Qaeda big shots.
In an April 9 story about U.S. involvement in Somalia, The Associated Press erroneously reported that a U.S. official said the United States was backing Somali militants fighting Islamic extremists for control of the lawless nation's capital. In fact, the official said only that the U.S. had met with a wide variety of Somali leaders in an effort to fight international terrorists in the country. |