Horn of Africa is now terror territory (Daily News)

Horn of Africa is now terror territory

October 23, 2006 Edition 1

Chris Tomlinson

NAIROBI: From the Red Sea to Lake Victoria, the Horn of Africa is one of the few places in the world where, if careful, a traveller can move 2 300km across four countries without producing a passport or encountering a single government official.

These footpaths, back roads and rivers have been used for centuries by merchants and slave traders, explorers, smugglers and bandits. Rebels easily sneak around the central governments in the big cities. So could any traveller. Even a terrorist.

Corrupt governments, porous borders, widespread poverty and discontented Muslim populations have created a region ripe for Islamic fundamentalism. The Horn of Africa, home to about 165 million people, is roughly half the area of the United States.

The six countries that make up the Horn Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya and Djibouti - could become the next major front in the war on terrorism. Kenyan police earlier this year caught a smuggler trying to bring in an anti-aircraft missile.

Kenya, and Tanzania just to its south, have already been victims of Al-Qaeda terrorism, with the bombings at the US embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in 1998, and attacks on a hotel and an Israeli airliner in Kenya in 2002. The attacks emanated from neighbouring Somalia, which has had no effective central government since 1992, and has a growing Islamic fundamentalist movement.

Western and regional diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic, said they believe another terrorist attack could be eminent.

Robert Rotberg, director of Harvard University's programme on Intrastate Conflict and Conflict Resolution, said every country in the region is at risk because radicals see an opportunity to take advantage of weak, unpopular governments. Ethnic Somalis are the common denominator in the Horn of Africa, and their large presence in neighbouring countries has long been a source of conflict. In the mid-1970s, then Somali President Mohamed Siad Barre advocated expanding the country's borders to unite all Somali-speaking people in Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti. [Read more..]

US envoy accuses Eritrea of attacking Ethiopia through proxies in Somalia (AND)

US envoy accuses Eritrea of attacking Ethiopia through proxies in Somalia

October 23, 2006,

By www.andnetwork .com

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) today expressed outrage at the Ethiopian government’s continued silence about the report linking their security forces to nearly 200 deaths during two waves of protests over election results in 2005, and called for immediate passage of his bill to promote human rights and democracy in Ethiopia when Congress reconvenes.


Smith—who is the Chairman of the Africa, Global Human Rights, and International Operations Subcommittee and author of the “Ethiopia Freedom, Democracy and Human Rights Advancement Act of 2006” (H.R. 5680)—said “Prime Minister Meles Zenawi’s silence speaks volumes. The regime refuses to comment on the report, most likely because they never expected it to see the light of day. We have a responsibility to hold them accountable for their brutal actions as well as their subsequent efforts to suppress this inquiry.”

Smith added “this report should prompt the House to move on my bill when we reconvene. We must send a message to the Ethiopian government that these actions will not be tolerated.”

The independent Commission of Inquiry report found that Ethiopian security forces fatally shot, beat or strangled 193 people protesting election fraud last year—a number that far exceeds the Ethiopian government’s official death toll. The report also states that these demonstrators were unarmed, yet the majority died from shots to the head.

Wolde-Michael Meshesha, a vice chairman of the 10-member panel who conducted the investigation, said the Ethiopian government tried to suppress the inquiry and he has stated in news reports that he was told to change the results two days before the release of report. Meshesha fled Ethiopia in the wake of controversy surrounding the report and is in Europe seeking asylum.

The report comes well over a year after the first wave of violence, despite the Prime Minister's assurance to Rep. Smith during a meeting in August 2005 that there would be an expeditious and transparent investigation.

"This delayed, secret report, as well as the repeated delays in the trial of the opposition leaders, human rights activists and journalists, demonstrates an outright contempt for rule of law and due-process," Smith said.

The “Ethiopia Freedom, Democracy and Human Rights Advancement Act of 2006” aims to bring democratic reform and accountability to Ethiopia by limiting U.S. security assistance to peacekeeping and counter-terrorism only; denying visas to anyone who was involved in the June and November 2005 killings of demonstrators; and by assisting political prisoners, indigenous Ethiopian human rights organizations, independent media, civil society and to promote legal training. Smith’s legislation passed the House International Relations Committee last June.

“This legislation helps strengthen the will of the Ethiopian people who want freedom and democracy, and will bring positive change to the circumstances that have limited progress in Ethiopia. It should be brought up for immediate consideration when the House reconvenes next month,” said Smith.
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Specialists urge US to focus on Somali strife (Boston Globe)

Islamist advance seen to threaten a wider conflict
By John Donnelly, Globe Staff September 28, 2006
WASHINGTON -- Africa specialists criticized the Bush administration yesterday for not paying more attention to the increasingly volatile situation in Somalia, saying that senior officials were consumed by their efforts to stop the fighting in the Darfur region of Sudan.

In Somalia, Islamist militias have taken one town after another in the south-central part of the fractured nation since capturing the de facto capital Mogadishu in June. Now, they appear poised to attack the small town of Baidoa near the country's western border with Ethiopia.

Baidoa is the base of the increasingly powerless Somali transitional federal government, which is backed by the United States and Ethiopia. Analysts predict that if the Islamists attack the town, which appears likely, the conflict could evolve into a wider war with Ethiopia. [Full story here]

Ethiopia can beat malaria with its latest programme, says official at UN children’s agency (UN News)

28 September 2006 – Ethiopia has a chance of defeating malaria, its biggest killer, an official from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said today as the Horn of Africa country’s Government launched a major push against the disease ahead of the annual transmission season.

Speaking at the launch in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, UNICEF Country Representative Bjorn Ljungqvist said: “We now have an historic opportunity to get on top of malaria. We can make this killer disease as manageable as measles and other childhood conditions in the West.”
Malaria infects nine million Ethiopians each year and can kill more than 100,000 people, mostly young children, within just a few months during an epidemic. The peak of the annual transmission season is October to November.

The three-pronged programme will cost at least $140 million over the next three years and is being supported by UNICEF, the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, the World Bank and several foreign governments and public agencies.

Under the campaign the distribution of insecticide-treated malaria nets across the country is being expanded drastically. Before 2004, there were only 1.8 million nets; by the end of this year there will be eight million nets and that number will increase to 20 million by 2008.
Ethiopia will start treating the overwhelming majority of its malaria cases with the drug Coartem, which has a 99 per cent success rate, compared with the 36 per cent rate of the current preferred drug, Fansidar.

Health posts around the vast country are also being supplied with cheap rapid diagnostic test kits that can detect serious malaria cases within minutes, avoiding the delays that come with sending samples from patients to distant laboratories.

Mr. Ljungqvist urged international donors to keep up their support of the campaign as it continues, especially “the hard-to-fund parts of any malaria campaign – the monitoring and evaluation and the general management costs to run such a large operation.”

Source: UN News Centre

Ethiopia blames Eritrea’s inability to ’behave like a normal state’ (Sudan Tribune)

Sept 28, 2006 (UNITED NATIONS) — Ethiopia told the U.N. General Assembly it wants to normalize relations with Eritrea because it needs durable peace, but it accused its Horn of Africa neighbor of refusing to "behave like a normal state."

Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after a 30-year guerrilla war, but their border was never settled. In April 2002, following a 2 1/2-year border war, an international boundary commission awarded the key town of Badme to Eritrea — but Ethiopia has refused to implement the deal.

Ethiopia’s deputy U.N. ambassador Negash Kebret, addressing the assembly’s ministerial meeting on its final day on Wednesday, said his country was committed to peace and security in the Horn of Africa region — much as its foe might try to disrupt the efforts.

"Ethiopia will not allow its dispute with Eritrea to distract it from its focus on development, although this is the main mission of Eritrea since the conflict began eight years ago," Kebret said.
[Read full story here]

Ethiopia launches bold tourist programme (Business in Africa)

Addis Ababa - Banking on a combination of cultural diversity, natural scenes and historical sites, Ethiopia has embarked on an ambitious tourism development programme that would make it a leading destination of holidaymakers in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2020, Culture and Tourism minister Mohamed Dirir said on Monday.

Though the number of foreign tourists visiting Ethiopia and earnings from the industry doubled over the last decade, the industry still accounts for a meager 2 percent of the national GDP.
"We have set forward a strategic plan that focuses on the improvement of services at the existing hotels and resorts in order to achieve this goal," said Dirir.
"We are considering seriously of branding Ethiopia for what it offers to tourists destined to Africa."

In 2005 Ethiopia hosted 227 398 tourists compared to 184 077 arrivals the previous year. In terms of receipts, the country posted $134.5mn in 2005 - an increase of $20.2mn compared to 2004.

According to the minister, the government's commitment to enhance the role of tourism in the economy, and the increasing public and private investment in the development of infrastructure were basic factors that contributed to the humble rise in tourism earnings.
To provide momentum to the new plan for the industry, the government has drafted a legislation that would be ratified soon on upgrading Ethiopia's Hotel and Tourism Institute. Also, a tourism investment code was in the pipeline.

"A major priority area will be the elimination of supply barriers in the hotel, transport and tour operator sectors," Dirir said, adding that both domestic and international players would be encouraged in order to enhance the role of the private sector in tourism.
Though an ancient country that was believed to be the cradle of mankind, Ethiopia was like a man who overslept and is now waking up when the sun is already high in the sky to find its rank in the tourism industry. South Africa, being more politically correct, claimed to be the cradle of humankind.

One would ask: 'What has this East African country to offer other than monuments and a history of feudalism that was punctuated with internal rivalries, repulsion of colonial expansionists, and a military dictatorship alongside a chronology of natural disasters?'
In a bid to lure tourists from overseas, authorities in Ethiopia said what has been done on the promotion side so far was not enough to kick-start the industry's growth.
They were taking an unusual step to send 'Lucy' aka 'Dinknesh', the famed paleontological discovery of human fossils dating back 3.5 million years, on a 'know-Ethiopia tour' of museums in the United States.

The dates of her itinerary were yet to be fixed, but officials confirmed it would be in the near future. [For more..click here]

Somali president survives bomb attack (Daily News)

MOGADISHU (Somalia): As the Somali president left parliament, few noticed when his security detail ushered him from his three-ton armoured car to an ordinary car. It was a simple, routine security measure that saved his life.

Moments later a massive car bomb exploded outside the makeshift parliament building of Somalia's virtually powerless government in Baidoa, destroying President Abdullahi Yusuf's armoured car and killing his brother and four other members of the presidential detail.
Though Yusuf had moved to another car, his driver lost a hand in the blast. The president then alighted and escaped on foot with guards, witness Abdisalam Mohammed Nor Hassan said. Other witnesses said the president was cut by flying glass.

As Yusuf fled, a gun battle broke out between his bodyguards and eight suspected accomplices of an apparent suicide bomber. Six were killed and two were captured, the country's Foreign Minister Ismail Mohamed Hurre said.

No one so far has claimed responsibility. Two people were arrested, Hurre said. He had no details on the suspects. [For more..click here]

US to launch $20 mln project to promote Ethiopian rural economy (Sudan Tribune)

Sept 18, 2006 (ADDIS ABABA) — The United States is to launch tomorrow a twenty millions USD project to help the Ethiopian rural economy and employment.

The United States would continue supporting the private sector through the US Agency for International Development with a view to increasing rural incomes and employment.

“Agribusiness Project” would be officially launched on Tuesday in the presence of concerned ministries and associations.

The project would provide technical support to increase productivity of coffee, flowers, leather and oil seeds.

The project would last for five years and is expected to enable the country to obtain 450 million USD in the first three years and aims to increase it to 1 billion USD after five years.

According to the American Embassy and the USAID executive officers, some 20 million US Dollars is earmarked for the execution of the project.

The project would be executed in Oromia, Amhara, Tigray as well as South Ethiopia Peoples’ State.

Source: Sudan Tribune

Gun shootings targeted at a plane carrying UN staff in Gedo, southern Somalia (Shabelle)

UN relief operations in Somalia’s Garbaharey district in Gedo region southern Somalia has got stuck after tribal militias in area have opened fire at UN airline.. [Full Story..]

Gun shootings targeted at a plane carrying UN staff in Gedo, southern Somalia (Shabelle)

UN relief operations in Somalia’s Garbaharey district in Gedo region southern Somalia has got stuck after tribal militias in area have opened fire at UN airline.. [Full Story..]