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The Obama administration is depicting Somalia as an African Afghanistan, and setting up the homegrown Islamist Shabab as a Taliban. Secretary of State Clinton deployed language identical to George Bush's to justify U.S. military intervention in Somalia, and made bellicose threats against neighboring Eritrea.
Clinton Threatens War in Horn of Africa
A Black Agenda Radio commentary by Glen Ford
“The U.S. is preparing military intervention in Somalia.”
Hillary Clinton has confirmed that the Obama administration is bent on pursuing the same “war on terror” and regime-change strategy in the Horn of Africa as its predecessor. Having made George Bush’s wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan his own, President Obama dispatched his Secretary of State to draw battle lines in Somalia and to threaten the neighboring nation of Eritrea.
Clinton depicted Somalia as the Afghanistan of Africa, and Al Shabab, the Islamist enemies of America’s pitiful little puppet regime in Somalia, as the Taliban. Clinton’s words could have been written by any of George Bush’s speechwriters. “If Al Shabab were to obtain a haven in Somalia which could then attract Al Qaeda and other terrorist actors,” she said, “it would be a threat to the United States.”
That’s George Bush war talk, pure and simple. Bush used exactly the same argument to justify the joint U.S.-Ethiopian invasion of Somalia in 2006, to overthrow Islamists who had established the first relative peace Somalia had known in 15 years. The invasion led to the worst humanitarian crisis in Africa at that time, and ignited a fierce resistance to foreign aggression, with Al Shabab in the forefront.
No one but the United States and its flunkies claims that Al Shabab is anything but homegrown. But Washington needs to manufacture a Somali Taliban to justify its own crimes.
“ Clinton’s words could have been written by any of George Bush’s speechwriters.”
Washington’s puny allies control only a few blocks of the capital city, Mogadishu, and would have been crushed were it not for the presence of several thousand Ugandan soldiers, who have been accused of indiscriminately killing Somali civilians. The puppet regime begged the U.S., Ethiopia, Kenya, Yemen – anybody! – to once again invade Somalia. Washington sent its puppets 80 tons of weapons and ammunition but, with no popular support, that won’t save them. So Hillary Clinton last week set the stage for stepped up U.S. military action against Somalia and elsewhere in the Horn of Africa.
Clinton is cloaking the planned aggression as a rescue mission on behalf of the Somali people – the same people who were displaced and starved by the millions after the 2006 invasion. She summoned the head puppet, Sheik Sharif, to Kenya, where he stood on the stage with a big grin on his face as the Great White Mother promised to smash his enemies. Hillary made U.S. intentions in Somalia perfectly clear. “We need to be there,” she said, “to help them deliver the results of the stability to the people of Somalia, who have suffered for so long.”
“We need to be there.” The Secretary of State was sending the loudest possible signal that the U.S. is preparing military intervention in Somalia, to save Sheik Sharif’s puppet regime. Then Clinton rattled her sabers at Somalia’s neighbor, Eritrea, which she claimed supports Al Shabab. If they do not cease, said Clinton, “We intend to take action.” Those are war words, and there can be no doubt Hillary Clinton was speaking for her boss. President Obama will soon launch a military campaign in Somalia and the entire Horn of Africa - and his war in Africa will be even bigger than George Bush’s.
Orisanmi Burton is an assistant professor at American University’s Department of Anthropology.
Shannon Jones is a member of the Spirit of Mandela’s Peoples' Senate Coordinating Committee.
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