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NEWS & LETTERS, February - March 2007Our Life and Times by Kevin A. Barry and Mitch WeerthSomalia invasionIn a stunning reversal of fortune, invading Ethiopian troops routed Somali Islamists in December and January. Since the summer, the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) had been expanding its control, to the point where it dominated virtually the entire country. But the UIC collapsed suddenly, surprising most observers. The Ethiopians are clearly proxies of Washington. This was illustrated by the visit to Ethiopia in December of General John Abizaid, overall commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East. This visit took place just before the invasion. Unrest has already broken out against Ethiopian troops. Many also expressed outrage over a U.S. air attack aimed at supposed Al Qaeda elements, but which appears to have killed innocent civilians instead. Why did the Islamists collapse so quickly, despite their bombastic rhetoric about fighting to the death with the help of “thousands” of foreign volunteers? There is much resentment against the UIC for sending untrained high school youth into early battles against the experienced Ethiopian Army, especially after hundreds of those youths were killed. Moreover, although the UIC had provided a modicum of peace and stability after 15 years of warlord violence, many had begun to chafe under their repressive rules. The U.S. and other powers are attempting to orchestrate the dispatch of an African Union peacekeeping force, in order to prop up a provisional government that is little more than a coalition of warlords. Whether the Islamists will be able to regroup remains to be seen, but they should not be counted out. |
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