The recent dramatic rout of the U.S.-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia’s forces in the Somali capital of Mogadishu by militias loyal to the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab group and the latter’s ensuing rapid expansion into much of southern Somalia has caught the world by surprise. Thus, the Islamists’ sudden rise as a force in the land to be reckoned with has alarmed the U.S. that Somalia might become “a haven for terrorists.” Faced with the unwelcome prospect of an Islamic jihadist takeover in Somalia, America has rushed in with munitions and logistics to the tune of $5 m to bolster the tottering TFG, headed by interim president Sheikh Shariif Sheikh Ahmed (1) Admittedly, 5m is peanuts by American standards, but it signals the beginning of a sliding slope--American advisors have a way of following American money for arms, a phenomenon that foreign policy wonks refer to as “Mission Creep” (MC).
The driving force behind the U.N-U.S. obsession to re-create a central government for Somalia is rooted in the West's fear that: 1. stateless--and therefore, in their stated view, lawless--Somalia might become a "Nursery" for "Terror International," especially given the various cells of al-Qaeda-linked jihadists lurking in Somalia, and in the recesses of rogue nations, like nearby Yemen, and 2. the global nightmare of Somali highwaymen on the high seas will end only when Somalia enjoys a government with sufficient resources to patrol its coastal lines. The former is especially urgent, they argue, in view of the fact that the al-Qaeda-connected-al-Shabaab Somali terrorists already control large swaths of Somalia, including much of the capital of Mogadishu. Let's speak to each of these concerns individually.
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A Kenyan assistant minister warns that the current political squabbling in Somalia parliament would lead to collapse of the fragile Un-backed Somali government if not addressed urgently.
Aden Barre Duale, Kenya's assistant minister for livestock, has called on the top leadership of the Somali TFG to take control of the situation and help mediate between the feuding political opponents in the parliament.
"The TFG leaders should urgently intervene between lawmakers to stop the dispute, if they fail to do so, then the government would certainly collapse," he said
"The lawmakers should go back to the law, because arguing about the expiry of the term of the parliament would not be a good idea. It is best for them to go back to the law that they set, and follow it," he added.
Duale said Kenya, like any other Somalia’s friend, would play its role in making sure that the current transition administration would not be another failed attempt to bring peace and stability to the war-torn country.
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When the Iceland volcano with an unpronounceable name erupted last week, most Kenyans must have reacted in more or less the same way as they did when a massive earthquake hit Haiti in January. They viewed it as another sad phenomenon affecting a faraway land. Other than in pictures, most have never seen a volcano erupt anyway and, therefore, the Icelandic phenomenon was nothing more than a spectral enactment of one of nature's wonders.
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NAIROBI, Kenya — When Kenneth Maundu, general manager for Sunripe produce exporters, first heard about a volcano erupting in Iceland, he was excited. “I thought, ‘Oh, wow, a volcano,’ ” he said.
And then reality hit him in the face like a hurled tomato.
Because Kenya’s gourmet vegetable and cut-flower industry exports mainly to Europe, and because the cloud of volcanic ash has grounded flights to much of northern Europe since Thursday, its horticultural business has been waylaid as never before.
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Ethiopia's heated election campaign has spilled onto the floor of parliament, with bitter and at times personal exchanges between Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and opposition leaders. The prime minister was forced onto the defensive on issues from the economy to allegations of political dirty tricks.
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