United States Africa Command Public Affairs Office 4 January 2012

USAFRICOM - related news stories

Good morning. Please find attached news clips related to U.S. Africa Command and Africa, along with upcoming events of interest for January 4, 2012. Of interest in todays clips: -- The Christian Science Monitor reports on Nigerian troop movements in response to Boko Haram and BBC covers deadly protests over rising fuel costs in Nigeria. -- Peter Pham, writing for the Atlantic Council, summarizes the Islamist threat to African development and Frank Gardner from BBC speculates on potential terror flashpoints during 2012. -- Al Jazeera covers events in Libya with stories on the clash of armed groups in Tripoli and the extradition of the former Libya prim minister from Tunisia. -- Nairobis Daily Nation writes on the announcement that Senegalese singer Youssou N'Dour will run for president of Senegal. Provided in text format for remote reading. Links work more effectively when this message is viewed as in HTML format. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Please send questions or comments to: africom-pao@africom.mil 421-2687 (+49-711-729-2687) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Top News related to U.S. Africa Command and Africa Nigeria dispatches troops to north to stop Boko Haram attacks (Christian Science Monitor) http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/2012/0103/Nigeria-dispatches-troops-to-northto-stop-Boko-Haram-attacks 3 January 2012 By Scott Baldauf Nigeria has sent government troops to the country's troubled northern areas, where a radical Islamist group has launched a string of attacks on Christians, most recently a Christmas Day church bombing in the capital of Abuja that killed 43 people. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Nigerians protest at removal of fuel subsidy (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16390183 3 January 2012 One protester has been killed as thousands of Nigerians have demonstrated against the removal of a fuel subsidy, which has led petrol prices and transport fares to double. The Islamist Threat to Africas Rise in 2012 (Atlantic Council) http://acus.org/new_atlanticist/islamist-threat-africas-rise-2012 3 January 2012 By J. Peter Pham The biggest story out of Africa last year did not occupy the headlines the way dramatic revolutions in the Maghreb, civil strife in West Africa, the independence of South Sudan, famine in the Horn of Africa, piracy off the Somali coast, fraud-ridden elections in the ironically-named Democratic Republic of the Congo, and various other developments each did in turn. Rather, as The Economist noted last month: Over the past decade six of the worlds ten fastest-growing [economies] were African. In eight of the past ten years, Africa has grown faster than East Asia, including Japan. Even allowing for the knock-on effect of the northern hemispheres slowdown, the IMF expects Africa to grow by 6 percent this year and nearly 6 percent in 2012, about the same as Asia. Global terror: Potential flashpoints in 2012 (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-16399275 4 January 2012 By Frank Gardner With much of the Middle East in flux, suspicions intensifying over Iran's nuclear ambitions, a deepening political crisis in Pakistan, and the escalation of jihadist violence in Nigeria there are plenty of potential flashpoints in the year ahead. Zuma meets Libyan envoy seeking help rebuilding (AFP) http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hljlODBHjTT0vUyMCCrucA01 Xpsg?docId=CNG.7c9ce1de01016033f09da0a23010ea52.7a1 3 January 2012 PRETORIA South African President Jacob Zuma met Tuesday with an envoy from Libya's National Transitional Council seeking help from Pretoria in rebuilding after the uprising that ousted Moamer Kadhafi. Armed groups clash in Libyan capital (Al Jazeera) http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/01/20121311171606584.html 3 January 2012 At least two people have been killed and six others injured in the Libyan capital after two groups of armed men clashed over a dispute centred on the imprisonment of a member of one of the groups. Libyan assurances sought over extradition (Al Jazeera) http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/01/20121341013140384.html 3 January 2012 U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Tunisia has said it will extradite Libya's former prime minister, Al-Baghdadi Ali alMahmoudi, to Tripoli to face charges of abuse of office if Libya guarantees him a fair trial. South Sudan violence: Armed youths return home, says UN (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16403083 3 January 2012 Thousands of youths from a South Sudanese ethnic group which attacked a rival community, reportedly killing at least 150 people, have been repelled by government troops, the UN says. Moroccan king names Islamist-led cabinet (Reuters) http://www.france24.com/en/20120103-morocco-rabat-king-mohammed-6-newgovernment-abdelilah-benkirane 3 January 2012 Moroccan King Mohammed VI named a new power-sharing cabinet on Tuesday, which will be headed by moderate Islamist Abdelilah Benkirane, whose party won 27 percent of parliamentary seats in the November 25 legislative election. Music Star Youssou N'dour to Take On President in Elections (Daily Nation, Nairobi) http://allafrica.com/stories/201201032448.html 3 January 2012 Dakar World-renowned singer Youssou N'Dour stirred up the battle for Senegal's presidency today by announcing he plans to take on veteran incumbent Abdoulaye Wade in February elections. Africa's Strategic Interest in the 21st Century. What is it? (Modern Ghana) http://www.modernghana.com/news/369763/1/africas-strategic-interest-in-the-21stcentury-wha.html 3 January 2012 By Lord Aikins Adusei There are many strategic thinkers who believe that Africa's underdog position in the world stems from the fact majority if not all the countries do not pursue policies that put the interest of their countries and people first. That is each of the countries in Africa does not work for the interest of its people by putting the interest of the nation and its people ahead of all other interests. There is a consensus among policymakers that if each African country should work for its own interest while coordinating with other countries in the continent on issues such as free trade, energy and human security, and political stability among others there will be more successful economies in Africa than we have seen over the past 50 years. The lack of 'Africa first' as both an ideology and as a strategy has been one major factor that has delayed the continent's development. Rebels Drop Call for Secession (Daily Nation, Nairobi) http://allafrica.com/stories/201201032443.html 3 January 2012 U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Addis Ababa Ethiopia's oldest armed rebel group, Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) has announced the end of its long held agenda of secession. ### -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------UN News Service Africa Briefs http://www.un.org/apps/news/region.asp?Region=AFRICA

Residents of South Sudan flashpoint town in need of aid after attack UN official 3 January While the showdown between the South Sudanese military and thousands of armed tribesmen over the flashpoint town of Pibor has subsided, the humanitarian situation in the area remains grim, a top United Nations official in the country warned today. ### -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Upcoming Events of Interest: 5 January 2012 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) Discussion with Former Libyan National Transitional Council Finance Minister Ali Tarhouni and Marina Ottaway. WHERE: CEIP, 1779 Massachusetts Avenue, NW CONTACT: 202-483-7600; web site: www.carnegieendowment.org SOURCE: CEIP - event announcement at: http://www.carnegieendowment.org/2012/01/05/former-libyan-finance-minister-alitarhouni/8rh4 ### FULL TEXT Nigeria dispatches troops to north to stop Boko Haram attacks (Christian Science Monitor) http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Africa/2012/0103/Nigeria-dispatches-troops-to-northto-stop-Boko-Haram-attacks 3 January 2012 By Scott Baldauf The Christmas Day attack on a church is only the latest in string of attacks by the militant Islamist group Boko Haram, who has given Christians living in the north three days to leave the region. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Nigeria has sent government troops to the country's troubled northern areas, where a radical Islamist group has launched a string of attacks on Christians, most recently a Christmas Day church bombing in the capital of Abuja that killed 43 people. President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in the north, and sent two brigades of soldiers to towns that have been targeted by Boko Haram, whose name means Western education is a sin. Abdul Qaqa, who claims to speak for Boko Haram, gave Christians in the north three days to leave, and urged Muslims living in the south to move up north. Nigeria's north is predominantly Muslim, while the south is mostly Christian. We find it pertinent to state that soldiers will only kill innocent Muslims in the local government areas where the state of emergency was declared. We would confront them squarely to protect our brothers. We also wish to call on our fellow Muslims to come back to the North because we have evidence that they would be attacked. We are also giving a three-day ultimatum to the Southerners living in the Northern part of Nigeria to move away, [Abdul Qaqa was quoted as saying by the Nigerian newspaper This Day]. Like the Taliban in Afghanistan, Al Shabab in Somalia, and a scattering of groups throughout the Arabian Peninsula and the African Sahel region who call themselves Al Qaeda, Boko Haram claims that it wants to create a society totally adherent to the way Islamic society operated at the time of the prophet Mohammed. Many Islamic scholars point out that the hardline interpretation Boko Haram is seeking to impose has more to do with the radical ideas of Boko Haram than it does with actual Islamic history. Public opinion surveys indicate that such radical groups represent a tiny percentage of current thinking among modern Muslims. But as the 9/11 attacks, and subsequent attacks in London, Madrid, Moscow, and across the Middle East show, small militant groups can punch above their weight, using violence and intimidation to achieve what they can't achieve on the political stage or the battlefield. Nigerias deployment of troops to the north shows that it takes the Boko Haram threat seriously, although Nigerian military spokesmen dismissed Boko Harams rhetoric. Human rights activists warned that the state of emergency could be a cover for the Nigerian military to commit abuses against Muslims, whether there is evidence to connect them to Boko Haram or not. Jibrin Ibrahim of the Center for Democracy and Development's Abuja office told Nigerian newspaper The Vanguard, Theyve already been committing abuses. It will just legalize it, in a sense. Because of groups like Boko Haram and the shadowy North Africa-based Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), a number of African governments in the semi-arid Sahel region a vast region just south of the Sahara that stretches from Senegal to Somalia are turning to US military trainers for assistance. Security experts warn that tumult from U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

the Arab uprisings in North Africa has only fed these Islamist insurgencies with weapons and fighters, although Boko Harams transition from a tiny local group to an international terror threat occurred more than a year ago, when it detonated suicide bombs in Abuja on Nigerias independence day. David Francis, who reported for the Monitor last fall during a fellowship with the International Reporting Project, wrote that Boko Haram's tactics could provoke a wider war. He also found that some Nigerians wondered if Boko Haram might not be simply fighting in order to get paid off in a general amnesty. But is Nigeria at the brink of a religious civil war? Thats not likely, writes Jean Herskovits, a history professor at the State University of New York in an op-ed for The New York Times. Mr. Herskovits argues that news media and politicians often give groups like Boko Haram too much credit for organizational and technical ability. There is no proof that a well-organized, ideologically coherent terrorist group called Boko Haram even exists today. Evidence suggests instead that, while the original core of the group remains active, criminal gangs have adopted the name Boko Haram to claim responsibility for attacks when it suits them. Boko Harams bombast has encouraged other Nigerian militant groups, of which there are many, to add a few non-peaceful comments. In the oil-rich Niger Delta, where residents staged a short but violent rebellion of residents protesting ecological devastation, the former warlord Mujahid Dokubo-Asari has threatened to take his southern fighters up north to put Boko Haram in its place. Mr. Asari belongs to the same tribe as President Jonathan. For Niger Delta people to take up arms is just a minute away. It's just Goodluck that is holding us back," Mr. Asari told Reuters news agency. "We have all reached the extreme. There is nothing anybody can do about it except we fight." ### Nigerians protest at removal of fuel subsidy (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16390183 3 January 2012 One protester has been killed as thousands of Nigerians have demonstrated against the removal of a fuel subsidy, which has led petrol prices and transport fares to double. Officials say the man was killed by "mob action" in Kwara state, while witnesses say he was shot by police as they tried to disperse protesters. There were marches in Lagos and other cities around the country. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer, but imports refined petrol. Police fired tear gas at youths in the commercial capital, Lagos, after they blocked main roads, set up burning barricades and tried to force petrol stations to close. However, the BBC's Tomi Oladipo in the city says the main march passed off peacefully, with demonstrators chanting anti-government slogans. Analysts say many Nigerians regard cheap fuel as the only benefit they get from the nation's oil wealth. Nigeria's trade unions have said they will call a strike and are meeting on Wednesday to decide on the plans. Police block protests Tuesday is the first working day since the measures were announced on 1 January. The demonstrator was killed in Kwara's state capital, Ilorin. There have been protests in numerous parts of the country, including Lagos, Ibadan, Lokoja, Nasarawa and Kano, where about two dozen people were arrested as they gathered. Our reporter in Lagos says the city is not as busy as it normally is, with many people stranded as they cannot afford the new transport fares after going away for the holidays. Police in the capital, Abuja have blockaded Eagle Square, where protesters had planned to gather. Police fired tear gas to disperse protesters in Abuja on Monday On Monday, police fired tear gas to disperse some 200 people who had gathered in the capital, chanting: "Remove corruption, not subsidy." Prices have increased from 65 naira ($0.40; 0.26) per litre to at least 140 naira in filling stations and from 100 naira to at least 200 on the black market, where many Nigerians buy their fuel. There are reports that petrol prices have tripled in some remote areas, while commuters have complained that motorcycle and minibus taxi fares have already doubled or tripled. Many Nigerians expect the prices of other goods to rise as well. The government has said it will spend the money saved by removing the subsidy on improving the country's erratic electricity supply, as well as health and education. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

However, analysts say that many Nigerians have little faith that the money will be well spent and fear it will instead be stolen by corrupt officials. In December, the government released a list of the people who benefit most from the subsidy, which include some of Nigeria's richest people - the owners of fuel-importing firms. Years of mismanagement and corruption mean Nigeria does not have the capacity to refine oil into petrol and other fuels. Several previous governments have tried to remove the subsidy but have backed down in the face of widespread public protests and reduced it instead. The IMF has long urged Nigeria's government to remove the subsidy, which costs a reported $8bn (5.2bn) a year. ### The Islamist Threat to Africas Rise in 2012 (Atlantic Council) http://acus.org/new_atlanticist/islamist-threat-africas-rise-2012 3 January 2012 By J. Peter Pham The biggest story out of Africa last year did not occupy the headlines the way dramatic revolutions in the Maghreb, civil strife in West Africa, the independence of South Sudan, famine in the Horn of Africa, piracy off the Somali coast, fraud-ridden elections in the ironically-named Democratic Republic of the Congo, and various other developments each did in turn. Rather, as The Economist noted last month: Over the past decade six of the worlds ten fastest-growing [economies] were African. In eight of the past ten years, Africa has grown faster than East Asia, including Japan. Even allowing for the knock-on effect of the northern hemispheres slowdown, the IMF expects Africa to grow by 6 percent this year and nearly 6 percent in 2012, about the same as Asia. Higher prices for commodities were responsible for part of the growth spurt, but other factors were also involved, including wise choices made by African leaders and peoples regarding economic reform, the rule of law, as well as the use of new technologiesall of which encouraged significant investment in their economies. The signs of hope, however, are now threatened by the spread of violent extremism by Islamist groups along the Sahel belt across the continent and the increasing links between the militants. Al-Qaedas franchise in North Africa, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), has been an unintended beneficiary of the fall of Libyas Muammar Gaddafi. Buoyed by the flow of arms and fighters out of Libya, the group has in recent months initiated skirmishes with government forces in Mauritania, Mali, and Niger. Last week, its fighters boldly attacked a military installation in the Kidal region of northeastern Mali that had just been constructed with funds from the European Unions Special Program for Peace U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Security and Development and unveiled at the end of November during European Commissioner for Development Andris Pielbagss visit to the country. AQIM and a new splinter group calling itself the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa have also struck at the tourism and commercial sectors with a spate of kidnappings of Westerners, including in the last month the abduction of tourists in Timbuktu and an engineer and a technician at a cement factory near the northern Malian town of Gao. More ominously, AQIM has also increased its linkages with the Polisario Front which contests Moroccos title to its southern provinces. In late October, three aid workersan Italian and two Spaniardswere seized by AQIM militants, aided by Polisario sympathizers, inside a camp administered by the separatists near the Algerian town of Tindouf. The connection comes as no surprise given that the large numbers of idle young fighters with no prospects in camps presents the terrorist group with a ready pool of potential recruits, both for its military operations as well as the criminal activities it is increasingly involved in. Meanwhile, further south in Nigeria, the Boko Haram sect has proven to be more and more of a threat to the security of Africas most populous nation. In testimony at the end of November before the House Homeland Security Committee, I noted that the group, far from being destroyed after the bloody repression of its 2009 uprising, had undergone a dramatic transformation. The upgrade in its operational capabilities was witnessed by the vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) attacks it launched against Nigeria Police Force and United Nations headquarters in Abuja last June and August, respectively. The extent to which Boko Haram will go to provoke sectarian strife in the country was underscored by the more recent assaults it carried out against churches across Nigerias Middle Belt, beginning with the bombing of a Catholic church in the Abuja suburb of Madalla as the congregation exited Christmas Mass, leaving more than three dozen people dead and scores injured. On Monday, a Boko Haram spokesman issued an ultimatum to Christians living in Nigerias traditionally Muslim northern states to leave within three days or face further violence. The group was also responsible for a New Years Eve bombing of a bar adjacent to a military cantonment in Abujas Asokoro district, home of the presidential compound and generally viewed as one of the capitals most secure areas. This latest attack, like the earlier ones carried out by Boko Haram, seemed to have been designed to show that the militants can strike anywhere and that they can make the country ungovernable for President Goodluck Jonathan just months after he won what I observed at the time were probably the most legitimate polls the Nigerian people have had in decades. In response, the government has declared a state of emergency in parts of the country hit by the insurgency and closed the northeastern borders with Niger, Chad, and Cameroon. In East Africa, al-Shabaab insurgents in Somalia are probably at their weakest point in years, thanks not only to their own strategic overreach and the consequences of the famine (which their policies exacerbated), but also the combined military pressure U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

applied by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) force in Mogadishu, the clumsier Kenyan Operation Linda Ncha (Protect the Country) in southern Somalia, and the Ethiopian seizure over the weekend of Beledweyne, a key transit and trade hub near the border. However, as I noted after my trip to the bombed-out Somali capital last month, it is too soon to count al-Shabaab out. In fact, just like it did after the massive Ethiopian intervention five years ago, the group may well be shifting back to asymmetric tactics like roadside bombings and suicide attacks. Furthermore, the group potentially can tap into a large and restive potential ethnic Somali population, both indigenous and refugees, within Kenya itself. Even more worrisome than the threat the various Islamist militant groups in Africa pose individually is the growing evidence of links between them and what the commander of the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) has characterized as a significant threat. Speaking to reporters in Washington in September, General Carter Ham noted that AQIM, Boko Haram, and al-Shabaab have very explicitly and publicly voiced an intent to target Westerners and the US specifically, adding if left unaddressed, you could have a network that ranges from East Africa through the center and into the Sahel. AQIMs emir, Abu Musab Abdel Wadoud, a.k.a. Abdelmalek Droukdel, has boasted of weapons and training provided to Boko Haram, whose leader, Abubakar Shekau, has used the North African groups media outlet to proclaim his adhesion to jihadist efforts globally. The man whom Nigerian officials hold responsible for the bombing of the UN building in Abuja, Mamman Nur, had previously been sheltered by al-Shabaab in Somalia. While there last month, I was briefed on two groups of Boko Haram operatives who had received training at camps as recently as three months ago. Although it is unlikely that any of the current batch of Islamist militants operating across the middle of the continent is remotely capable of presenting an existential threat to any African states, much less regional powers like Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Kenya, they are fully able to cause a great deal of mischief, especially in the coming months. Counterinsurgency campaigns are, at the very least, expensive affairs which divert resources from the investments in infrastructure, education, and health which Africas emerging economies need to make if they are position themselves to take advantage of the current growth opportunities. In many cases, the understandable reliance by governments on security measures to combat the threat posed by violent extremists brings with it the risk not only of further alienating minorities and other marginalized segments of the population, but of undermining, however unintentionally, that the fragile institutions of democracy in Africa. Moreover, even if violence can be kept far from commercial centers, it will nonetheless have a dampening effect on the confidence of investors for a region whose potential many are just beginning to discover. J. Peter Pham is director of the Atlantic Councils Michael S. Ansari Africa Center. Photo credit: Reuters Pictures. ### U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Global terror: Potential flashpoints in 2012 (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-16399275 4 January 2012 By Frank Gardner With much of the Middle East in flux, suspicions intensifying over Iran's nuclear ambitions, a deepening political crisis in Pakistan, and the escalation of jihadist violence in Nigeria there are plenty of potential flashpoints in the year ahead. There is a distinction between localised conflicts that are largely contained within borders and the kind of global, transnational terrorism that produced events such as 9/11, the Madrid bombings and, in the eyes of many, destructive military ventures like the US-led invasion of Iraq. Afghanistan Roadside bombs, like this one in Laghman province, have claimed the lives of many Afghan civilians 2011 was another violent year for Afghanistan, with more than 2,000 civilians killed in the first 10 months of the year. The drivers for that violence - insurgency, gun battles, air strikes and criminality - are not about to disappear but the picture is changing. Nato (Isaf) is increasingly positioning itself for the withdrawal of its combat forces by the end of 2014, accelerating the training of Afghan security forces in the hopes they will be robust enough to maintain a semblance of national security and keep al-Qaeda out. The eventual departure of most foreign forces will not necessarily spell the end of conflict. A worst-case scenario that Nato is working to prevent is that the country reverts to the sort of self-destructive mayhem and warlordism it endured in the early 1990s following the Soviet pullout and that the Taliban re-emerge in the south, bringing alQaeda with them. Pakistan Logically, an eventual winding down of the Nato vs Taliban conflict in Afghanistan ought to take some of the steam out of Pakistan's own simmering insurgency. But Pakistan's problems run deeper than that, with the country beginning the year with a crisis in relations between its weak civilian government and powerful military as well as a profound mistrust between Washington and Islamabad. Much has been written in the US media about concerns over the safety of Pakistan's nuclear ballistic arsenal. While these fears may be exaggerated, some militants will be looking to exploit the political chaos and 2012 looks set to be another violent year. Neither the CIA's drone strikes against militants in Pakistan's tribal territories nor alQaeda's activities there are likely to stop soon. Iran and the Gulf Iranian naval exercises in the Gulf in December and early January have ratcheted up regional tensions U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

International concern over Iran's accelerating nuclear programme is now so profound that Israel - which feels most threatened by Iran - is having to choose between two deeply unappealing options: living with a nuclear-armed Iran within missile range or launching a pre-emptive strike and starting a war which it may not be able to finish. Iran has been "wargaming" (planning) for this latter scenario for years and is believed to have in place a number of retaliatory measures should it ever come under full-scale attack. These include Hezbollah in Lebanon unleashing a barrage of rockets on Israel, firing its own missiles at US bases in the Gulf, closing the Strait of Hormuz to shipping and activating sleeper cells in Gulf Arab countries to attack infrastructure and foment unrest. US military officers have so far shown little or no appetite for opening a new theatre of conflict in Iran. Iraq The departure of US combat forces last month after nearly nine years has not been matched by an end to violence. Al-Qaeda's Iraqi franchise, which many had started to dismiss as a spent and beaten force, has claimed responsibility for the co-ordinated bombings across Baghdad in December that killed more than 60 people. If Iraq's Sunni minority continues to feel disenfranchised and discriminated against by the Shiadominated government of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, then there is a risk that violent extremists may be able to attract more recruits to their ranks. Yemen Yemen is currently in slow-motion turmoil. There are clashes almost daily, sometimes between democracy protesters and snipers loyal to outgoing President Saleh, sometimes between supporters of rival tribal groupings, sometimes between the army and Islamist militants in the southern province of Abyan. Yemen's Gulf neighbours, as well as the UK and US, are concerned that with all its problems coupled with economic collapse, Yemen does not become a failed state. 2012 will be critical in determining whether the country can get itself out of its current impasse. Somalia There have been fears, so far unfounded, of an institutional linkup between Somalia's jihadist group, al-Shabab, and its prolific maritime pirates. There is limited co-existence, mainly for financial gain, but no sign yet that Somali pirates would be willing to hand over captured sailors to al-Shabab. Of more concern to the authorities in Britain is the small trickle of British volunteers heading to Somalia intent on volunteering for jihad. Their worry is that sooner or later some will be tempted - as others have in Pakistan - to return to attack Britain instead of fighting and dying in a distant country. North Africa Much of the Libyan capital is still under the control of different militias The upheavals across Tunisia, Libya and Egypt prompted by the Arab Awakening have been followed by only limited outbreaks of violence but certainly in Libya and Egypt, there is a risk that more could follow. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

In Libya, it has been proving hard to persuade armed militias to surrender their guns, and there is a real worry that weapons looted from Gaddafi's arsenals have leaked across the southern borders into the hands of militants in Mali and elsewhere. Of greatest concern is the risk of shoulder-launched missiles falling into terrorist hands and there has been a major drive to try to locate them. Al-Qaeda's franchise in the Sahara, known as al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (Aqim) is currently holding 12 Europeans for ransom and Western governments have warned their citizens to avoid large parts of the Sahara region for fear of kidnap. Nigeria Last year, attacks by the group Boko Haram - which means "Western education is forbidden" - killed more than 450 people, including at the UN headquarters in Abuja, a radical departure from its previous targets of police, judges and other local figures. In mid-2011, the US general commanding the Pentagon's Africa Command (Africom) warned there may be growing links between Boko Haram and Aqim. Britain's domestic intelligence agency, MI5, is believed to be on the lookout for any signs of Boko Haram connections amongst Britain's sizable Nigerian community. The Olympics Britain's hosting of the Olympics this summer will, we are told, see "the biggest security operation in this country since the Second World War". Some 13,500 military personnel will be on duty, a Royal Navy helicopter-carrying warship will be docked near the venue, ground-to-air missiles will be deployed and RAF Typhoon fighters will be on standby to provide air defence. None of which should be needed, if all goes to plan. But the Olympics are classed as a "trophy target" for anyone looking to damage Britain and security preparations are being made on the basis of the national terrorist threat being at "severe", the second highest level in a table of five. Cyber Computers belonging to government institutions, commercial organisations and private individuals are coming under constant cyber attack, according to GCHQ, the government's secret communications HQ in Cheltenham. Attacks range from commercial espionage to stealing credit card details to trying to hack into military secrets. To head off the possibility of a catastrophic cyber attack on Britain's infrastructure, the government is investing heavily in protective measures, fighting what it calls "a constant arms race in cyber space". ### Zuma meets Libyan envoy seeking help rebuilding (AFP) http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hljlODBHjTT0vUyMCCrucA01 Xpsg?docId=CNG.7c9ce1de01016033f09da0a23010ea52.7a1 3 January 2012 U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

PRETORIA South African President Jacob Zuma met Tuesday with an envoy from Libya's National Transitional Council seeking help from Pretoria in rebuilding after the uprising that ousted Moamer Kadhafi. The presidency said in a statement that the envoy, Yousif Ibrahim Sherif, conveyed a message from NTC chairman Mustafa Abdul Jalil with a "request for South Africa's assistance in the reconstruction and development of Libya in light of South Africa's experience in peace making and democracy". "The meeting acknowledged the need for the strengthening of political and economic relations between the two countries, and the need to work under the auspices of the African Union in addressing challenges in Libya," it said. Zuma also accepted an invitation to visit Libya, though no date was set, it added. Zuma has vocally criticised the NATO campaign that helped rebels oust Kadhafi, saying last month that the conflict caused a "scar that will take many years to heal for Africa". He had spearheaded efforts by the African Union to mediate in the conflict, and complained that the continent's moves were sidelined by the NATO bombings. ### Armed groups clash in Libyan capital (Al Jazeera) http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/01/20121311171606584.html 3 January 2012 At least two people have been killed and six others injured in the Libyan capital after two groups of armed men clashed over a dispute centred on the imprisonment of a member of one of the groups. Witnesses on Tuesday told Al Jazeera a group of fighters from Misrata had clashed with members of another group in Tripoli who had taken one of their members prisoner. The fighting occurred on Saeedi Street, near the site of the old interior ministry building, Al Jazeera's Imran Khan reported from Tripoli. "Apparently what's happened is that one of the brigades from Misrata had a member of theirs arrested. They went in to then get that member out from the old ministry of the interior building, and that's when the clashes broke out," our reporter said. According to the Associated Press, the man was being held on suspicion of robbery. Witnesses said members of the Tripoli militia arrested six Misrata men, brought them inside the council building, beat them up and detained them. The Tripoli council is affiliated with the National Transitional Council (NTC). U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

A top Misrata commander managed to mediate the release of all the men except for the one arrested for robbery and a second attempt to free the man by opening fire on a building was made by another group of Misrata fighters. Fighting for control The Libyan defence and interior ministries said that reinforcements were being sent to the area of the violence to try and control the situation. "The big fear that most Libyans have here is about security. They're very worried about these groups being out on the street with guns, and they're very worried that incidents can quickly escalate. And that's what we're seeing here today," our correspondent said. "It's very difficult for the ruling NTC and the interim government to try and control the brigades that are out on the streets, because they're simply entrenched in their positions and they have no choice. You have to realise that if you want security in this country and ... you don't have a fully functioning police force ... then you rely on these armed brigades." Click here for more of Al Jazeera's special coverage Disparate groups of former revolutionary fighters have clashed repeatedly since the end of the eight-month civil war that toppled Muammar Gaddafi's government in October. Disbandment of these armed groups, which are divided by the regions where the operate, has posed a challenge to Libyan authorities. While playing a vital role in overseeing security of key state institutions in the capital, the uncontrolled ownership of weapons and the absence of a central security administration has given the militias a free hand in ruling areas under their control. Also on Tuesday, Mustaf Abdul Jalil, the NTC chair, appointed Yousef al-Manqoush as head of the armed forces in the first significant move to build a new Libyan military. "A decision was issued today by the National Transitional Council to appoint Mr Yousef al-Manqoush chief of staff," the official told the Reuters news agency. Manqoush is reportedly a retired army general who joined efforts to oust Gaddafi from his 42-year rule. ### Libyan assurances sought over extradition (Al Jazeera) http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/01/20121341013140384.html 3 January 2012 Tunisia has said it will extradite Libya's former prime minister, Al-Baghdadi Ali alU.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Mahmoudi, to Tripoli to face charges of abuse of office if Libya guarantees him a fair trial. Al-Baghdadi Ali al-Mahmoudi, wanted on charges of abuse of office, fled across the border to Tunisia soon after Muammar Gaddafi's government collapsed in August. "We will demand all guarantees for a fair trial and that there will be no physical harm" to Mahmoudi, Moncef Marzouki, the Tunisian president, said in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, on Monday when asked when Tunisia will hand over al-Mahmoudi. Marzouki, who is on his first state visit abroad since being sworn in as head of state in mid-December, said: "We have our values that we stand for. So we ask for your patience." Mahmoudi, 70, is currently incarcerated in Mornaguia, near the Tunisian capital, Tunis. Amnesty International, the UK-based human-rights organisation, has urged Tunisia not to extradite him, saying he risks being subjected to "serious human rights violations". Mahmoudi's defence team says that he fears for his life if he is returns to Libya as he is the sole holder of Libyan state secrets since Gaddafi was killed on October 20. First state visit Marzouki told a meeting of civil-society groups in Tripoli that Libya had the right to judge Mahmoudi. "As is our right to demand the extradition of [deposed President Zine El Abidine] Ben Ali to try him for crimes he committed, you also have the right to ask for the extradition of Mahmoudi," Marzouki said in a joint press conference with Mustafa Abdel Jalil, the Libyan leader. Tunisian courts have twice approved the Libyan request to extradite Mahmoudi, but his extradition can only takes place if Marzouki approves it. Mahmoudi was arrested on September 21 on Tunisia's southwestern border with Algeria and jailed for entering the country illegally. According to his defence team, his extradition is not possible until the UN refugee agency rules on his application for political refugee status in Tunisia. He had given televised briefings during the Libyan revolution defending Gaddafi and accusing NATO of deliberately killing civilians. Ben Ali was toppled last January in a popular uprising. His overthrow triggered the Arab Spring movement which has led to the fall of the long-time Egyptian leader, Hosni Mubarak, and the killing of Gaddafi, while also paving the way for the removal of U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Abdullah Saleh, the Yemeni president. Purpose of visit Marzouki said the purpose of his visit was to ensure that Tunisian-Libyan co-operation was on track. He said the two countries had agreed to respect agreements signed under the governments of Gaddafi and Ben Ali. For his part, Abdel Jalil, who heads Libya's ruling National Transitional Council, apologised for skirmishes along the border with Tunisia, saying they were the result of actions by individuals. Tunisian paramilitary police clashed overnight with a Libyan armed group, the TAP news agency said on Monday. And on Saturday, a dozen armed Libyans kidnapped four Tunisian gendarmes at the border. ### South Sudan violence: Armed youths return home, says UN (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-16403083 3 January 2012 Thousands of youths from a South Sudanese ethnic group which attacked a rival community, reportedly killing at least 150 people, have been repelled by government troops, the UN says. The UN's humanitarian co-ordinator in the region, Lise Grande, says 6,000 members of the Lou Nuer ethnic group have left the besieged town of Pibor. The clashes took place between the Lou Nuer and their rivals, the Murle. The fighting follows long-running disputes over cattle raids. As well as those killed, tens of thousands have been displaced in the violence, according to the South Sudan government. "Pibor is under the full control of the government, and the Lou Nuer have been ordered to return to their homes, and they are starting to do so," Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin said. Ms Grande said a decisive event took place on Monday: government troops backed by UN forces repelled an attack on Pibor in Jonglei state by the Lou Nuer ethnic group; U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

shortly after that, she said, the Lou Nuer began to leave the area. The Lou Nuer had launched an offensive on their rivals from the Murle ethnic group last week, accusing them of stealing cattle. Ms Grande said damage to Pibor was limited. However, she said the humanitarian situation for the tens of thousands of people who fled the violence was grim, with the UN and other agencies now organising an emergency programme to help them. Ms Grande said the government was beginning to deploy 3,000 extra soldiers and 800 police officers to the area. She also said the Lou Nuer took a lot of cattle with them. Last August, it was the Murle who attacked them and raided their herds. Cattle vendettas are common in South Sudan, as are other ethnic and tribal clashes: the UN says some 350,000 people were displaced because of intercommunal violence last year, says the BBC's Barbara Plett at the United Nations. This presents a major challenge to the government of the newly independent state, which also faces cross-border tensions with its northern neighbour Sudan. The clashes began as cattle raids, but have spiralled out of control. Town burnt South Sudan is one of the world's poorest regions - it gained independence from Sudan in July 2011 and has hardly any roads, railways, schools or clinics following two decades of conflict, which have left it awash with weapons. South Sudan's President Salva Kiir had called on the Lou Nuer to stop their advance and return to their traditional areas. The Lou Nuer fighters arrived in Pibor on Saturday after marching through Jonglei state in recent weeks, setting fire to homes and seizing livestock. The entire town of Lukangol was burnt to the ground last week. About 20,000 civilians managed to flee before the attack, but dozens were killed on both sides. The governor of Jonglei state and the vice-president of South Sudan have been trying to mediate between the rival ethnic groups. ### U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Moroccan king names Islamist-led cabinet (Reuters) http://www.france24.com/en/20120103-morocco-rabat-king-mohammed-6-newgovernment-abdelilah-benkirane 3 January 2012 Moroccan King Mohammed VI named a new power-sharing cabinet on Tuesday, which will be headed by moderate Islamist Abdelilah Benkirane, whose party won 27 percent of parliamentary seats in the November 25 legislative election. King Mohammed on Tuesday awarded cabinet posts to moderate Islamists for the first time on Tuesday, giving the foreign, justice and social affairs ministries to the party that came first in a November election, the official MAP news agency said. Abdelilah Benkirane, leader of the Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD), was earlier designated by the king as prime minister to head a power-sharing cabinet after his party won 27 percent of parliamentary seats in the election. The king brought forward the election by nearly a year in an effort to pre-empt a popular revolt similar to ones that have rocked the Arab world, toppling four longtime ruling autocrats. King Mohammed hopes fresh faces at the top of government, and at least the appearance of change, will deflate popular pressure for a more revolutionary transformation inspired by the Arab uprisings. Benkirane has forged an alliance with two conservative parties close to the monarchy Istiqlal (Independence), which came second, and the Popular Movementas well as the smaller left-wing Progress and Socialism Party. Istiqlal member Nizar Baraka was named Finance and Economy Minister, replacing Salaheddine Mezouar whose party, the National Rally of Independents, opted to go into opposition. PJD member Mohamed Najib Boulif, who has initially been strongly touted for Barakas role, was named minister in charge of general affairs and governance, putting him in charge of thorny issues such as reforming the burdensome subsidies system. Mustafa Ramid, a prominent lawyer and human right activist from PJD who has often been critical of the security services record, was named Minister of Justice and Public Freedoms. Bassima Hakkaoui of the PJD took over the social and womens affairs ministry as the only woman in the 31-member cabinet. Saad-Eddine El-Othmani, another PJD member, was appointed foreign minister while Popular Movement leader Mohand Laenser was appointed interior minister. U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

A reform programme presented by the palace aims to reduce the kings sweeping powers in favour of elected officials in response to protests pressing mainly for a British or Spanish-style constitutional monarchy, an independent judiciary and improved curbs on corruption. The reforms won overwhelming support in a July 1 referendum but protests have continued. The new charter subjects any government appointment to the kings approval. The new charter was widely expected to limit interference by the royal court in appointments of personnel in justice, religious affairs, interior, defence, foreign affairs and the general secretariat, a legal adviser to the government. Non-party figures close to the king were named in charge of defence, the general secretariat, religious affairs and the agriculture and fisheries ministry. ### Music Star Youssou N'dour to Take On President in Elections (Daily Nation, Nairobi) http://allafrica.com/stories/201201032448.html 3 January 2012 Dakar World-renowned singer Youssou N'Dour stirred up the battle for Senegal's presidency today by announcing he plans to take on veteran incumbent Abdoulaye Wade in February elections. Revered in his home country as a music icon, it remains to be seen whether Mr N'Dour can turn listeners into voters in a politically savvy country with well established parties and leaders, including a vibrant opposition. "Youssou N'Dour has the capacity to reach sections of the population, particularly among urban youth that some other politicians might not be able to reach," said Paul Melly of the London-based Chatham House Africa programme. "But his ability to translate that into an effective political campaign is of course untested." On the streets of the bustling capital Dakar, some say they were surprised by Mr N'Dour's announcement Monday night, many applaud him for throwing his hat into the ring, but most feel his bid is too late to make a difference this year. "He is not a head of state, he is an artist," said a security guard in downtown Dakar, asking not to be named. However he conceded some might vote for him to avoid the re-election of Wade and U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

"violation of the constitution" he is accused of in seeking a third term in office. Youssou N'Dour, left, with Sudanese mobile phone pioneer Mo Ibrahim. "It is a novelty," says insurance salesman Djibril Diop. "But let's keep our feet on the ground. In the past Senegal has known its leaders as intellectuals. It is good to try but he belongs to the future. Time will tell for him." In a country whose first post-independence president Leopold Sedar Senghor was a leading poet and academic, N'Dour recognised that his lack of higher education was a shortfall. But in declaring his "supreme patriotic duty" on his privately-owned television station Monday night, Senegal's most famous export said he had heaps of experience to bring home. "I have studied at the school of the world. Travel teaches as much as books." N'Dour has emerged as an outspoken critic of Wade, whose bid for a controversial third term in office has opposition and civil society groups fuming, and tensions have led to violent clashes in recent months. "I have listened, I have heard, and I am responding favourably," N'Dour said, referring to numerous requests that he throw his hat into the political ring. Clashes between the ruling party and opposition at the end of December left one person dead and three injured, pointing to heightened tensions in the run-up to the poll. Mr N'Dour, 52, announced at a concert in November that he had put performing on hold and formed his own political movement, Fekke ma ci bolle ("I am involved" in the Wolof language). Hailed as one of the world's greatest living singers, N'Dour has achieved huge international success with his mixture of Senegal's popular Mbalax music style with samba, hip-hop, jazz and soul. He was born in October 1959 in Dakar's populous Medina suburb to a modest family and is an icon in his home country. In his declaration, N'Dour said his campaign would include initiatives for peace in the troubled southern Casamance region, good governance, as well as agricultural and social development projects. Wade was first elected president in 2000 for a seven-year term, and re-elected in 2007 for five years after a constitutional reform shortened presidential terms. In 2008, the seven-year term was re-introduced, raising confusion over whether Wade U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

had exhausted his two-term limit. The opposition says yes, he says no, and the constitutional court will rule on the issue later this month. Some 20 candidates will be taking part in the election. Meanwhile, France has expressed 'grave concern' over politically motivated violence in Senegal ahead of next month's presidential polls and urged President Wade to immediately stem the tide. "President Wade should do all within his powers to immediately forestall a recrudescence of violence in Senegal as we contemplate on urging our citizens to avoid travelling there," a French government spokesman said. Reacting further on the political situation in Senegal, the local media quoted Mr Bernard Valero as saying that his government was even considering to issue a new security warning to its citizens residing in Senegal. In Mr Valero's comments on the Foreign Ministry website (www.ambafrance-sn.org), he said "we will continue to closely monitor the situation and have already noted the incidents of shootings culminating in the death of young lad". It can be recalled that several violent confrontations have occurred between the civil society-backed opposition and riot police which threw tear gas at demonstrators who blocked streets and burned tires in Dakar last week. ### Africa's Strategic Interest in the 21st Century. What is it? (Modern Ghana) http://www.modernghana.com/news/369763/1/africas-strategic-interest-in-the-21stcentury-wha.html 3 January 2012 By Lord Aikins Adusei There are many strategic thinkers who believe that Africa's underdog position in the world stems from the fact majority if not all the countries do not pursue policies that put the interest of their countries and people first. That is each of the countries in Africa does not work for the interest of its people by putting the interest of the nation and its people ahead of all other interests. There is a consensus among policymakers that if each African country should work for its own interest while coordinating with other countries in the continent on issues such as free trade, energy and human security, and political stability among others there will be more successful economies in Africa than we have seen over the past 50 years. The lack of 'Africa first' as both an ideology and as a strategy has been one major factor that has delayed the continent's development. Every country in the world works for the interest of its people. US, China, Russia, U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

Britain, Germany, Korea all work to develop their economies for their citizens to benefit and these countries do not care what means they use to achieve those interests. But here in Africa governments sell resources and don't account to the people. Politicians only campaign for votes but not for development. There is complete lack of policies that articulate the concerns and interests of the countries and their citizens. In the 1980s and 1990s many national assets were sold under Structural Adjustment Program to foreign entities without considering the interest of the countries and their citizens. Today there are countries in Africa where multinational corporations have major shares in mining, oil, and timber, firms while the nations and their peoples who own the natural resources get very little. Africans are quick to sell raw materials to countries in Europe, North America and Asia without asking what they could do with those natural resources themselves. It looks as if African governments do not have any specific interest in the world. They have not projected themselves as nations that matter in any sectors of the world affairs. It is not that these countries do not know what they must do; the problem is that the leaders have often tended to serve the interest of other nations rather than their own. The governments always give their support to countries trying to get a platform in the world and seeking their interest in Africa and some have done so even to the detriment of their own countries. One clear example is the announcement by Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Nobel Peace Prize Winner and President of Liberia that her country is willing to host AFRICOM even though she has not consulted her people or the countries in the West African sub-region. In her article published by allAfrica.com titled AFRICOM Can Help Governments Willing To Help Themselves, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf horned AFRICOM as a Marshall plan for Africa's development and encouraged African nations to 'work with Africom to achieve their own development and security goals'. This attitude is part of the reason why nations like Liberia and Nigeria have not developed. There is no collective national interest, neither is there any effort to do so rather they tend to support others whose interest is to exploit the continent to benefit their citizens. The Guardian newspaper in Nigeria quoted Sanusi Lamido, the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria as saying: As an economist, I have done and looked at the input and output content of the Nigerian economy, and I have never seen an economy with a kind of black hole like that of Nigeria. We produced cotton, yet our textile plants are not working; we produce crude oil, we import petroleum products; we produce gas and export, yet we don't have power plant. We have iron ore, we don't have steel plant; and we have hide and skin, we don't have leader products. There is a black hole in Nigeria and other African countries' economy because for decades the leadership in these countries have deferred their countries' interest to entities such as multinational corporations and foreign governments as is in the case of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. In 2009, US, China, Russia, France, Britain, Iran, and Israel all sent presidents, prime ministers, foreign ministers and other powerful government officials to Africa to pursue U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

their interests. United States has been urged by the Institute for Advanced Strategic & Political Studies and Africa Oil Policy Initiative Group to declare the Gulf of Guinea a strategic interest and US under AFRICOM is seriously lobbying African governments to allow her to establish military bases so as to achieve her strategic goals. A declassified document of the US Defence Department regarding the strategic importance of West Africa states that: 'West Africa is a swing production region that allows oil companies to leverage production capabilities to meet the fluctuating world demands.. . .West African oil is of high quality, is easily accessed offshore, and is well positioned to supply the North American market. Production in two major oil producing states (Nigeria and Angola) is expected to double or triple in the next 5-10 years. Already Nigeria and Angola provide as much oil to the U.S. as Venezuela or Mexico, making it of strategic importance. Walter Kansteiner, the US assistant secretary of State for Africa speaking about what Africa oil means to his country said: African oil is of national strategic interest to us, and it will increase and become more important as we go forward. The United States is not hiding her strategic ambition in Africa, however, I am yet to see Nigeria or Ghana or Senegal, Angola, and Namibia saying wait a minute what is our strategic interest in the Gulf of Guinea, how do we want to see the oil wealth in the Gulf of Guinea exploited and utilised to benefit our peoples and how do we contain the powers that are seeking to exploit the region's vast mineral wealth. How do we coordinate to ensure that our peoples get the lion share from the oil deals; or how do we work together to strengthen security and prevent terrorists from getting foothold in West Africa? Such issues as the economy, energy security, political stability and infrastructure do not appear on the radars of the countries in Africa. There are few role model countries in Africa where the rest can learn from. The kind of competition that we saw in Asia that led to the industrialisation of countries like Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, which has given them a sense of national pride has not occurred in Africa. I am yet to see the foreign policy of Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, DRC, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Kenya that put the interest of their people first. To me it looks as if each of these countries does not have interest that has to be articulated through their foreign policies. Nations around the world are launching satellites to strengthen their economies, boost their communication capabilities and to police their countries, others are building a new generation of technologies to help propel and give their nations good footing in the increasingly competitive global economy. You don't see such aggressive efforts in Africa. Nigeria is sleeping, Angola is still reeling from decades of war, DRC lacks a strong central government to formulate and implement any policy at all. The end result is that a vacuum has been created which is being filled strategically by the United States as in the case of her military base Djibouti. The lack of strategic interest on the part of African nations means that they will have to U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs Office  +49(0)711-729-2687  AFRICOMPAO@africom.mil

rely on countries like US, Britain, France, and China for their security and economic needs, but for how long? How will they win the fight against poverty, hunger, diseases and illiteracy if they do not champion their own interest and how are they expected to be taken serious if they continue to champion the strategic interest of others rather than their own? ### Rebels Drop Call for Secession (Daily Nation, Nairobi) http://allafrica.com/stories/201201032443.html 3 January 2012 Addis Ababa Ethiopia's oldest armed rebel group, Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) has announced the end of its long held agenda of secession. The group has said it will now fight for unity and freedom. Political commentators say this is a remarkable move in Ethiopian politics and can potentially reduce opposition against Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's government. OLF was established in late 1960's and was recently designated as a terrorist organisation by Ethiopian government along with Al-Shabaab and Al-Qaeda. "The new OLF political programme will accept the new federal democratic republic of Ethiopia that will work for the betterment of all of its citizens, neighbouring countries and international communities," a statement released by the OLF National council reads. "The OLF National Council also focused on the timely demand of working with other democratic forces in forming the new Ethiopia that will guarantee and protect the fundamental rights of all peoples in Ethiopia" statement added. ### END REPORT

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