United States Africa Command

Public Affairs Office

19 November 2010

USAFRICOM - related news stories

TOP NEWS RELATED TO U.S. AFRICA COMMAND AND AFRICA

General: More troops need African language skills (Associated Press)

(Pan Africa) A top general says the Pentagon needs more troops trained in African
cultures and languages to better confront the increasing terror threat coming out of East
Africa and improve relations with the continent.

AFRICOM nominee Ham worried about al-Shabab's widening reach (Stars and
Stripes)
(Pan Africa) The incoming head of U.S. Africa Command called the reported
relationship between terrorist groups al-Qaida and al-Shabab a serious national security
threat for America and the top priority for the command in the near future.

Ransoms fuel Al-Qaeda in northern Africa: US (AFP)

(North Africa) The United States on Wednesday warned against paying out ransoms to
win the freedom of hostages kidnapped by Al-Qaeda's branch in northern Africa,
saying the practice bolsters the militants.

Guinean Armed Forces Deployed as U.S. Condemns Post-Election Violence

(Bloomberg)
(Guinea) Guinea’s authorities deployed army and police forces across the country as
the U.S. urged political leaders to calm their supporters amid violence sparked by the
disputed outcome of a runoff presidential election.

Sierra Leone Watchful of Guinea Unrest (Voice of America)

(Sierra Leone) As Guinea declares a state of emergency in the wake of post-election
violence, Sierra Leone's Office of National Security says it has upped security and is
monitoring the situation.

Detonator Destined for Munich Found in Namibia Bags (Bloomberg)

(Namibia) Germany's Federal Criminal Office has sent a team of experts to Namibia
after police in Windhoek discovered a suspect device including a detonator in baggage
that was about to be loaded on board a plane bound for Munich.

Leaders Battle Madagascar Coup (Wall Street Journal)

(Madagascar) A group of about 20 officers claimed Wednesday that it had toppled
Madagascar leader Andry Rajoelina, a former radio disc jockey and self-proclaimed
president who took power in a military coup last year.

Why China has multiple identities (Business Daily)

(Pan Africa) In some economic and financial activities, especially since the global
financial crisis of 2008, China has been a major global player and its influence has been
on a par with that of the USA. But ten years earlier, China acted like a developed
country and used its currency to help stabilise the economies of several East Asian
countries during the Asian financial crises.

Two more candidates registered for Central African Republic's elections (Xinhua)
(Central African Republic) The Central African Republic's Independent Electoral
Commission (CEI) registered two more candidates for the presidential elections
scheduled for Jan. 23, 2011, it said on Wednesday.

UN News Service Africa Briefs

Full Articles on UN Website
 Community-based initiatives more effective against female genital cutting – UN
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UPCOMING EVENTS OF INTEREST:

WHEN/WHERE: Tuesday, November 23, 2:00 p.m.; Brookings Institution

WHAT: The Role of Africa’s Regional Organizations in Conflict Prevention and
Resolution
WHO: Ruhakana Rugunda, Uganda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations
Info: http://www.brookings.edu/events/2010/1123_africa_conflict_resolution.aspx

WHEN/WHERE: Wednesday and Thursday, December 15-16; National Defense

Industrial Association
WHAT: Stability, Security, Transition, and Reconstruction Operations
WHO: Amb Robert Loftis, Acting Coordinator, Reconstruction and Stability,
Department of State (S/CRS); Susan Reichle, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau
for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance, USAID; Dr. James Schear,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (DASD) for Stability Operations; GEN Carter
Ham, Commander, US Army, Europe; and others (see agenda)
Info: http://www.ndia.org/meetings/1450/Pages/default.aspx

WHEN/WHERE: Thursday, December 16, 9:00 a.m.; Africa Center for Strategic Studies
and the Center for Complex Operations
WHAT: Sudan: Regional Implications of Post-Referendum Scenarios
WHO: Special Envoy to Sudan, Maj. General Scott Gration (ret.), Keynote; See agenda
for full speaker list
Info: http://ccoportal.org/event/sudan-regional-implications-post-referendum-
scenarios
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FULL ARTICLE TEXT

General: More troops need African language skills (Associated Press)

WASHINGTON — A top general says the Pentagon needs more troops trained in
African cultures and languages to better confront the increasing terror threat coming
out of East Africa and improve relations with the continent.

Army Gen. Carter Ham, who has been nominated to head U.S. Africa Command, tells a
Senate committee that the terror threat from East Africa is one of the command's
greatest challenges.

Ham says Special Operations forces are skilled in African languages and cultures but
that the military is not moving fast enough to train other troops.

Al-Qaida-linked terrorist groups in Yemen and Africa have been increasingly targeting
Western interests.
--------------------
AFRICOM nominee Ham worried about al-Shabab's widening reach (Stars and
Stripes)

The incoming head of U.S. Africa Command called the reported relationship between
terrorist groups al-Qaida and al-Shabab a serious national security threat for America
and the top priority for the command in the near future.

Army Gen. Carter Ham, who currently serves as commander of U.S. Army Europe, told
senators at his confirmation hearing on Thursday that the extent of the relationship
between the groups is unclear, but the claim by al-Shabab leadership “signals the type
of terrorist activity they want to engage in.”

The militant Islamist group, based in Somalia, has generally been confined to regional
attacks, but this summer claimed responsibility for bombings in Uganda, which killed
more than 70 people. AFRICOM officials have been working for years to help support
Somalia’s fragile Transitional Federal Government and their fight against the group.

Ham called their wider area of attack “a disturbing interest” for the broader
international community, and promised to direct more resources to research and
counter the threat.

Senators applauded that focus.

“This reminds us that the war on terrorism is a worldwide war,” said Sen. Joe
Lieberman, I-Conn. “This will be a test of whether we can contain them before these
areas become something like Afghanistan before 2001,” a staging ground for attacks
against America.

But lawmakers also questioned whether the military has allotted enough personnel and
funding to the 2-year-old command. Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., said current officials
have done “an incredible job with limited, and I would say inadequate, resources.”

Ham would replace Gen. William “Kip” Ward, who was appointed AFRICOM’s first
commander when the command stood up in October of 2008.

Currently the command includes a staff of about 1,500 personnel, about half of whom
are civilians. Ham said, if confirmed, he would report back to Congress quickly on the
command’s budget and personnel, to see what changes or additions are needed.

He also said he will review where the command should be based, with an eye towards
possibly moving out of its current headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. Ham said
locations in Europe, Africa and the United States would be considered.

Ham is expected to be confirmed to the post in coming weeks. All military nominations
have been on hold since last month, but on Tuesday, Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., said he
would lift his block on the confirmations after the Defense Department this week
provided him with overdue data related to the closing of Joint Forces Command.
--------------------
Ransoms fuel Al-Qaeda in northern Africa: US (AFP)

WASHINGTON — The United States on Wednesday warned against paying out

ransoms to win the freedom of hostages kidnapped by Al-Qaeda's branch in northern
Africa, saying the practice bolsters the militants.

"It's no secret that the United States has been emphasizing a no-concessions policy for a
long time and we recognize how difficult it is for countries to embrace this kind of
policy," said Daniel Benjamin, the US State Department's coordinator for
counterterrorism.

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has relied on large ransoms from
kidnappings of foreigners in northern Africa to fund its violent campaigns, Benjamin
told a news conference.

Citing reports of multi-million dollar payouts, Benjamin called the trend "very
worrisome."
After a crackdown on Al-Qaeda in Algeria, AQIM has carried out a wave of
kidnappings in Niger, Mali and Mauritania in recent years, abducting Westerners and
demanding ransom money.

The group in September kidnapped seven foreigners in Niger, including five French
nationals, and are believed to be holding the hostages in neighboring Mali.

Paying out ransom was counter-productive in the end, Benjamin said, as it offered an
incentive for more kidnappings.

"It is clear that when you pay the ransom you may be getting back one individual, but
you're also ensuring that two or three more will be kidnapped later on because it shows
the efficacy of the tactic," he said.

Ransoms also provided funds for the larger Al-Qaeda global network, he added.

"We've made real progress in drying up the resources available to terrorists around the
world but kidnapping for ransom is different from shutting down the banks, financial
services, institutions the like to terrorists," he said.

Governments in northern Africa are "deeply upset" over the practice because they
believe paying ransoms sows instability in the region and strengthens the Al-Qaeda
network, he said.
--------------------
Guinean Armed Forces Deployed as U.S. Condemns Post-Election Violence
(Bloomberg)

Guinea’s authorities deployed army and police forces across the country as the U.S.
urged political leaders to calm their supporters amid violence sparked by the disputed
outcome of a runoff presidential election.

At least seven people have died in clashes that began when Alpha Conde was declared
the winner of the Nov. 7 vote, Agence France-Presse reported today, without citing
anyone. Conde’s rival in the election, former Prime Minister Cello Dalein Diallo, has
contested the results.

“The army must be deployed across the whole country with the police force to
safeguard order and discipline,” General Nouhou Thiam, the army chief of staff, said in
a statement broadcast on state-owned Radio Television Guinneene in the capital,
Conakry, late yesterday.

The West African nation hasn’t had a democratic transfer of power since it gained
independence from France in 1958. The clashes are certain to deepen ethnic tension
between members of the pro-Conde Malinke people and the Peul, the nation’s biggest
ethnic group, which mainly backed Diallo, said Mohamed Jalloh, a West Africa analyst
at the Brussels-based International Crisis Group.

“The Malinke side of the army is being sent to the streets to shoot at civilians who are
mainly Peul,” he said. “How that will play out in the military is yet to be seen. It’s a
highly dangerous situation.”

Security Patrols

Police and army vehicles patrolled districts of Conakry including Hamdallaye,

Babmeto, Cosa and Enco-5 where Diallo’s supporters protested on Nov. 15. Some shops
in the city’s main business district of Kaloum were opened, while the main market at
Madina remained closed.

Guinea holds as much as half of the world’s reserves of bauxite, an ore used to make
aluminum. It also has more than 4 billion metric tons of “high-grade” iron ore and
“significant” deposits of diamonds and gold, according to the U.S. State Department.

Aluminum for delivery in three months rose $9.50, or 0.4 percent, to $2,285 a metric ton
at 12:40 p.m. on the London Metal Exchange.

Companies operating in Guinea include Russia’s United Co. Rusal, the world’s largest
aluminum producer, AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., Africa’s biggest gold miner, and Brazil’s
Vale SA, the No. 1 iron-ore producer.

Rusal’s operations in Guinea are working normally and there are no plans to evacuate
any staff, the Moscow-based company said in an e-mailed statement today. “The state
of emergency hasn’t affected our company’s activities,” it said.

Bauxite Production

Rusal, which currently obtains more than 40 percent of its bauxite from Guinea,
employs more than 2,300 people in the country, most of them Guineans.

General Sekouba Konate, the interim president, declared a state of emergency yesterday
that will last until the results of the election are confirmed by the Supreme Court next
week.

AngloGold’s Siguiri gold mine also hasn’t been affected by the violence, spokesman
Alan Fine said in an interview from Johanensburg today.

Three bodies were found yesterday in Taroma, the only suburb in Conakry where
Diallo won in the vote, AFP said. That adds to four deaths in earlier unrest, the news
agency said.
“The U.S. condemns the violent clashes between rival political supporters in Guinea,”
State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley said in an e-mailed statement. “The U.S.
calls on Guinea’s political leaders to urge their supporters to refrain from violence.”

French Warning

France warned its citizens against traveling to Guinea and is monitoring the situation in
the country “with concern”, AFP said, citing Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Christine
Fages.

Guinea has faced political instability since a group of military officers took power in
December 2008 after the death of former President Lansana Conte, who had ruled for 24
years.

The country’s $4.3 billion economy is forecast to grow 3 percent this year and 3.6
percent next year after contracting 0.3 percent in 2009, according to data on the
International Monetary Fund’s website. It ranks 156th out of 169 nations on the United
Nations’ 2010 Human Development Index, a measure of living standards.
--------------------
Sierra Leone Watchful of Guinea Unrest (Voice of America)

As Guinea declares a state of emergency in the wake of post-election violence, Sierra

Leone's Office of National Security says it has upped security and is monitoring the
situation.

While Sierra Leone has seen nothing like the scale of violence in Guinea over the past
two days, security agents here are wary of the potential for unrest to spill over its
borders.

Yesterday the head of Guinea's armed forces declared a state of emergency until the
country's Supreme Court can verify the election outcome.

Sierra Leone's deputy National Security Coordinator Christopher John says the country
is watching developments across the border closely.

"We are very much concerned because of the proximity, the neighborliness and we all
work together in the Mano River. Any violence occurring in Guinea is of grave concern
to us because of our bilateral relations, both economic, social and the politics that are
across the borders," he said.

In anticipation of potential unrest during Guinea's election, Sierra Leone sent 350
military and police personnel to border areas ahead of Sunday's poll.
But it was deep inside Sierra Leone's borders, in the eastern town of Kenema, where
Guinean supporters of the two main candidates came to blows after preliminary results
from Guinea declared long-time opposition candidate, Alpha Condé, the winner.

Sierra Leonean police arrested a total of 58 people from both sides.

John says while there is no military threat, the main concern is the potential for refugees
to cross into Sierra Leone should the violence escalate. He says the National Security
Council has contingency plans in place to respond.

Guinea's border wraps around Sierra Leone's northern and eastern limits and many
Guineans from both the Fula and Mandingo ethnic groups call Sierra Leone home.

But John says clashes between the two ethnic groups in Kenema over the past two days
were isolated incidents that are now under control.

"So the issue out in Kenema is one of those issues," he said. "You know the Guinea thing
is fraught with ethnicity and right across the border you have all these tribes here. They
are Guineans, we respect them for what they believe in, but there might have been some
provocation from either party, but that is an isolated issue."

Sierra Leone has made significant progress towards stability after ending a long civil
war in 2002. Five years later, the country saw the peaceful transfer of power from one
political party to another.

While Guinea struggles to pull off its first democratic elections, Sierra Leoneans are
thinking ahead to their own. Sierra Leone's presidential elections in 2012 are widely
seen as the country's final test on the road to peace.
--------------------
Detonator Destined for Munich Found in Namibia Bags (Bloomberg)

Germany's Federal Criminal Office has sent a team of experts to Namibia after police in
Windhoek discovered a suspect device including a detonator in baggage that was about
to be loaded on board a plane bound for Munich.

The device contained batteries wired to a working clock and a detonator inside bags
booked on an LTU/Air Berlin flight from the Namibian capital yesterday, the Federal
Criminal Office, or BKA, said today.

"Whether we're dealing with an explosive device will only be determined after the on-
going criminal investigation," the Wiesbaden-based BKA said in an e-mailed statement.
The alert comes as German authorities step up security at airports and railway stations
after receiving "concrete indications" that Islamist extremists plan to stage an attack in
the country toward the end of this month.

Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said yesterday that the government was
compelled to issue a warning of a "new threat level" after receiving intelligence from an
unidentified foreign partner and from Islamist groups domestically.

The BKA said it is sending a team from South Africa to help the Namibian authorities
and will dispatch further experts to Windhoek.

After the discovery of the device yesterday, the passengers and luggage were subjected
to further searches before the flight was allowed to depart. The plane arrived safely in
Munich last night, the BKA said.

The German government's warning followed a worldwide terror alert last month after
bombs were found in air-cargo shipments. One bomb, packed inside a printer cartridge,
was timed to explode on a flight as it reached the U.S. East Coast.

That device, which originated in Yemen and was discovered at the U.K.'s East Midlands
airport on Oct. 29, passed through Germany via Cologne/Bonn airport. A second bomb
was found in Dubai. Both were addressed to synagogues in Chicago.

The German public will begin to see an increased security presence, though "there are a
large number of measures they won't be able to see," de Maiziere said yesterday.

"There is cause for concern, but no cause for hysteria," he said.

--------------------
Leaders Battle Madagascar Coup (Wall Street Journal)

A group of about 20 officers claimed Wednesday that it had toppled Madagascar leader
Andry Rajoelina, a former radio disc jockey and self-proclaimed president who took
power in a military coup last year.

"We are dissolving the existing regime and setting up a military leadership to seize
power," Col. Charles Andrianasoavina, a rebel leader who had backed the 2009 revolt,
told news channel France 24.

In a statement later Wednesday, Prime Minister Albert Camille Vital rebutted those
claims. He said the situation in the island was calm and urged the mutineers to return
to their barracks. "The rule of law applies in Madagascar; nobody is above the law," he
said, according to spokeswoman Hanitra Andriamalala.
Local media quoted Mr. Rajoelina, the island leader, saying he would take action to
quash the mutiny.

Military leaders claim to have dissolved the government of Madagascar while citizens
vote in a referendum on a draft constitution that would allow the current president to
stay in power until next year.
Government officials said it was too early to say the coup attempt had failed because, as
of late Wednesday, part of the group of mutineers was still entrenched in a military
base located near the airport of Madacascar's capital city Antananarivo.

There were no outward signs of a coup—no military occupation of buildings or

television stations. While scuffles broke out between police and protesters, they were
mainly confined to the area around the airport, where the group of soldiers made their
declaration about a change of government.

Still, tensions have been steadily rising for weeks.

The attempted coup came the same day voters in Madagascar cast ballots on a new
constitution. Mr. Rajoelina, a former mayor, has repeatedly promised and then
postponed elections. He is now supporting changes to a constitution seen as solidifying
his political grip.

Among proposed changes would be the lowering of the minimum age for president to
35 from 40. Mr. Rajoelina is 36 years old.

Madagascar's ousted president, Marc Ravalomanana, has been living in exile in South
Africa, officials say. The former president couldn't immediately be reached for
comment.

Mr. Rajoelina's apparent bid to stay in power has alienated foreign donors and clouded
the country's future, says a Western diplomat in the country. "Things are getting
heated," he said. "What happens next is really hard to say."

In the absence of much aid and with the halting of some preferential trade treatment,
Madagascar's economy has been hit hard. Some say the government has resorted to
murky mining and logging deals with foreign companies to raise revenue, opening rifts
in the military.

Madagascar, which has a population of about 20 million, is known for its high-quality
vanilla production, as well as for its vast uranium, nickel and other metals resources. As
a commodities boom pushed up global prices, foreign interest in the country's resources
has increased.
Meanwhile, the U.S. government called for Madagascar's leaders to "return at once to
work on a peaceful, inclusive, consensual, and democratic solution to a political crisis,"
according to a State Department statement. The U.S. warned that power struggle had
forced the increasingly-isolated island nation into a "precarious humanitarian position...
Those who bear arms or hold the levers of power must place their people's interest
ahead of their own."
--------------------
Why China has multiple identities (Business Daily)

I recently asked an African diplomat, who had been a member of her country’s
delegation to China, whether she regarded China as a developing country or developed
one, and she replied that it embraced both types of identity. However, when I put the
same question to a Chinese diplomat, he insisted China was a developing country due
to the limited level of industrialisation. Unfortunately, the Chinese government has not
been consistent in the description of its identity.

In human beings, social identity is often a matter of personal choice, but as far as
countries are concerned, identity is gauged through international behaviour. In the past
few decades, it has been the nature of activity at a particular time and the perception of
the national interest that has determined whether China would play the developing
country card, the superpower card or any other identity card. On some occasions,
Beijing viewed itself as the leader of the developing world, especially when it saw an
opportunity to join forces with African, Asian and Latin American countries against the
West.

For example, in human rights conferences, Beijing waves the developing nation card in
the hope of rallying developing countries to influence the agenda in a particular
direction.

However, in some economic and financial activities, especially since the global financial
crisis of 2008, China has been a major global player and its influence has been on a par
with that of the USA. Ten years earlier, China acted like a developed country and used
its currency to help stabilise the economies of several East Asian countries during the
Asian financial crises.

In the wake of the recent global financial crisis, China, which had been relatively
unaffected, has provided funds to several developing and developed countries. It has
also imported large quantities of resources from Africa, Australia and Latin America,
which have helped stimulate the economies of these places.

The frequent American accusations of China regarding currency manipulations

underline two interrelated facts: Washington and Beijing are trade competitors, which
regard each other as equals. Under these circumstances, China, which presides over the
world’s second biggest economy, does not fit the description of a developing country.
The Sino-US trade competition has added to the occasional rivalry of these two
countries in the military field, but the US is many times militarily stronger. As
permanent members of the UN Security Council, the US and China are aware that
neither can use the United Nations machinery to influence the global strategic debate in
its favour.

However, they continue to seek more friends and resources in several parts of Africa,
and Washington’s establishment of the African Military Command (Africom) in
October 2007 is part of this effort to secure influence on the continent. In addition, the
two powers have recently increased their military presence in the Asia-Pacific region.
During last week’s routine Australian-US ministerial talks, which involved the US
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and US Defence Secretary Robert Gates and their
Australian Counterparts, respectively Kevin Rudd and Stephen Smith, the US
suggested it was seriously concerned about China’s efforts to project its military
presence in the region.

All these developments demonstrate that China has multiple identities, and it is,
therefore, unhelpful to regard it as either developed or developing.
--------------------
Two more candidates registered for Central African Republic's elections (Xinhua)

BANGUI - The Central African Republic's Independent Electoral Commission (CEI)

registered two more candidates for the presidential elections scheduled for Jan. 23, 2011,
it said on Wednesday.

One of the two candidates is the country's former prime minister Martin Ziguele who is
the president of the Movement for the Liberation of Central African People (MLPC). His
registration papers were rejected by CEI on Nov. 9, one day after the official closure of
the registration date.

Another candidate is Emile Gros Raymond Nakombo, the president of the Central
African Democratic Rally (RDC), a party created by the late president Andre Kolingba.
He was chosen two weeks ago during a party conference.

With the two men registered for the upcoming race, the country has six candidates to
compete for its top post.

The four others include the outgoing president Francois Bozize of KNK (Kwa na Kwa,
the ruling Workers' party); the former president Ange Felix Patasse, an independent
candidate; former defense minister Jean Jacques Demafouth of the ex-rebel movement
the Popular Army for the Restoration of Democracy (APRD); and Justin Wilite.
--------------------
UN News Service Africa Briefs
Full Articles on UN Website
Community-based initiatives more effective against female genital cutting – UN
18 November – Initiatives to encourage communities in Africa to abandon female
genital mutilation or cutting are more effective when used to reinforce the positive
aspects of local cultures and build trust by implementing development projects, the
findings of a United Nations study released today show.