United States Africa Command

Public Affairs Office

31 January 2011

USAFRICOM - related news stories

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

U.S. Army Africa commander attends second annual Marrakech Security Forum (US
Army Africa)
(Morocco) Dozens of scholars, politicians and soldiers gathered in Marrakech,
Morocco, Jan. 20-22 for the second annual convocation of the Marrakech Security
Forum. U.S. Army Africa (USARAF) Commander, Maj. Gen. David R. Hogg, attended
the event, which was hosted by the African Federation for Strategic Studies (FAES) with
support from the Moroccan Center for Strategic Studies (CMES).

U.S. praises Egyptian military's "professionalism" (Reuters)

(Egypt) The highest-ranking U.S. military officer praised the "professionalism" of
Egypt's armed forces in a phone call with a top Egyptian commander on Sunday, as
Egyptian troops refrained from a crackdown on protesters.

US calls for 'orderly transition' in Egypt (AFP)

(Egypt) The United States called Sunday for an "orderly transition" to a new
government in Egypt but stopped short of demanding President Hosni Mubarak step
down as protests engulf his regime.

U.S to train Algerian army anti-terrorism units, watches Somalia (Suna Times)
(Algeria) According to Algeria's Al-Watan newspaper, David R. Hogg, commander of
AFRICOM's land forces, acknowledged Algeria had a "leadership role" in the fight
against terrorism in the Sahel region, as his body launched an anti terrorism training for
the Algerian army.

It's official: South Sudan set to secede with a 99.57 percent vote (Christian Science
Monitor)
(Sudan) South Sudan's long-awaited independence referendum produced an
overwhelming turnout of 99 percent among voters in the south, one of the poorest and
least developed regions on earth.

USAID Sees Huge Development Challenges for South Sudan, Pledges Continued
Aid (Devex Newswire)
(Sudan) After a referendum held earlier this month indicated wide support for its
secession, South Sudan will face “enormous” development challenges and “high
expectations,” according to the U.S. Agency for International Development’s top official
in Sudan.

Tepid response on Tunisia costs U.S. goodwill (Philadelphia Inquirer)

(Tunisia) Not only are Tunisians perplexed by the U.S. government's mild response to
this month's overthrow of the 74-year-old Ben Ali, but many Americans are also
concerned. Many regard our government's reaction to events in North Africa as token
bows to democratic principles, mostly rhetoric.

Thousands greet Islamist leader's return from exile to Tunisia (The Independent)
(Tunisia) The leader of Tunisia's largest Islamist movement returned from exile in
Britain yesterday to be greeted by thousands of supporters celebrating the arrival of the
"lost leader".

AU says African force to have naval component (Xinhua)

(Pan Africa) The African Union (AU) envisions to install a naval component into the
African Force in order to fight the rampant pirates along the coastline of the continent,
M. Ramtane Lamamra, AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, announced here on
Sunday.

Eq. Guinea's Obiang named new AU chairman (AFP)

(Pan Africa) Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema was Sunday
appointed the African Union's new chairman at a summit at the bloc's headquarters in
Addis Ababa.

African Union concerned over protests (Financial Times)

(Pan Africa) As Tunis smouldered and Cairo burnt, the spectre of contagion haunted a
summit of the 53-member African Union which began on Sunday in Addis Ababa, and
lent an air of urgency to efforts to resolve political upheavals south of the Sahara.

Protesters Call for Ouster of Sudanese President (Wall Street Journal)

(Sudan) Student protesters in Khartoum clashed with police on Sunday and called for
the ouster of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, in a movement organizers said was
inspired by the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.

UN News Service Africa Briefs

Full Articles on UN Website
 Ban voices UN readiness to help Tunisia hold credible elections
 Côte d'Ivoire: UN and African blocs must remain united to ensure respect of poll
results – Ban
 Ban reiterates concern over Côte d''Ivoire crisis at meeting with West African
officials
  Darfur: UN-AU mediator welcomes movements'' commitment to Doha peace
process
 DR Congo: UN reports more alleged rapes over past month
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
UPCOMING EVENTS OF INTEREST:

WHEN/WHERE: Tuesday, February 1, 2011, 5:30 pm; New America Foundation

WHAT: Fighting for Darfur: Public Action and the Struggle to Stop Genocide
WHO: Rebecca Hamilton, Schwartz Fellow, New America Foundation, Author,
Fighting for Darfur: Public Action and the Struggle to Stop Genocide; Juan E. Méndez,
UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment
or Punishment, Visiting Professor, Washington College of Law; Andrés Martinez,
Director, Bernard L. Schwartz Fellows Program, New America Foundation
Info: http://www.newamerica.net/events/2011/fighting_for_darfur

WHEN/WHERE: Wednesday, February 2, 2011, 10:00 am; US Institute of Peace

WHAT: Perspectives on Sudan’s Referendum
WHO: Linda Bishai, Senior Program Officer, US Institute of Peace; Jok Madut Jok,
Jennings Randolph Senior Fellow, US Institute of Peace; Timothy Luccaro, Program
Specialist, US Institute of Peace; Jon Temin, Moderator, Director, Sudan Program
US Institute of Peace
Info: http://www.usip.org/events/perspectives-sudans-referendum

WHEN/WHERE: Wednesday, February 2, 2011, 12:30; Johns Hopkins School of

Advanced International Studies
WHAT: Looking Beyond Gbagbo: Can the Ivory Coast Recover its Political and
Economic Status?
WHO: Dwayne Woods, Purdue University; Paul Melly, Associate Fellow Chatham
House
Info: http://www.sais-jhu.edu/academics/regional-studies/africa/events/10-
11events.htm

WHEN/WHERE: Tuesday and Wednesday, February 8-9, 2011; National Defense

Industrial Association, Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, DC
WHAT: Defense, Diplomacy, and Development: Translating Policy into Operational
Capability
WHO: Keynote Speakers include ADM Michael Mullen, USN, Chairman, Joint Chiefs
of Staff; BG Simon Hutchinson, GBR, Deputy Commander, NATO Special Operations
Forces Headquarters; ADM Eric T. Olson, USN, Commander, U.S. Special Operations
Command; Gen Norton A. Schwartz, USAF, Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force
Info: http://www.ndia.org/meetings/1880/Pages/default.aspx
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FULL ARTICLE TEXT
U.S. Army Africa commander attends second annual Marrakech Security Forum (US
Army Africa)

VICENZA, Italy — Dozens of scholars, politicians and soldiers gathered in Marrakech,

Morocco, Jan. 20-22 for the second annual convocation of the Marrakech Security
Forum.

U.S. Army Africa (USARAF) Commander, Maj. Gen. David R. Hogg, attended the
event, which was hosted by the African Federation for Strategic Studies (FAES) with
support from the Moroccan Center for Strategic Studies (CMES).

Prof. Mohammed Benhammou of FAES, the event organizer and moderator, welcomed
participants and turned the floor over to Pieter de Crem, the Belgian Minister of
Defense.

Hogg spoke next, describing the structure and mission of USARAF and its higher
headquarters, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), and discussed the threats all
countries face from terrorist movements to their stability and well-being.

Following the initial plenary session, participants broke up into discussion groups.
Hogg attended a session that focused on redefining the threats and security risks
against stability and development in Africa in general, and the Sahel region in
particular.

The discussion provided considerable, high quality food for thought, said Lt. Col. Uli
Calvo, North Africa Desk Officer, Security Cooperation Directorate, USARAF.

“The conference was focused on the developing threat of AQIM (al-Qaida in the Islamic
Maghreb) in the trans-Sahel region in Africa, and just basically terrorism around the
world,” he said.

For instance, a Belgian participant presented a synopsis of responses to terrorist

activities in Indonesia during the past decade, and a Mexican delegate discussed the
evolution of the war waged there against narcotics networks.

“That was the primary focus,” Calvo said.

A second plenary session focused on Algeria, which Hogg had recently visited. The
theme was “From the GSPC (Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat) to AQIM: The
transformation of the Algerian terrorist group to a branch of al-Qaida.” A range of
scholars and government representatives made presentations on the subject of the
group’s evolution, which also proved very interesting, he said.
Among the discussions were two competing views of how terrorism evolves, Calvo
said.

One view sees terrorist organizations and activities as driven by poverty, while another
view ascribes the motivation to political injustice.

“I think that the conventional wisdom is that poverty is the root cause of terrorism,”
Calvo said. “But the problem with that is that you’re criminalizing the poor. There are
regions in Africa, and around the world, where poverty is widespread but instances of
terrorism are statistically insignificant.”

The debate continues.

Other themes over the course of the three-day forum included discussions of AQIM’s
activities and strategic objectives; its evolution from jihad to narcoterrorism; the
interconnections among illegal trafficking, terrorism and political conflict; AQIM’s
accommodation with criminal gangs; connections between regional terrorist
movements and global organizations; and the development of regional strategies for
combating terrorism in the Sahel.

Throughout the course of the forum, Hogg was continually greeted by participants he
had met on previous trips to the continent and by individuals who had heard of him
and wanted to make his acquaintance, the great majority of them from sub-Saharan
Africa, Calvo said.

Hogg also spoke with reporters from RTM (Radiodiffusion-Television Marocaine) and
2M TV, the official government television channels, and to Radio Africa 1, a French
radio network with a wide reach across the continent.

“General Hogg’s response to reporters, the main thing he stressed was international
cooperation — that countries with experience and expertise in responding to terrorism
should help nations in the trans-Sahel build their own capacity to deal with it,” said
Calvo.

“Sharing their experience and lessons learned should help individual countries devise
local solutions to local problems,” he said.

Hogg also had to reiterate that neither U.S. Army Africa nor AFRICOM have any plans
to establish a headquarters on the African continent, a notion that remains current in
African perceptions and African media despite consistent clarification to the contrary
from American officials over the past several years.
Hogg and his party had the opportunity while in Marrakech to take a cultural tour and
gain a first-hand insight into the power of tourism as a bulwark of the Moroccan
economy, said Calvo.

“I think this visit was beneficial to the CG (Commanding General) in a couple of ways,”
said Calvo. “First, it exposed him to new developments having to do with AQIM and
counterterrorism. And secondly, he was able to get a taste for Morocco in advance of his
first formal visit there later this year.”
--------------------
U.S. praises Egyptian military's "professionalism" (Reuters)

WASHINGTON – The highest-ranking U.S. military officer praised the

"professionalism" of Egypt's armed forces in a phone call with a top Egyptian
commander on Sunday, as Egyptian troops refrained from a crackdown on protesters.

Egypt receives about $1.3 billion a year in U.S. military aid, assistance that could be
jeopardized if the army joined last week's harsh police crackdown. Police used rubber
bullets, tear gas and water cannons against protesters calling for President Hosni
Mubarak to step down.

The unrest has killed more than 100 people.

The Pentagon urged restraint from Egypt's military last week in face-to-face talks in
Washington with one of its top officers -- Lieutenant General Sami Enan, chief of staff of
the armed forces.

Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke on Sunday with
Enan, who provided him an update, a spokesman said.

"The Chairman expressed his appreciation for the continued professionalism of the
Egyptian military," said Capt. John Kirby. "Both men reaffirmed their desire to see the
partnership between our two militaries continue, and they pledged to stay in touch."

The top U.S. diplomat, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on Sunday also commended
Egyptian military restraint, saying it was "working to try to differentiate between
peaceful protesters -- who we all support -- and potential looters and other criminal
elements who are obviously a danger to the Egyptian people."

It remains to be seen if the Egyptian armed forces, considered the most powerful
institution in the country, will seek to keep Mubarak in power in the face of mass
protests, or decide he is a liability.
Egypt's military -- the world's 10th largest with more than 468,000 members -- have
been a central force in politics since army officers staged an overthrow of the monarchy
in 1952.

All four Egyptian presidents since then have come from the military, now led by
Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, whom Defense Secretary Robert Gates also spoke to over
the weekend.

The Pentagon declined to provide details on Gates' conversation with Tantawi.

The Egyptian military has deep ties with the U.S. armed forces, staging large-scale joint
exercises. There are some 625 U.S. military personnel stationed in Egypt.

The U.S. has also provided F-16 jet fighters, tanks, armored personnel carriers, Apache
helicopters, anti-aircraft missile batteries and other equipment to the Egyptian military
-- equipment it does not want to see used against peaceful protesters.

"We have sent a very clear message that we want to see restraint, we do not want to see
violence by any security forces. And we continue to convey that message," Clinton told
ABC television.
--------------------
US calls for 'orderly transition' in Egypt (AFP)

WASHINGTON – The United States called Sunday for an "orderly transition" to a new
government in Egypt but stopped short of demanding President Hosni Mubarak step
down as protests engulf his regime.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hammered home the US position with appearances on
five cable news shows and President Barack Obama had used the same language in
telephone calls to regional leaders, the White House said.

Mubarak has appointed military intelligence chief Omar Suleiman as his first ever vice
president and named a new premier to try to assuage his people's thirst for political
change, but Clinton said he must go further.

"That is the beginning, the bare beginning of what needs to happen, which is a process
that leads to the kind of concrete steps to achieve democratic and economic reform that
we've been urging," she told ABC News.

As the anti-government revolt raged into a sixth day with opposition leader Mohamed
ElBaradei addressing protesters in Cairo, Clinton said the Egyptian people should be
allowed to pursue "real democracy" through "national dialogue."
The Obama administration has performed a delicate balancing act over the past week,
backing reform but at the same time refusing to cut off vital support for Mubarak's
regime.

"There is no discussion as of this time about cutting off any aid," Clinton said, rowing
back on earlier suggestions that Washington was reviewing $1.3 billion of annual
military funding.

The White House issued a statement saying that Obama had telephoned the leaders of
Israel, Saudi Arabia and Turkey on Saturday to discuss the crisis and ask for their
assessment of the situation.

"During his calls, the president reiterated his focus on opposing violence and calling for
restraint; supporting universal rights, including the right to peaceful assembly,
association, and speech; and supporting an orderly transition to a government that is
responsive to the aspirations of the Egyptian people," the statement said.

Obama spoke on Sunday with British Prime Minister David Cameron, whose office
issued more details about their conversation.

"The prime minister and president Obama were united in their view that Egypt now
needed a comprehensive process of political reform, with an orderly, Egyptian-led
transition leading to a government that responded to the grievances of the Egyptian
people and to their aspirations for a democratic future," a statement said.

The Obama administration has taken flak from critics who accuse it of being more
concerned about protecting a key regional security ally than in supporting an oppressed
people's pleas for democracy.

Clinton betrayed US concern that Islamists might fill the power vacuum when she told
journalists on board a plane for Haiti that Washington did not want to see a new regime
that would "foment violence or chaos" in the region.

Egypt has been a cornerstone of Arab-Israeli peace and a fulcrum of US Middle East
policy for decades, and Mubarak has been a steadfast partner in Washington's global
anti-terror campaign and efforts to contain Iran.

"We want to recognize: Egypt has been our partner," Clinton told Fox News Sunday.
"They've been our partner in a peace process that has kept the region from war for over
30 years, which has saved a lot of lives."

ElBaradei, the Nobel Peace Prize-winning former head of the UN's nuclear watchdog,
who told a sea of protesters in Cairo on Sunday that a new era was beginning, hit out at
the United States for continuing to sit on the fence.
"The American government cannot ask the Egyptian people to believe that a dictator
who has been in power for 30 years will be the one to implement democracy," he told
CBS from Cairo.

"You are losing credibility by the day. On one hand you're talking about democracy,
rule of law and human rights, and on the other hand you're lending still your support
to a dictator that continues to oppress his people."

The United States, like a raft of other countries, has authorized the departure of
embassy families and advised its nationals to avoid travel to Egypt.

With fears of insecurity rising and a death toll of at least 125, thousands of convicts
broke out of prisons across Egypt overnight, fueling the country's state of lawlessness.
--------------------
U.S to train Algerian army anti-terrorism units, watches Somalia (Suna Times)

According to Algeria's Al-Watan newspaper, David R. Hogg, commander of

AFRICOM's land forces, acknowledged Algeria had a "leadership role" in the fight
against terrorism in the Sahel region, as his body launched an anti terrorism training for
the Algerian army.

Units from the National People's Army (ANP) that specialize in particular in the fight
against terrorism will benefit from a training programme that will be provided, in this
year, by the experts from AFRICOM's (the US army's command for Africa) land forces
command's experts.

The latter will be spread out across several months and will deal, among other things,
with homemade explosives and long-range reconnaissance. The programme in question
has also scheduled a visit by Algerian soldiers to the United States and to Vicenza, in
Italy, where the headquarters of AFRICOM's land forces command is located. The
announcement was made yesterday by Major-General David R. Hogg, the commander
of AFRICOM's land forces, during a press conference held on the sidelines of his very
first visit to Algiers.

No Foreign Interference

The American military official further indicated that in 2013 the ANP will take part in
manoeuvres in the Mediterranean as well as exercises focused on managing natural
disasters.

On the topic of his two-day "mission" in Algiers, Major-General David R. Hogg - who
has just been recently appointed to head up AFRICOM's land forces command (it was
only five months ago that he joined AFRICOM) - indicated that he had come to
"strengthen the excellent cooperation between Algeria and the United States in the
military and security area."

His visit, he added, was an opportunity for him to "reaffirm the support of the United
States for the efforts made by Algeria in the fight against terrorism."

Maj-Gen Hogg met with Kamel Rezzag-Bara, the adviser to the president of the
republic, on issues of terrorism; with the commander of land forces, Maj-Gen Ahcene
Tafer; and also with the secretary-general of the [National] Defence Ministry [MND],
Maj-Gen Ahmed Senhadji.

The American official, who was willing to engage in questions and answers with the
press, not without having added beforehand, with a note of humour, that he would not
answer "any question related to WikiLeaks," insisted nevertheless on categorically
denying the news report according to which the CIA (the American intelligence agency)
had established a base in Algeria several years ago.

Benchmark In Afghanistan

To the recurrent question of knowing whether American officials have decided to move
to Africa the headquarters of AFRICOM's general headquarters, which is in Germany,
the speaker also responded in the negative. But in all his answers, Maj-Gen David R.
Hogg insisted in particular on the notion that AFRICOM's mission was not to intervene
in a theatre of operations but rather to develop partnerships and training programmes
with the countries of the continent.

The speaker further added that "there could not be any unilateral American
intervention." In plain language, that means that the United States cannot intervene on
the continent without a request coming from the countries.

On the subject of the issue about terrorism in the Sahel, AFRICOM's commander of land
forces explained that this involved "a regional problem" while at the same time
acknowledging Algeria had a "leadership role" in the fight against terrorism in the
region.

The American position on the issue should certainly reassure the Algerian authorities,
who remain opposed to any form of foreign interference in the region. "The situation in
the Sahel is a regional matter and Algeria is playing a leadership role in the fight against
the terrorism in that region. We are impressed by the progress that has been achieved in
this area," he stated, before emphasizing that "of course, work still remains to be done."

Regarding the continent, Maj-Gen Hogg showed he was worried about the situations
prevailing in Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and Cote d'Ivoire. Before assuming his position
as AFRICOM's commander of land forces, Maj-Gen David R. Hogg, readers are
reminded, was the deputy commander of the combined command for the transition of
the security agencies in Afghanistan (Operation Enduring Freedom). In particular his
visit to Algiers was preceded, in November 2009, by that of AFRICOM's commander-in-
chief, General William E. Ward.
--------------------
It's official: South Sudan set to secede with a 99.57 percent vote (Christian Science
Monitor)

South Sudan's long-awaited independence referendum produced an overwhelming

turnout of 99 percent among voters in the south, one of the poorest and least developed
regions on earth.

Cheers and spontaneous dancing broke out as the first official announcement of results
from South Sudan’s independence vote was made in the oil-rich region’s capital by
members of commission that organized the referendum held earlier this month.

"The vote for separation was 99.57 percent," said Justice Chan Reec Madut, head of the
southern bureau of the Referendum Commission, after reading the vote tallies for
“unity” and “secession” for each of the south’s 10 states. Mr. Madut was referring to the
results for the south, while Mohamed Ibrahim Khalil, the head of the Commission,
announced the results from polling in northern Sudan and in eight countries that held
voting for South Sudan’s far-flung diaspora population.

Six of the ten southern states registered a 99.9 percent vote for separation, with the
lowest vote in favor of secession came in at 95.5 percent in Western Bahr al-Ghazal
state, which borders Darfur. The long-awaited referendum produced an overwhelming
turnout of 99 percent among voters in the south, one of the poorest and least developed
regions on earth.

In northern Sudan, voter turnout was only 60 percent, and a modest 58 percent of voters
– southerners who live in the north – were in favor of the oil-rich south breaking away.
Many southerners opted to leave their lives and work in the north to move home ahead
of the referendum, and the United Nations says it expects another 100,000 southerners
to make the north-south journey within the next month. More than 190,000 southerners
have flooded back into the south since early October, though the most recent arrivals
were not able to participate in the referendum, since they had not registered to vote in
either the north or the south.

Diaspora voters
In the eight countries, including the United States and Egypt, where southerners cast
votes, 99 percent chose independence for their homeland. In the US, 99 percent of the
5,800 voters voted for secession, at polling stations set up in Boston, Seattle, Omaha, and
Washington, among other locations.
Before announcing the numbers for the ten southern states, Madut said that his fellow
southerners “consider self-determination the centerpiece” of the 2005 peace deal that
ended more than two decades of north-south war.

Mr. Khalil, a 90-year old northern Sudanese lawyer, had a noticeably somber tone has
he announced the results, particularly in comparison to Madut, a southerner who is the
deputy chief justice of the south’s Supreme Court. In his remarks, Khalil focused on the
future relations between north and south.
--------------------
USAID Sees Huge Development Challenges for South Sudan, Pledges Continued
Aid (Devex Newswire)

After a referendum held earlier this month indicated wide support for its secession,
South Sudan will face “enormous” development challenges and “high expectations,”
according to the U.S. Agency for International Development’s top official in Sudan.

The potential 54th African state will need to address huge gaps in maternal health,
education, health care, water and sanitation, infrastructure and livelihoods, according
to Bill Hammink. South Sudan will also need to prepare for the possible influx of
returnees from the north as well as improve its capacity to manage oil revenues and the
rest of its economy.

South Sudan has “made important strides” in terms of the number of roads, people
with access to clean water and children receiving primary education, Hammink told
AllAfrica in a recent interview. But the region is “such a large area that it’s small
compared to the overall needs,” he added.

USAID, he said, will continue to focus its efforts in helping South Sudan improve
governance, health care, education, water and sanitation services, conflict management,
and agriculture.

“We will improve our coordination, working under a development plan that the
government of southern Sudan is now putting together, and working under sector
strategies which will allow much better harmonization and alignment of donor
resources,” Hammink said.
--------------------
Tepid response on Tunisia costs U.S. goodwill (Philadelphia Inquirer)

The coup, indeed, was bloodless, a marvel to behold in our modern age of violence. It
was easy evicting a sick, old revolutionary in a declining mental state, in the Arab
world, no less.

But, the mild-tempered Tunisians did it, accepting the surprise, quiet action. I was
impressed - the world was impressed - by the events. A young, albeit untested, military
man, Gen. Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, had made deposing President Habib Bourguiba
appear a mere act of mercy, the transporting of an old, infirm relative to a nursing
home. Tunisians accepted the change with resignation, fully aware that Bourguiba was
losing it.

The November 1987 coup was my first visit to Tunisia as Madrid bureau chief for the
New York Times. The territory included Spain, Portugal, and all of North Africa, the
most volatile part of the beat, by far. Tunisia is the smallest country in North Africa; on
a map showing the internal body, it would be the appendix compared with other large,
major organs.

Tunisians' ho-hum attitude toward the coup was reinforced by the rhetoric of Ben Ali,
who aided his cause by making all the right moves. He said the media were free to
criticize the government. He promised to make the constitution more democratic, for
example, ridding it of the title "president for life" assumed by Bourguiba, and to open
elections to opposition parties. He freed Islamic fundamentalists from jail and allowed
others to return from exile (as is occurring now, again). He allowed the theological
school at the University of Tunisia to reclaim its old name, Zitouna. Held under house
arrest, Bourguiba's son, who was later released, met with and became a supporter of
Ben Ali.

In other words, Ben Ali called for sweeping changes that led Tunisians to believe he
was a different kind of leader, a dash of democratic hope, fresh political air in a region
of despots, dictators, and kings who, to put it mildly, shunned such notions as
democracy. It was all a lie. He turned out to be no different from other dictators, maybe
worse than some as he unabashedly divvied up state resources among his family and
friends.

Which meant, similarly to all other leaders in the region, Ben Ali ignored the real
problem that was evident at the time of his takeover and that continued to expand and
deepen with time: the youthful majority population that was smart, ambitious,
educated, and anxious, but above all, restive and restless because they had no jobs and
no futures.

I was shocked by the numbers of young people whose aspirations far exceeded the
possibilities. I talked to them in their homes, at coffee shops and restaurants, and on the
streets, from Laayoune in the western Sahara and Casablanca in Morocco to Algiers and
Tunis, and their situations were the same. I could only smile when young men trying to
overthrow the government in Algeria told me they were in such dire straits that they
had degrees but still lived at home and could not have proper dates with girls because
they had neither the money nor any place to take them. The rioting in Algeria left
hundreds dead.
There were pockets of plenty, or appearances of plenty. The ritzy suburb of Corniche,
outside Casablanca, and the homes in the hills above Algiers and some neighborhoods
of Tunis can leave the impression of widespread luxury. Many of the youngsters I
interviewed resembled typical American youths, in their rip-off of American designers,
jeans, sweaters, sneakers, fostering a misimpression that maybe those kids were doing
OK. But the North Africans were much poorer than their American counterparts.

The misimpressions went beyond dress. The anti-American sentiment, I found, was
directed at American government policies that always favored repressive North African
regimes. I was told many times - truly, I did not have to be reminded - that people
sporting Western dress, gulping down American food, and loving American culture did
not hate American people and culture, but did hate administrations that overlooked
their plight and supported their despotic governments.

Even today, not only are Tunisians perplexed by the U.S. government's mild response
to this month's overthrow of the 74-year-old Ben Ali, but many Americans are also
concerned. Many regard our government's reaction to events in North Africa as token
bows to democratic principles, mostly rhetoric. Ben Ali might have been a despot and
suppressed his people (as is the case around the world), but he was our despot. And
when despots and kings, or whoever, claim they're with us on terrorism, welcome to
the club, boys.

Where to now? Another Ben Ali? No one knows at this point. Certainly not the
"experts" who are usually wrong in their analyses of North African events. Is Tunisia
the start of something big and transformative? The revolt has had an impact on
surrounding nations as well as afar, as a few people have emulated the self-immolation
that ignited Tunisia, and some have taken to the streets in various Arab states. But
nothing on the scale of Tunisia's uprising.

And where is our government as democracy is banging on the door in an unexpected

place? I, for one, am not an optimist.
--------------------
Thousands greet Islamist leader's return from exile to Tunisia (The Independent)

The leader of Tunisia's largest Islamist movement returned from exile in Britain
yesterday to be greeted by thousands of supporters celebrating the arrival of the "lost
leader".

Rached Ghannouchi raised his arms in triumph and cried out "Allahhu Akbar" as he
walked off the flight from Gatwick at Carthage airport as the crowd sang religious
songs and presented him with flowers and the Koran.

Mr Ghannouchi, who had been sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment for alleged
terrorist offences, had been away from his country for 23 years. He had said in Britain
that he was waiting for the right time to go home after the overthrow of President Zine
el-Abedine Ben Ali on 14 January.

Now, with protests surging across the Middle East and the near-collapse of Egypt, his
colleagues say he felt the moment had arrived when real change could be obtained.

"When I return home today, I am returning to the Arab world as a whole," said Mr
Ghannouchi as he set off on his flight. After arriving in Tunis, the 69-year-old former
teacher insisted that he had no plans to run for the presidency, and would instead help
to "anchor a democratic system, social justice and to put a limit to discrimination
against banned groups. We are taking part so we can move from a one-party system to
a true multi-party system without corruption or oppression."

Mr Ghannouchi's followers formed an escort around him after expressing fear that the
police might try to arrest him. However, the state security apparatus has steadily
unravelled since the fall of the regime of Mr Ben Ali and there was no attempt to stop
Mr Ghannouchi by the handful of uniformed staff on duty.

A smaller group of men and women held up banners reading: "No Islamism, no
theocracy, no sharia and no stupidity." Members of Mr Ghannouchi's party, Ennahda,
claimed that the counter-demonstrators had been duped by the "Godless Ben Ali" and
started their own chant of "No to extremism, yes to moderate Islam!" and "No fear of
Islam!"

Since independence from France, governments in Tunisia had followed a broadly

secular path with periodic crackdowns on what they perceived as Muslim extremism.
Mr Ghannouchi, who studied in Cairo and Damascus, returned to his country towards
the end of the 1960s and said that he was perturbed by the strength of the secularist
movement and the extent of female emancipation.

He was accused of making inflammatory speeches and served six years in prison
during the rule of Habib Bourgiba, before being freed in an amnesty by his successor,
Mr Ben Ali. However, he soon fell out with the new administration and fled to Algeria
and then the UK in 1989.

Mr Ghannouchi's return means that almost all the key players in the opposition to Mr
Ben Ali are back in Tunisia. Moncef Marzouki, a human rights activist and the founder
of Congress for the Republic, returned from Paris two weeks ago, and other exiles have
followed.

But what will happen next remains unclear. Leaders of leftist factions such as Najib
Chebbi, Mustafa ben Jaafar and Ahmed Ibrahim, who had remained in the country
under the regime, have been offered posts in the interim government by the Prime
Minister, Mohammed Ghannouchi. There is no indication that they will be prepared to
form an alliance with Islamist groups in the elections due to be held soon.

Apprehension about Islamism remains in Tunis and other main cities. An attempt by a
group of Saudi-inspired hardline Salaafists to hold a meeting at a Tunis mosque 10 days
ago drew three times as many opponents as adherents.

Despite Mr Ghannouchi's assurance that he does not want to impose sharia law in
Tunisia, many remain sceptical of his motives. In the city centre, Naima Ali, a middle-
aged woman in a veil, said: "Many people were imprisoned because of him, young
people lost their future. No one is happy about his return. He lived the good life in
London while others paid a heavy price."

Ibrahim ben Jasim, a doctor, said "His kind of extremist should stay in London, where I
have seen a lot of people like him. It does not belong in the Tunisia we are trying to
build."
--------------------
AU says African force to have naval component (Xinhua)

ADDIS ABABA - The African Union (AU) envisions to install a naval component into
the African Force in order to fight the rampant pirates along the coastline of the
continent, M. Ramtane Lamamra, AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, announced
here on Sunday.

"We intend to give the African Force a naval component in order that the territorial seas
are protected, as well as the exclusive economic zone," M. Lamamra told the press on
the first day of the 16th AU summit.

Apart from the fight against pirates, the naval component will also tackle the problems
of illegal fishing and play a role of "environmental police" against the dumping of
trashes into the seas along the African continent, by ships "usually from developed
countries", he added.

As to the pirates attacks in the Somali seas, the commissioner reiterated that actions
must be taken to deal with the roots of the phenomenon, which lie in the Somali land.

"It concerns the end of conflict, the restoration of State, the democracy and the
development. In this regard, the AU is ready to strengthen its cooperation with the
international community," he said.

A mission of 8, 000 troops (AMISOM) has been dispatched into Somalia to help the
country to get out of about 20 years of sociopolitical chaos. The troops are also
responsible for the maritime navigation control along the Somali coast.
As to the African force, the AU has decided to form the force with five pre-positioned
brigades in each of the sub-region. In October 2005, Douala, the port in Cameroun, has
been chosen as the logistic center of the force.
--------------------
Eq. Guinea's Obiang named new AU chairman (AFP)

ADDIS ABABA – Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema was Sunday
appointed the African Union's new chairman at a summit at the bloc's headquarters in
Addis Ababa.

"May I take this opportunity to congratulate the new members of the (AU) bureau and
in particular his excellency Mr Teodoro Obiang Nguema," the body's outgoing
chairman, Malawian President Bing wa Mutharika, said before leaving his chair to
Nguema.

Observers have criticised Nguema's AU presidency, citing his poor human rights record
at home which they say stands at odds with the democracy aspirations of the 53-
member pan-African bloc.

Nguema took power in a 1979 coup and has ruled his central African country with an
iron fist.

"It is the first time in the history of the AU that a Spanish-speaking country takes the
presidency of the union," said Nguema in his acceptance speech.

"We accept this huge responsibility with humility and as a challenge. We will work to
increase the economic development, unity and peace in the continent.

"The concept of democracy, human rights and good governance are not new to Africa,
but they should be adapted to the African culture," said Nguema.

The African Union's presidency rotates among heads of state and government for a
term of one year and alternates between the continent's five sub-regions.

The candidature of a given country must be approved by the other nations in its region.
The other AU members simply sign off on the region's decision.

The holder of the post does not however have much sway on the bloc's policies, with
the most important decisions made by heads of state and government of its member
nations.
--------------------
African Union concerned over protests (Financial Times)
As Tunis smouldered and Cairo burnt, the spectre of contagion haunted a summit of
the 53-member African Union which began on Sunday in Addis Ababa, and lent an air
of urgency to efforts to resolve political upheavals south of the Sahara.

Colonel Muammer Gaddafi, the Libyan leader who habitually uses the annual summit
in the Ethiopian capital to harangue African leaders on the need for a pan-African state,
cancelled his attendance due to events in Egypt, diplomats said. Abdelaziz Bouteflika,
Algeria’s president and another stalwart of the organisation was also absent.

On Sunday, as protesters took over central Cairo on the sixth day of a popular uprising
against Hosni Mubarak’s regime, student demonstrations broke out in Sudan, whipped
up over the internet and mimicking – on a much smaller scale – those in neighbouring
Egypt. Police surrounded universities in Khartoum and Omdurman and used teargas
and batons to suppress anger against president Omar al-Bashir’s 21 year old regime.

Further south, several thousand demonstrators took to the streets of Libreville, capital
of the oil rich state of Gabon, in support of an opposition candidate who last week
proclaimed himself president before rushing for refuge in a UN office.

Asked if the winds of change blowing from Tunis to Cairo might head south where –
with a few exceptions – there has been a steady recent reversal in democratic gains, Ali
Bongo, Gabon’s president, told the FT with a smile: “I don’t want to get into
predictions. I am not very good at that game.”

While most sub-Saharan African countries are freer than the Arab states, they also share
some of the social tensions, political frustrations and high levels of unemployment that
have proved so explosive in the north.

There was a sense in the meetings that shortcomings in the political evolution of many
states across the continent risk undermining the strong economic recovery as
commodity prices boom and investment flows.

Dominating the proceedings was the crisis in Ivory Coast, where Laurent Gbagbo’s
refusal to concede defeat in the November elections has brought the world’s leading
producer of cocoa back to the brink of war.

The crisis has become emblematic of the need for more effective continental diplomacy
to push the governance agenda, with Mr Gbagbo’s efforts to hang on to power
threatening to set a dangerous precedent in a year when as many as 17 countries are
due to hold elections.

Until recently, African countries seemed resolute in supporting opposition leader

Alassane Ouattara’s victory, which was certified by the UN. But South Africa and
Nigeria, two diplomatic heavyweights, have appeared increasingly at odds as to the
way out of the impasse, with West Africa taking a much stronger line against Mr
Gbagbo.

The summit decided to name a panel of five African leaders to review the causes of the
crisis and find a legally binding settlement to break the deadlock within a month. Jean
Ping, the AU chairman, said military force, which West African countries led by Nigeria
have threatened, would be a “last resort”.
--------------------
Protesters Call for Ouster of Sudanese President (Wall Street Journal)

Student protesters in Khartoum clashed with police on Sunday and called for the ouster
of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, in a movement organizers said was inspired by
the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.

A succession of rallies and demonstrations, in Egypt, Jordan, Yemen and Algeria have
been inspired directly by the popular outpouring of anger that toppled Tunisian
President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali. See how these uprising progressed.

Communicating via the social networking site Facebook, organizers called for a street
demonstration on Jan. 30 to protest Sudan's poor economic climate and political
oppression. The date was chosen to coincide with the announcement of preliminary
results for the south's referendum on whether to secede from the north. Over 99% of
voters chose secession, according to those results, in line with overwhelming support
for independence in southern Sudan.

A handful of demonstrations sprang up at various locations in Khartoum, including

three of the main universities, and around the country. In Khartoum participants
reported via twitter that police had attempted to disperse the crowd with teargas and
tasers. Images posted by a Sudanese website showed police clad in riot gear apparently
hitting people with long batons.

Southern Sudanese celebrated the announcement of preliminary referendum results in

the city of Juba.
Ahmed Musa, a police officer in Khartoum, said that students started protesting on
campuses and attempted to move to the streets, but that police had stopped them. "The
stubborn students wanted to start chaos," Mr. Musa said. "They sung songs praising
protests in Tunisia and Egypt… They threw stones at the police, but we controlled
them." Mr. Musa estimated about 120 students were involved in the protest and five
had been arrested.

Samira Hassan, a political activist who participated in the protests, said that about 500
people, who included students and other civilians, gathered on a main street in
Khartoum. Ms. Hassan said police beat them and arrested about 100 from the crowd.
"The police and security forces hit me and broke my hand, and others were badly
beaten--they were beating people viciously," she said, adding that one hospital that is
affiliated with the police had refused to treat her because she had been involved in the
protests.

At one of the universities, Omdurman Ahlia University, Ms. Hassan said that students
had been beaten for protesting. A professor at the university, who declined to give his
name for fear of reprisals said that a group of armed students affiliated with Mr.
Bashir's ruling party roamed the campus to keep students inside the school and away
from the protests. "They were chasing other students and carrying knives, iron rods and
other weapons of intimidation," the professor said. "The university security could not
stop it … because they know these organizations are backed by the government."

The professor said the university would be closed for two weeks.

By Sunday, a Facebook page that called for the demonstrations -- and features an image
of an angry, hooded protester -- had gained more than 16,000 followers.

A translation of the page, which is written in Arabic, said the protesters wanted to
oppose "the high cost of living, corruption, nepotism, unemployment and all practices
of the ruling power." It added: "It is about time we show what we're really made of, it is
about time we restore or lost honor, it is about time we fight for our god given rights.
Our brothers in Tunisia did it and so did our brothers in Egypt. It is about time for us."

A military strongman who has ruled Sudan since 1989, Mr. Bashir has shown before
he's not afraid to crush dissent.

Until a peace deal was signed in 2005, Mr. Bashir's government fought the south in a
civil war. In 2003, government-backed militias burned villages, raped and massacred
civilians in the western Darfur region after rebels from that area demanded more
resources and representation in government.

Mr. Bashir is now wanted by the International Criminal Court in The Hague for war
crimes and crimes against humanity for his alleged role in ordering massacres of
civilians in Darfur. The U.S. has imposed sanctions on his regime for sponsoring
terrorism, although it has agreed to consider removing Sudan from its list of state-
sponsors of terrorism now that a peaceful referendum has occurred.

The demonstrations on Sunday followed protests earlier this month elsewhere in

northern Sudan after the government slashed subsidies on fuel and curbed imports as it
braced for a reduction in its oil revenue after southern Sudan secedes. Police quickly
scattered those protesters and arrested a handful of those involved.
Protest organizers for Sunday's event said in a statement that they weren't affiliated
with opposition parties, whom they said had failed to offer a credible response to Mr.
Bashir. "We would like to be clear that this is a call for removal of this government," it
said.
--------------------
UN News Service Africa Briefs
Full Articles on UN Website

Ban voices UN readiness to help Tunisia hold credible elections

30 January – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today called for support for the
establishment of an inclusive interim government in Tunisia, telling the summit of the
African Union that the United Nations is willing to help the North African country hold
credible elections.

Côte d'Ivoire: UN and African blocs must remain united to ensure respect of poll results
– Ban
29 January – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today outlined the principles he said
should guide efforts to resolve the political crisis in Côte d''Ivoire, including the
demand that outgoing president Laurent Gbagbo step down to allow the formation of a
national unity government by president-elect, Alassane Ouattara.

Ban reiterates concern over Côte d''Ivoire crisis at meeting with West African officials
29 January – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today in Addis Ababa met with a
delegation of the Economic Commission of West African States (ECOWAS) and
underlined his deep concern over the continuing post-election crisis in Côte d''Ivoire
and the deadlock''s impact on security and development prospects for the country.

Darfur: UN-AU mediator welcomes movements'' commitment to Doha peace process

29 January – The African Union-United Nations chief mediator for Darfur today
welcomed a joint statement by the main armed movements in the western Sudanese
region in which they, for the first time, expressed their commitment to the internally-
facilitated peace talks hosted by the Government of Qatar.

DR Congo: UN reports more alleged rapes over past month

28 January – United Nations officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
today reported another 53 alleged cases of rape in the conflict-rife eastern part of the
country, bringing to 120 those reported since the beginning of the year and attributed to
all sides, including the national army.