tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6255818917268824742.post6545616249411406311..comments2023-07-20T08:26:54.684-05:00Comments on Somalia: A Somali Jihadist: "We're Not Al-Qaeda"Frank Criglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16056449269346295798noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6255818917268824742.post-12701279179335507762007-01-15T18:27:00.000-05:002007-01-15T18:27:00.000-05:00As an American profoundly concerned about the curr...As an American profoundly concerned about the current direction of American foreign policy, the subject interview with a member of the Shabab militia, coupled with the recent revelation of at least one American airstrike on supposed "al-Qaida suspects", using the deadly A/C-130 gunship weapons system, raises many profoundly disturbing questions. What follows is a sampling of the questions that come to mind:<br /><br />1.) What is the true aim of American foreign policy on the horn of Africa?<br /><br />2.) Why has the United States, which professes to be advocating the spread of democracy, allied itself with the repressive Meles Zenawi regime in Addas Ababa, in respect of the latter's intervening militarily in Somalia?<br /><br />3.) How reliable is the putative intellegence that supposedly informs American actions in the horn of Africa?<br /><br />4.) What authorization from the Congress has been sought by the Bush Administration to conduct military operations in Somalia under the American flag or otherwise?<br /><br />5.) What consultation with or advisement to the Congress has been provided by the Bush Administration as regards U.S. military operations in Somalia?<br /><br />6.) What is the putative evidence underlying the branding of the Union of Islamic Courts as "al-Qaida"?<br /><br />7.) What sums have been expended by the United States on "counterinsurgency" operations in Somalia, and what groups have been the recipeints of such covert largesse? <br /><br />8.) Has the United States been co-opted by Somali warlords who have merely, as it were, re-branded themselves as anti-terrorist?<br /><br />9.) What consideration, if any, has been given by U.S. policymakers to the long term implications of American intervention in Somalia?<br /><br />10.) Given that Ethiopia is, officially, a Christian nation (although it has a large Muslim minority), what thought, if any, has been given by U.S. policymakers to the implications of U.S. support of Ethiopia's invasion of Muslim Somalia?<br /><br /> There can be no gainsaying that the American people are entitled to answers to all of the foregoing questions? If, dare I say when, such questions are answered, it is quite likely that the answers will prompt further questions. I hope and pray that our Congress will raise all of these questions, and more, in the context of exercising its Constitutional prerogative of legislative oversight of the Executive Branch.<br /><br />Joseph Peter DrennanUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08609411031105249884noreply@blogger.com