Somalia: Calm Returns to Parts in Southern Town After Fighting

Source: allAfrica/ Shabelle Media Network

Photo AP

The situation returns to wobbly calm in the town of Garbaharey, the regional capital of Gedo region after heavy battle between Somalia government forces and Al shabaab fighters.

Yhe fighting on Saturday night erupted after Al shabaab fighters launched artillery attacks on Somali forces based centers just outside of Garbaharey.

Somali troops reportedly responded with heavy artillery bombardments against their attacking enemies.

Residents said Sunday morning that calm returned to the town completely, but fighting is predictable anytime.

No comments bout the fighting and repercussions were immediately available from Somali government and Al shabaab so far.

Military officers from 14 African countries end training in Senegal

Source: Africa Review

UN military observers on patrol. Twenty-eight military officers from 14 African countries have completed a training designed for future commanders on the continent. FILE|AFRICA REVIEW |

Twenty-eight military officers from 14 African countries have completed a training designed for future commanders on the continent.
The training was held at the School of Infantry Application in Thies, located about 70 kilometres from Senegal’s capital Dakar.
Over the past two decades, the school has trained several soldiers from Senegal and elsewhere in Africa on peacekeeping techniques.

Organisers said one of the important modules of the latest training was based on “superior-subordinate relationship”.

The trainers underscored the need for more moral and ethical lessons for the present generation of military officers who were holding superior ranks at very early age.

The month-long training was presided over by General Abdoulaye Fall, Senegal’s Army Chief of Staff.

Several stakeholders including the United Nation and the European Union sponsored the training which was also initiated by the African Union.

By TAMBA JEAN-MATHEW

Un raid mauritanien contre Aqmi au Mali fait 17 morts

Source: Express/ AFP

Carte délimitant le Sahel et situant le sanctuaire et la zone d’activité directe d’Al Qaïda dans la région

afp.com

L’opération a eu lieu contre un campement d’Aqmi à l’ouest du Mali, dans le secteur de la forêt du Wagadou.

Une opération militaire lancée vendredi par la Mauritanie contre Al-Qaïda au Maghreb islamique (Aqmi) au Mali a fait 15 morts dans les rangs des islamistes, et deux militaires mauritaniens selon les services de sécurité à Nouakchott et Bamako. Le nombre d’hommes engagés dans cette opération contre un campement d’Aqmi à l’ouest du Mali, dans le secteur de la forêt du Wagadou, n’est pas connu et, d’une manière générale, l’armée mauritanienne communique très peu.

Au moins trois soldats mauritaniens blessés ont été ramenés samedi du front à Nouakchott où il ont été admis dans un hôpital militaire, selon des sources de l’armée mauritanienne. La presse mauritanienne a parlé dimanche de deux militaires tués et de deux autres blessés lorsque leur voiture a sauté vendredi soir sur une mine à l’entrée de la forêt du Wagadou.

L’armée malienne a de son côté arrêté dans la nuit de samedi à dimanche neuf membres d’Aqmi près de la forêt de Wagadou. L’offensive mauritanienne a été lancée quatre jours après le début d’opérations menées conjointement avec l’armée malienne le long de leur immense frontière commune. Les soldats maliens n’y ont pas participé.

Le Mali et la Mauritanie sont parmi les pays les plus touchés par les activités d’Aqmi, avec le Niger et l’Algérie où cette organisation a ses racines. Elle possède des bases dans le nord du territoire malien d’où elle organise dans le Sahel des attentats et des enlèvements – essentiellement d’Occidentaux – ainsi que divers trafics. Aqmi retient depuis la mi-septembre 2010 quatre Français enlevés à Arlit, dans le nord du Niger, ainsi qu’une Italienne enlevée le 2 février dans le sud de l’Algérie.

Face à cette situation, la Mauritanie avait déjà mené à partir de juillet 2010 et pendant plusieurs mois, avec le feu vert de Bamako, des opérations militaires contre des bases d’Aqmi. Selon le président mauritanien Mohamed Oul Abdel Aziz, le retrait de son armée du Mali avait été aussitôt suivi par l’implantation de nouvelles unités d’Aqmi près de la frontière.

Source d’inquiétude pour lui, comme pour tous les chefs d’Etat de la région, l’arrivée massive d’armes venant de la Libye en guerre, « en quantité et en qualité » selon M. Ould Abdel Aziz. Ainsi, le 12 juin, l’armée nigérienne a saisi 640 kg d’explosif, dont du Semtex tchèque, et 435 détonateurs, en provenance de Libye, selon des sources militaires.

US proposes UN force for Sudan’s Abyei

Source: AlJazeera

The violence in Abyei comes as south Sudan prepares to declare independence from the north on July 9 [AFP]

The United States has introduced a UN resolution that would deploy a 4,200-strong Ethiopian peacekeeping force to Sudan’s disputed Abyei region, the scene of heavy fighting in recent weeks.

Susan Rice, US ambassador to the UN, said the resolution will support an agreement signed on Monday by the Khartoum-based government in the north, and the government of south Sudan, to demilitarise the contested border region.

Rice told reporters that the two parties requested the troops to be deployed under UN auspices and called for swift adoption of the resolution by the Security Council so they can get on the ground in Abyei immediately.

« Ultimately, it’s obviously up for the Security Council to decide the strength and the mandate of any UN mission, » she said.

« But the United States, in tabling this draft, has sought to remain faithful to the agreement reached by the parties, which we understand was hard won and inherently fragile. »

She declined to predict how long it would take to adopt the resolution and said that it would not happen overnight.

The violence in Abyei and neighbouring south Kordofan comes as south Sudan prepares to declare independence from the north on July 9, the culmination of a 2005 peace deal that ended more than two decades of civil war that killed about two million people.

The north’s invasion of the Abyei region and takeover of the town of Abyei was triggered by an attack on May 19 on northern and UN troops by southern soldiers.

John Temin, of the United States Institute of Peace, spoke to Al Jazeera about the draft resolution and said: « It is important to be very clear that this is a temporary agreement that was reached. »

« The fundamental question of whether Abyei is part of north or south remains unresolved and we are no where closer to resolving that question as a result of this agreement. »

What this agreement does is remove some of the northern troops who moved into Abyei several week ago and put in Ethiopan troops to try and calm the situation, Temin said.

Abyei tensions

While south Sudan’s independence is expected to take place on schedule, crucial issues remain unresolved.

The areas of debate include: the future of Abyei, which is supposed to be decided in a referendum; the north-south border demarcation; how oil revenues and other resources will be shared; and citizenship.

Rice told reporters that the purpose of the interim security agreement for Abyei is to allow the withdrawal of Sudanese forces not to settle the future of the region.

Violence began in south Kordofan earlier this month when Sudan’s military attacked a black community aligned with Sudan’s south.

The UN says that about 10,000 people have fled the region to escape the violence.

KENYA DEFENCE FORCES AWARDED FOR EXEMPLARY ENVIRONMENTAL UPGRADING

Source: Ministry of defence Kenya

Chief of the Defence Forces General Jeremiah Kianga receives a three legged stool for his outstanding performance in environmental conservation given to him by Nobel Laureate and Green Belt Movement Chairperson Prof Wangari Maathai during Prof Wangari Maathai Environmental Awards Ceremony held at Karura forest on 22 June 2011.

The Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) was awarded for being one of the best participants in tree planting, environmental upgrading and conservation during the Wangari Maathai Environmental Awards Ceremony held at the Karura Forest Educational Center on 22 June 2011. KDF efforts were recognized through one of its front pillars of the Environmental Soldier Programme.
During the award ceremony, the Chief of the Defence Forces, General Jeremiah Kianga was recognized for his commendable leadership that has steered the Kenya Defence Forces in the tremendous efforts towards the environment conservation.
Also recognized at the ceremony for their efforts were the Vice Chief Of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General Julius Karangi (best example on how to heal our land by replenishing our soils), Corp Commander Transport, Col Philip Wangombe (Best Unit Leader), Moi Air Base (Best Barrack in Environmental Soldier Programme), Kenya Navy Mtongwe (For establishing the largest tree nursery within their Base), Col (Rtd) Bernard Kimani (for creating Environmental Awareness and Education Program) , Private Samuel Murungi (Best Environmental Soldier from Kahawa Garrison).
On acceptance of his award, Gen Kianga said he was indeed honoured for the recognition and commented that without environmental upgrading the soldiers could successfully watch the Kenyan territorial borders from external aggression but lose the country due to internal challenges. He further urged the soldiers to keep on with the spirit until the realization of the Environmental Soldier Programme.
Speaking at the ceremony Nobel Laureate and Green Belt Movement Chairperson Prof Wangari Maathai congratulated the Kenyan Defence Forces for its outstanding and exemplary commitment towards the environment and applauded the continued efforts of the Environmental Soldier Programme.
The Environmental Soldier Programme was launched in 2003 initially as a Kenya Army initiative operating under a limited mandate with most of its activities restricted to the military cantonments but has since gained momentum after partnering with the Green Belt Movement and the Ministry of Environment and Wildlife. Since then the programme has seen the planting of over 7million seedlings across the country.
Also in attendance at the award ceremony were US Ambassador H.E Gen (Rtd) Scot Gration, H.E.Angelina Wapakhabulo, Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Environment and Wildlife Mohamed Wa- Mwachai, Senior Deputy Director of the Kenya Forestry Service Emillio Mugo, National Environmental Management Authority Ayub Macharia, Genereal Officer Commanding Eastern Command Maj General Leonard Ngondi, Assistant Chief of General Staff Maj Gen Francis Nthenge among other Senior military Officers and invited guests.

Belgique: des attaches de defense Africains à la base aérienne de Beauvechain

Source: Ministere de la Defense Belgique

Ce 21 juin 2011, les Attadef ont visité la base de Beauvechain. La journée débuta par la visite du Wing Méteo dont la modernisation technologique fût particulièrement soulignée. Durant la journée, ils bénéficièrent de briefings portant sur le 1 Wing, le Groupe Maintenance et le C C  Air.

La nécessité d’être toujours attentif à limiter les nuisances sonores fût mise en avant par le Chef de Corps du 1W. S’agissant d’une école, l’espace aérien situé au Sud-Est de l’axe de piste est réservé, pour raisons de sécurité, aux seuls Marchetti. L’évolution des A-109 se fait dans la zone Nord-Ouest.

Par ailleurs, une modification importante de la formation n’oblige plus les pilotes à être brevetés « pilote de chasse » avant de rejoindre une unité d’hélicoptères ou de transport. La  spécialisation ayant lieu plus tôt, les coûts de formation diminuent sans que la sécurité aérienne n’en soit affectée.

Après les briefings, les Attadef eurent droit à un static show de quatre A-109 équipés en versions multirôles et de deux Marchetti motorisés différemment.  En fin de journée, ils assistèrent à l’entraînement de la patrouille acrobatique des Red Devils à laquelle ils réservèrent une standing ovation.

Togo: maintien de la paix et de la securite

Source: EMG FAT

DES MODULES DE FORMATION DES FAT VALIDEES.
«La prévention des violences et  le renforcement de la paix et de la sécurité par les Forces Armées », tel est le thème autour duquel s’est tenu les 16 et 17 juin 2011 un atelier de validation des modules de formation des institutions supérieures de formation des Forces  Armées Togolaises (FAT).

Organisé par le Centre Régional des Nations Unies pour la paix et le désarmement en Afrique (UNREC) en partenariat avec l’Etat-Major Général des FAT, cet atelier avait pour objectif de répondre aux recommandations formulées lors des rencontres antérieures organisées par UNREC  au profit des FAT en 2008 à Lomé, 2009 à Témédja et en janvier 2010 à Kara. Au cours des travaux de cet atelier qui a regroupé une trentaine de participants venus de toutes les Armées des FAT dont les experts de l’UNREC, l’examen de deux modules principaux à savoir : «  les missions des forces armées à l’interne » et «  les missions des forces armées à l’externe » était au centre des discussions. Plusieurs sous thèmes précis devant faire l’objet de cours spécifiques dans le cadre du  renforcement du professionnalisme de l’institution de défense au Togo ont été débattus en séances plénières
Les cérémonies d’ouverture et de clôture ont été présidées par le Colonel  ANOUMOU Efoé, chef de la Division des Opérations de l’EMG-FAT en présence des experts  de l’UNREC.
A cette occasion, M. AGOKLA Kossi, chargé du programme de l’UNREC, a loué le partenariat entre son institution et les FAT et félicité les participants pour leur disponibilité qui a permis d’aboutir aux objectifs recherchés.
De leur côté, les bénéficiaires se sont réjouis de cette formation qui leur a donné un plus, surtout en matière des règles et principes qui régissent les engagements dans les opérations de maintien de la paix.

U.S. Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team Trains 41 Members of The Mozambique Military to Remove Mines

Source: Africom

Five Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians from Explosive Ordnance Mobile Unit Eight spent three weeks in Maputo, Mozambique training 41 members from the Mozambique military to safely remove landmines, June 2011.

According to the United Nations, more than 30 years of conflict have left millions of landmines and other explosive munitions manufactured in 15 different countries scattered throughout Mozambique, rendering much of the usable farmland useless and posing a danger to people, live stock, and wildlife.

The de-mining program is designed to empower members of the Mozambican military to remove mines from their lands by training them to the international standard of mine removal. According to EOD training team Officer-In-Charge, Navy Lieutenant Gregory Bobich, international standards include visually scanning an area, clearing the surface of organic growth while probing for possible trip wires, scanning the bare earth with a metal detector, and finally probing the surface soil for metallic contacts that may indicate a mine is present.

The process is slow, methodical and dangerous if not done correctly. « It’s a dangerous job if you aren’t trained properly or get complacent. It’s also time consuming. An area of 100 square yards could take two months to clear, » said Bobich.

The EOD team started the training by assessing their Mozambican students’ level of proficiency at mine removal. « We plan our training based on their ability and aptitude. If they are good, we will push them faster, if they aren’t where we need them to be we will slow the training down, » said Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician Jon Mantle, the team’s Leading Petty Officer. « We tailor the training to the students’ needs. »

In the second week of training the Mozambicans learned to build up the explosive charges that would ultimately defeat the landmine. « We taught them to use electric and non-electric detonators, how to calculate time fuses, how to safely mount the blasting cap to the explosive, how to secure the fuse to ensure proper burn time and how to position the explosive for maximum effectiveness, » said Bobich.

In the third week the students were taught the theoretical use of high penetration explosives like Semtex and C-4 as well as the hands-on use of military grade TNT charges to destroy landmines. They were also trained on how to handle accidents while clearing mines. In one training scenario, a mine detonates and the de-miner falls to the ground. The supervisor gave three quick whistles while the other de-miners set their gear aside and rush to remove him from the mined area and began emergency first aid.
« They did a great job. They got him out of the area safely, assessed his condition, stopped the bleeding and stabilized him, » Petty Officer First Class Todd Burkholder.

This training is one step in the process to train safe and knowledgeable de-miners. « We aren’t certifying them to go out and de-mine a field, we’re giving them a foundation to prepare them for success during future training, » said Bobich.

Mozambique’s Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) / Chargé d’affaires Christine Elder observed the final practical exercise during a visit to the training site. « This training helps with the critical task of de-mining and professional development. My hope is that the Mozambican soldiers will put their newly acquired training into action so the people of Mozambique can use the land impacted by landmines for agriculture and building schools. The training they received will also aid their peacekeeping capacities and demining operations in other African countries. »

The next day, June 23, during a festive graduation ceremony where the students sang native songs and danced, 38 of the 41 students received certificates of completion, showing that they had met the requirements to proceed in their de-mining training.

Students will receive more group training from the Mozambique military, followed by an apprenticeship program with experienced de-miners. After they complete their de-mining apprenticeship they will join active de-mining units in the field and be able to safely remove mines and train apprentices of their own.

One graduate understands the dangerous nature of his job, but sees the promise it provides in the eyes of his fiancé, who he is set to marry in October. « She is worried about me. She knows the job is dangerous, but it’s my job. She is proud because of my work; tomorrow she can dream about a farm, » said Armed Forces for the Defence of Mozambique Private Donaldo Leonardo Munguambe.

By Petty Officer 1st Class Steve Owsley

Marinha de Guerra de Mozambique and the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office Conduct Hydrographic Survey of Maputo Bay.

Source: Africom

MAPUTO, Mozambique – Marinha de Guerra de Mozambique Fuzileiros (similar to a U.S. Marine) Private Armondo Utui checks his weapon after a security brief held on the pier of the Port of Maputo where the survey ship USNS Bruce Heezen (T-AGS-64) pulled in after a 30-day period when its crew hydrographed 5,276 nautical miles of the Bay of Maputooâ€s channel and its approaches, June 20, 2011. The hydrographing mission is a four-month, multi-national venture between the Marinha de Guerra de Mozambique and the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office to complete a survey of the Maputo Bayyâ€s channel. Fuzileiros provided 24-hour security for the Bruce Hezeen for its four-day port visit. (U.S. AFRICOM photo by Petty Officer Steve Owsley)

The U.S. Navy scientific survey ship USNS Bruce Heezen, named after a world-famous American oceanographic surveyor, pulled into the Port of Maputo on June 20, 2011, after a 30-day period in which the crew, in partnership with the Mozambique military, conducted hydrographic surveys of Maputo Bay’s channel and approaches.

The ship and its complement of two Hydrographic Survey Launch boats scanned 5,276 nautical miles of the ocean floor.

The team is conducting what is called a first order survey, which requires that the entire area of the survey be scanned with a multi-beam sonar array, said the ship’s senior Naval Oceanographic Office representative, Kenzie Delaine. The survey data will be shared with the Mozambican government’s Ministry of Transportation and Communication and Ministry of Defense, providing usable, current navigational data to increase safety of navigation, which will benefit commerce, tourism, and future ship visits to Maputo Bay.

Commercial activities in shallow water ports, such as Maputo’s, are made significantly safer and more attractive with more detailed information about depths and safest transit areas, leading to greater trade opportunities, as well as facilitating anti-piracy exercises involving larger ships.

Two Mozambican Navy officers were on the ship during the period at sea, serving as liaisons aboard the survey boats during survey operations, and participating in the data collection and processing on board the HEEZEN.

« They were great team players. They were in the launches everyday, working with the surveyors and the boat crews. Without them approximately 60 percent of our mission wouldn’t happen, » said Ship Master Ryan White.

The Mozambican Navy has also been providing security escorts for the HSLs during the surveys, utilizing two of the twelve 7 meter rigid hull boats recently supplied to them by the U.S. government as part of a U.S. Africa Command maritime security program.

The two embarked officers and their counterparts on the security boats ensured that any vessels in the area maintained a safe distance from the HSL survey vessels during their operation. The Mozambican Navy officers speak both English and Portuguese, helping to communicate orders from the survey launches to the security teams and communicating with other vessels in the area that could have interfered with their surveys.

Mozambican Fuzileiros, similar to U.S. Marines, are also providing physical security on the pier 24 hours a day while the ship is in port.

This is the second 30-day survey mission conducted by the USNS Bruce Heezen and the Mozambican government. Two more are scheduled to take place in the coming months.

On the previous mission, two Mozambican oceanographers from the Ministry of Transportation and Communication were on board the ship and worked side by side with U.S. Naval Oceanographic Service scientists. Future missions will map more of Maputo Bay and will continue to develop the partnership between the U.S. and Mozambican governments.

By Petty Officer Steve Owsley

AFRICOM Partners with Rwanda Peace Academy

Source: Africom

MASANZE, Rwanda – Rwanda Minister of Defense General James Kabarebe (6th from right) poses for a photo with participants of an environmental security workshop, June 21-23, 2011 in Masanze, Rwanda. The conference, hosted jointly by U.S. Africa Command and Rwanda Peace Academy (RPA), included information exchange and capacity building in the area of environmental considerations in military activities. (U.S. AFRICOM photo)

The first joint U.S. Africa Command and Rwanda Peace Academy (RPA) Environmental Security workshop was conducted in Masanze, Rwanda, June 21-23, 2011, with more than 40 participants.

The conference, hosted by U.S. Africa Command and Rwanda Peace Academy was attended by representatives from the Rwanda Defense Forces and several non-military agencies, including National Bureau of Standards (NBS), the Ministries of Health, Refugees and Disaster Preparedness, Musanze City Council, Rwanda Environmental Management Authority (REMA) and Rwanda National Police (Environmental Crime Dept).

The workshop was opened by General James Kabarebe, Rwanda Minister of Defense; Major General E. K. Karake, director of Rwanda Peace Academy; and Art Kolodziejski, AFRICOM environmental security manager.

Key objectives of the workshop included information exchange and capacity building in the area of environmental considerations in military activities, and especially sustainable management of military training ranges, environmental outreach for mission sustainability, waste management and contaminated land and UXO site assessment and cleanup.

The U.S. team of technical experts included Art Kolodziejski , AFRICOM; Jeff Andrews, Joint Multinational Training Command; Clare Mendelsohn, director of the AF Western Regional Environmental Office; Mikell Hager, Army Engineer School; and Captain Tony Johnson of DTRA.

Rwanda Peace Academy is a project of the Rwanda Ministry of Defense to offer education, training, and research programs relevant to peacekeeping and peacebuilding, conflict prevention and post-conflict challenges in Africa. Environmental Security has been identified as one of the core pillars of peacebuilding activities on the African Continent.

The AFRICOM Environmental Security program was recognized by the Rwanda Minister of Defense and RPA as critically important to the mission of the RPA.

Sudan: UN mission urges immediate release of all arrested staff members

Source: UN News Centre

UN helicopters on the ground at Kadugli Airport, Southern Kordofan

The United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) today welcomed the release of two of the six staff members arrested yesterday by the Sudanese Government as they were preparing to relocate from Southern Kordofan and urged that the others be released immediately.

The six were preparing to depart from the airport in Kadugli, the main town in Southern Kordofan, to the Southern Sudanese town of Wau as part of the peacekeeping mission’s relocation of staff due to fighting between the northern army known as the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) of Southern Sudan.

In an earlier statement issued to the press, UNMIS noted that, in accordance with the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) signed by the Sudanese Government and the mission, the Government is obliged to present the head of the mission with evidence prior to taking any legal action against any UNMIS staff member, national or international, including arresting them.

“UNMIS is very concerned about the safety and security of its staff members and requests their immediate release until evidence of any illegal activities is presented by the local authorities to UNMIS,” the mission stated.

It added that the temporary detention and abuse of four peacekeepers last week and yesterday’s arrest of national staff members constitute “clear and disturbing” violations of the SOFA.

“UNMIS calls on the parties to respect the SOFA, and uphold their commitment to protect civilians and ensure the freedom of movement for all UN staff, regardless of their origin, or ethnic and political affiliations,” the statement added.

The violence that began on 5 June in Southern Kordofan has displaced an estimated 73,000 people, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Senior UN officials have repeatedly called for an end to insecurity and movement restrictions, which are continuing to limit the ability of humanitarian personnel to assess the situation and to provide urgently needed assistance to those affected, as well as to the threats to aid workers and peacekeepers in the area.

The latest fighting comes as the semi-autonomous region of Southern Sudan prepares to become an independent State on 9 July, after a referendum held at the start of this year in accordance with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended the long-running north-south civil war.

France-Djibouti: réhabilitation des infrastructures du Centre d’instruction Cheik Moussa

Source: EMA France

Le 15 juin 2011, Son Excellence René Forceville, ambassadeur de France en République de Djibouti et le général de division aérienne Thierry Caspar-Fille-Lambie, commandant les Forces françaises stationnées à Djibouti (FFDj), ont inauguré la fin du chantier de réhabilitation du Centre d’instruction Cheik Moussa, de la gendarmerie.

Pour son dernier chantier en terre djiboutienne, la 13^ème  demi-brigade de la légion étrangère a créé et réhabilité sept pistes ainsi que le réseau d’évacuation des eaux. Ces travaux permettent la mise en place d’un plan de circulation plus adapté aux contraintes de service et de sécurité dans le camp.

Ainsi depuis le 3 mai 2011, 3900 m de pistes ont été réalisés et 1300 m d’anciennes pistes ont bénéficié d’une nouvelle couche de roulement.

Ces réalisations des FFDJ, tout comme les nombreuses actions de coopération militaire menées au travers des détachements d’instruction opérationnelle, permettent de consolider les capacités des forces armées djiboutiennes.

‘Missing’ soldier found dead in his room — a month later

Source: Mail & Guardian online

Lenz military base, outside Johannesburg. (Sapa)

A member of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has died under mysterious circumstances at the Lenz military base, an incident that is likely to bring back the debate about the bad conditions South African soldiers live under and the negligent manner in which the military bases are managed.

Private MM Mkhwanazi’s naked body was found on Wednesday, a month after he went missing. It has not been determined when he died.

The Lenz military base south of Johannesburg was singled out by the Interim Defence Force Service Commission report, together with its sister base, Doornkop, as some of the areas that needed urgent attention by the defence force.

Mkhwanazi, a member of the 21 South African Infantry Battalion, had been mentally ill for « over five years », according to his colleagues, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Members of the battalion were among soldiers who engaged in a protest action in August 2009, an incident that was regarded as an embarrassment to the nation.

‘Negative environment’
It was clear that the troops were « disillusioned, unhappy and demoralised by the negative environment, » said the commissioners at the time.

Sipho Swelinkomo, an official of the South African National Defence Union (Sandu) who was stationed at the Lenz military base until his suspension after the protest in 2009, told the M&G that the union had last year reached an agreement with the ministry of defence and military veterans, as well as the interim commission, that Mkhwanazi should be sent to a hospital or a place of safety.

The decision was not implemented. « We are blaming the commission and the minister, because they didn’t check if their instruction was carried out, » said Swelinkomo.

Mkhwanazi’s colleagues had been advocating for his discharge from the military because he was becoming a danger to himself and his colleagues, they said.

« The management knows about that man’s problem. We told them. We fought so much to get the management to help him and even told the commission when it visited the base, » said the soldier who alerted the M&G to the incident on Wednesday afternoon.

Unknown time of death
The soldier’s body was seen on Friday last week, but because his colleagues thought he was sleeping, Mkhwanazi was only discovered to have died on Wednesday evening. His fellow soldiers were unable to say when he might have died, as he went missing a month before his body, which was already decomposing, was found lying face down. Cellphone pictures of the dead body started circulating on Wednesday afternoon.

Asked why the defence force had not discharged the soldier on medical grounds when it became clear that he was struggling, defence spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini defended the SANDF. « We can’t get rid of people in the defence force because they are mentally ill. It’s as good as saying we should discharge people because they are disabled ».

The defence force was obliged to provide « medical treatment and support » to its ill members, said Dlamini. « The fact that he was seeing a psychologist and he was getting medical treatment says a lot. »

But colleagues at Lenz military base paint a different picture.

« The management just didn’t care. He would get treatment once in a while, » said one colleague who was at the scene when the body was found and had known Mkhwanazi for over a decade. « He would become violent, sometimes, and we told the management he was dangerous. He was very powerful. »

General release
Dlamini had on Thursday promised to provide detailed responses to the M&G but instead released a press statement copied to other media houses « announcing » the death.

« Due to the seriousness of the matter, the SANDF will execute a board of inquiry into circumstances surrounding this incident, thus the name of the deceased will be announced once their next-of-kin have been informed ».

However, the M&G has reliably learnt that the family was notified of the man’s death on Wednesday, and that Mkhwanazi’s father of the deceased had viewed and identified his body.

The South African Police Service and the Military Police had visited the scene and were investigating the matter, according to the statement.

Negligence
On Thursday morning, Dlamini told the M&G that the department was informed about Mkhwanazi’s death on Wednesday night. He described the incident as « negligent ».

« It’s a terrible situation. It’s unbelievable that people treat each other like that. »

The deceased’s colleagues said management has been alerted to disappearance. « Every time we did a roll call, the management asked where Mkhwanazi was and no one knew. I don’t know where they looked for him … if they searched properly they would have found him. »

Another colleague said: « He was in his room in the barracks. It shows he was not checked at all, that’s why he died and no one knew ». Mkhwanazi had a room to himself while other soldiers shared rooms. « He chose to live by himself because he was troubled ».

‘No one cared’
Mkhwanazi worked in Doornkop military base but lived in Lenz because Doornkop did not have accommodation. His colleagues said he was mentally fit when he joined the military in the early 1990s, but became troubled several years ago. « This guy didn’t even wear a uniform; he stayed away from work and no one cared. The management just left him like that, » said the colleague.

Another soldier said: « When we fight and say government doesn’t care about soldiers, people think we don’t want to work. The conditions that we work under are very bad and stressful. »

Sandu’s Swelinkomo said at least one more member of the same military base was still missing.

The interim commission told Parliament early this year that they were horrified by the « appalling conditions » at the Lenz and Doornkop bases.

By Mmanaledi Mataboge

 

 

Witness: Airstrike wounds 3 militants in Somalia

Source: The Associated Press

An airstrike from military aircraft hit a convoy carrying al-Qaida-linked militants near the coast of southern Somalia, witnesses said Friday. A militant leader confirmed that fighters were wounded.

According to a resident in the port town of Kismayo, planes struck a military convey as it drove along the coastline late Thursday. The resident, Mohamed Aden, said he saw three wounded militants in the city.

Sheik Hassan Yaqub, a leader of the Islamic rebel group al-Shabab, confirmed the attack and said two fighters were wounded.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the strike, but U.S. aircraft have attacked militants in Somalia before. A U.S. airstrike killed a senior al-Shabab leader in 2008, while a U.S. commando raid in 2009 killed the militant wanted for the 2002 car bombing of a Kenyan beach resort.

The overnight strike near Kismayo occurred near a militant camp, leading some residents to assume the camp was being attacked.

« We heard bangs of explosions first and again after minutes, more loud blasts, » said Ali Abdinur, a resident, said by phone. « I don’t know what happened but the place was an al-Shabab camp. »

Yaqub, the al-Shabab leader, talked to a militant-run radio station after the attack.

« Two enemy aircraft attacked our mujahedeen fighters at a time they were conducting a security patrol near Kismayo » he told the radio station.

The airstrikes came less than two weeks after a Somali soldier killed al-Qaida’s top leader in Somalia, Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, who was wanted for his role in the 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Mohammed was carrying sophisticated weapons, maps, and correspondence when he was killed, a potential treasure trove of intelligence about militant activity in Somalia.

The U.S. has a military base in the small nation of Djibouti, which lies directly to the north of Somalia. The U.S. Navy also patrols off East Africa as part of the international anti-piracy effort.

Somalia has not had a functioning government for 20 years, the reason militancy and piracy have been able to flourish in the country.

By ABDI GULED

Muhumed contributed from Nairobi, Kenya.

Côte d’Ivoire : affrontements à l’arme lourde entre FRCI et ex-FDS à Abidjan

Source: Jeune Afrique

Photo AFP

De violents combats ont éclaté mercredi dans le quartier de Yopougon à Abidjan entre membres des FRCI et des ex-FDS. Des affrontements qui ont fait un mort, une jeune-fille tuée par une balle perdue. Et qui révèlent l’impuissance des autorités à faire respecter l’ordre dans la capitale économique de Côte d’Ivoire, où les chefs de guerre règnent en maîtres.

Alors que les nouvelles autorités ivoiriennes ont entrepris des actions de sensibilisation en vue du rapprochement entre les Forces républicaines de Côte d’Ivoire (FRCI) favorables au président Alassane Ouattara et les ex-Forces de défense et de sécurité (FDS) réputées pro-Gbagbo, de violents affrontements à l’arme lourde ont éclaté entre des membres de ces deux factions, mercredi dans le quartier de Yopougon au nord d’Abidjan.

Selon des informations recueillies auprès de témoins, des éléments du chef de guerre Ousmane Coulibaly alias « Ben Laden », basés au camp de la brigade anti-émeute (BAE) du sous-quartier des Toits Rouges, ont lancé un assaut punitif contre des gendarmes (ex-FDS) de la caserne située à un jet de pierre du QG des FRCI. « On a replongé dans l’atmosphère des combats de fin avril à Yopougon, les soldats de « Ben Laden » ont fait usage d’armes lourdes comme des roquettes pendant que les gendarmes tentaient de les contenir », témoigne un riverain.

Surveillance aérienne

Vu l’ampleur des combats, l’opération des Nations unies en Côte d’Ivoire (Onuci) a été obligée de déployer sur place des Casques bleus pour s’interposer entre les belligérants. La zone des affrontements était toute l’après-midi sous la surveillance aérienne de la force française Licorne. Selon des sources diplomatiques, ces combats sont consécutifs à une banale altercation qui a dégénéré.

Le bilan provisoire des affrontements fait état d’un blessé, un gendarme, et d’une jeune-femme tuée. Celle-ci aurait pris une balle perdue. Aucune autorité civile et militaire n’était disponible pour commenter les évènements de la journée.

Impuissance des nouvelles autorités

Au cours de ces derniers jours, les incidents entre FRCI et ex-FDS se sont multipliés au grand dam des autorités qui semblent impuissants face aux agissements de certains chefs de guerre des FRCI qui règnent en maître sur Abidjan et le reste du pays. En début de semaine, les hommes de « Ben Laden » avaient par exemple expulsé des policiers et leurs familles des habitations de la caserne de la BAE dont ils sont les ayants droit.

 

Rwandan police arrest army officer and five others in alleged terror plot

Source: RFI

General Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa – the arrested men are accused with links with him

AFP/Marc Longari

Rwandan police have arrested a senior army officer and five other suspects for plotting attacks on political leaders and key infrastructure projects. They are linked to former army chief Faustin Kayumba Nyamwasa and ex-defence minister Emmanuel Habyarimana, the police said.

The six were arrested after crossing over from their base in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, officials said.

A police statement named the leader of the group as Colonel Norbert Ndererimana.

« They were to target high populated areas, fuel storage facilities and fuel transport vehicles, national leaders as well as diplomats, » it said.

Nyamwasa and Habyarimana are both leading opponents of Rwandan President Paul Kagame and live in exile.

Zimbabwe: Brigadier-General Nyikayaramba responds to Tsvangirai

Source: The Herald

Brigadier-General Douglas Nyikayaramba

MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai is a national security threat rather than a political one and security forces are justified to participate in politics to defend the country, Brigadier-General Douglas Nyikayaramba has said.

Responding to calls by Mr Tsvangirai at a rally in Mkoba, Gweru, on Sunday that security chiefs should resign and contest for political power, Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba, said the current situation required them to deal with it in uniform.

« What he (Mr Tsvangirai) is saying is nonsense. We are dealing with a national security threat, which can only be dealt with by people in uniform. If it was a normal political environment, one would hope to retire at some point and join politics. However, we can’t afford to be in an akimbo when there is this foreign attack, » Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba said.

He said the security forces and Zanu-PF were inseparable.
Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba said security forces viewed Mr Tsvangirai as a national threat.

For this reason, he reiterated that he would not serve under the leadership of anyone who did not have liberation war credentials.
Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba said security forces would do anything possible to make sure President Mugabe remained in power until they felt the threat was over.

« Tsvangirai doesn’t pose a political threat in any way in Zimbabwe, but is a major security threat. He takes instructions from foreigners who seek to effect illegal regime change in Zimbabwe.
« This is what has invited the security forces to be involved because we want to ensure we protect our national security interests. When he said Mugabe must go peacefully or else forcefully, was that democratic or constitutional?

« Daydreamers who want to reverse the gains of our liberation struggle will continue daydreaming. They can go to hell . . . they will never rule this country.
« We cannot keep quiet. We will continue speaking and as the security forces, we will not sit back and watch things going wrong, » Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba said.

He said MDC-T was not home-grown.
Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba said security forces were not against the formation of other political parties, but were concerned with some hidden hands in some of the parties that sought to influence leadership change through unco-nstitutional means.

« If his party was a genuine indigenous political party, we wouldn’t be involved. People have to understand that our mandate as security forces is to make sure we protect our sovereignty and the integrity of the nation.

« We had (the late) Abel Muzorewa, (the late) Enock Dumbutshena and other people forming their political parties, but we never had any problem with them. These were indigenous political parties that understood our national interests.

« As the security forces, we should be worried if we see the British and American machinations. They have already announced that they want to destroy Zanu-PF from within, so we should be vigilant. This suggests that they want to re-colonise us, » he said.

Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba said President Mugabe would remain in power because replacing a leader in the middle of the struggle was not advisable.
« President Mugabe will only leave office if he sees it fit or dies. No one should be talking about his departure at the moment. He sacrificed a lot for this country. If he was someone else he would have opted to work for those international organisations but he knew that Zimbabweans wanted his guidance.

« We will die for him to make sure he remains in power. We are prepared to stand by our commander-in-chief. Soldiers are not going to sit back and watch, while the foreign forces want to attack us. »
He said MDC-T sponsors should realise their party would not achieve the desired goals.

« If people were clever enough they would have de-invested their money in this project because it’s not viable. It’s almost 11 years now since the MDC-T was formed but it still hasn’t delivered anything? » said Brig-Gen Nyikayaramba.

On Sunday, Mr Tsvangirai challenged service chiefs, saying: « If you want politics remove the uniform and we will show you what politics is. It is not guns. Stop intimidating people – convince Zimbabweans to vote for you. »

Yesterday, the MDC-T repeated the attack.
Addressing delegates attending a forum called World Justice Forum in Barcelona, Spain, Mr Tsvangirai said some State institutions were failing to respect the inclusive Government.

« Everyday, they (security chiefs) are dabbling in politics, even seeking to influence the date of the election and the conditions under which that election will be held. »When the Police Commissioner-General (Augustine Chihuri) and the Attorney-General (Johannes Tomana) state publicly that they support a particular political party in an inclusive government, as in our case, the rule of law becomes perverted and people lose confidence in the institutions they lead. »

Darfur rebels say Sudan air attack killed 35 civilians, call for no-fly zone

Source: Sudan Tribune

The rebel Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) led by Abdel Wahid Al-Nur repulsed ground and air attacks by government forces on its strongholds of Jebel Marra and called for the imposition of a no-fly zone to protect Darfur civilians against haphazard shelling.

Villagers try to extinguish a fire in Kuma Garadayat, a village located in North Darfur (REUTERS PICTURES)

Sudanese army has been fighting rebel groups in its western region of Darfur for eight years as several attempts to achieve peace failed to yield results due to the fragmentation of rebel groups and the government’s unwillingness to offer meaningful compromises to address the root causes of the conflict.

SLM’s official spokesman Nimir Abdel Rahman told Sudan Tribune on Wednesday that government forces riding on 70 Land-Cruiser vehicles attacked Sabon Al-Fagr and Garlan Bang in Kass locality, South Darfur State, on Monday and Tuesday.

He further said that the attacks were preceded by an air attack carried out by four Antonov aircrafts and two attack helicopters and forced civilians to flee the bombing.

The rebel spokesperson said that two more attacks by government forces took place on Tuesday and Wednesday on the areas of Kagro, Bargo and Rofta in Golo in western Jebel Marra, adding that attacks were carried out by government troops transported on 80 vehicles and three Antonov aircrafts.

According to Nimir, SLM forces withstood both attacks and inflicted heavy losses on government forces in terms of lives and machinery. He said their forces captured 15 vehicles and destroyed 20 others, adding that their fighters were currently chasing government forces escaping from the area.

The rebel official said that 35 civilians had been killed as a result of the government’s air attacks and hundreds of citizens fled their home villages. He also said that government forces had pillaged the biggest market in Sabon Al-Fagr and Garlan Bang.

The spokesman said that they had intelligence that government forces were preparing to launch fresh attacks and were currently re-gathering their troops in Rockero area in northern Jabal Marra and Nartiti area in southern Darfur.

The Sudanese government is preparing to sign a peace agreement with the Liberation and Justice Movement – a cluster of minor rebel factions – in the Qatari capital of Doha. Meanwhile, the government’s negotiations with the Justice and Equality Movement – one of the region’s powerful rebel groups – have not made much progress.

SLM Al-Nur has refused to take part in Doha peace process. Recently they called on a large political alliance with the Sudanese forces and said resolved to continue political and military struggle to topple the regime.

The group also signed an alliance pact with the SLM- Minni Minnawi while others reintegrated the rebel movement like the former governor of West Darfur Abu El-Gasim Al-Haj.

NO-FLY ZONE FOR DARFUR

SLM leader Abdel Wahid Al-Nur condemned the air attacks on Jebel Marra villages and urged the international community to impose a no-fly zone over Darfur to protect the region’s civilians.

Speaking to Sudan Tribune on Wednesday, Nur said that « Darfur people are in need of such measures more than others », in reference to the UN-mandated no-fly zone imposed over Libya to protect civilians from air attacks by forces loyal to the country’s beleaguered leader Muammar Gaddafi.

The rebel leader went on to assert that the Khartoum government cannot defeat his forces militarily, especially after the SLM’s recent adoption of the “new beginning” blueprint which aims to unify its ranks and escalate the struggle against the central government.

He added that the SLM was now a force to reckon with and was capable of protecting itself and defeating government forces.

« What is important here is the protection of civilians and the international community must move to take the necessary measures to protect them on equal footing with others, » he emphasized.

The UN estimates that Darfur conflict has killed 300, 000 people and displaced more than 2.7 in the first three years since its eruption in 2003.

Le général Sékouba Konaté élevé à la dignité de Grand Croix dans l’ordre national de la paix

Le Président de la République, Denis Sassou N’Guesso, a procédé le 22 juin à Brazzaville, à l’élévation du général d’armées Sékouba Konaté de Guinée à la dignité de Grand Croix dans l’ordre national de la paix.

La cérémonie s’est déroulée au Palais du peuple en présence des présidents du Sénat et de l’Assemblée nationale, des membres du Gouvernement, des hauts responsables de la force publique, des attachés de défense accrédités en République du Congo et de plusieurs personnalités.

«Général Sékouba Konaté, au nom de la République, en vertu des pouvoirs qui me sont conférés, je vous élève à la dignité de Grand Croix dans l’ordre national de la paix», a déclaré Denis Sassou N’Guesso.

Cette distinction honorifique est la reconnaissance par le Congo des efforts déployés par cet officier général formé en France, en Chine et au Maroc, en faveur de la paix, de la sécurité, de la stabilité et de la démocratie en Guinée.

Le général d’armées Sékouba Konaté s’est réjoui d’être honoré par le Chef de l’Etat congolais à travers cette distinction. Interrogé sur son éventuel engagement en politique dans son pays, il a indiqué : «Je ne suis pas né pour ça. J’avais reçu une mission et je l’ai réalisée».

Né le 6 juin 1964 à Conakry, Sékouba Konaté vient d’écrire son nom en lettres d’or dans l’histoire politique de la Guinée, voire même de l’Afrique, en dirigeant avec succès la transition après le décès de l’ancien Président Lansana Conté. Cette transition ayant débouché sur l’élection présidentielle, remportée par le professeur Alpha Condé.

Le général d’armées Sékouba Konaté assume actuellement les fonctions de haut représentant pour l’opérationnalisation de la force africaine en attente et de responsable de la planification et de la gestion stratégique des opérations de soutien à la paix de l’Union africaine (UA).

Par Christian Brice Elion

Congo-Brazzaville: 50ème anniversaire des FAC et de la gendarmerie nationale

Source: Congo-site portail

Forces Armees Congolaises photo courtesy Army recognition

Les Forces armées congolaises (FAC) et la gendarmerie nationale (GN) ont commémoré le cinquantième anniversaire de leur création le 22 juin 2011. L’évènement a permis de retracer l’histoire de ces deux institutions, afin de permettre aux générations futures de mieux les connaître.

Démarrées depuis le 5 juin dernier, les activités relatives à cet anniversaire ont été marquées par l’hôpital de campagne médico-chirurgical déployé à Kinkala (département du Pool) ; les journées portes-ouvertes de l’école de la GN ; l’inauguration d’une place d’armes ; les expositions et conférences thématiques ; les journées portes ouvertes des FAC ; la manœuvre de la GN ; la visite des expositions photos des FAC et de la GN ; le port des insignes de grade aux nouveaux généraux par le Chef de l’Etat ; la parade militaire ; le dépôt des gerbes de fleurs au monument aux morts de la force publique ; etc.

La journée 22 juin a été marquée par la décoration d’un échantillon d’éléments de la force publique, par le ministre à la Présidence, chargé de la défense nationale, Charles Zacharie Bowao. Par la même occasion, des personnalités congolaises ont été décorées par l’ambassadeur de la République de Russie au Congo, Youri Aleksandrovich Romanov, « pour leur grande contribution au développement et au renforcement des relations entre la République de Russie et la République du Congo, dans le cadre de la coopération militaire et technique entre les deux Etats ».

Il s’agit, entre autres, du ministre à la Présidence, chargé de la défense nationale, Charles Zacharie Bowao ; du général de division Jacques Yvon Ndolou ; du général de division Charles Richard Mondjo ; du général de division Norbert Dabira ; du contre-amiral Jean-Dominique Okemba ; du contre-amiral Fulgort Ongobo.

Les activités liées à la célébration des 50 ans des FAC et de la GN ont permis à bon nombre de Congolais de connaître l’historique de ces deux institutions. En effet, les FAC sont nées de l’armée française dans laquelle les Congolais avaient participé à la première guerre mondiale (1914-1918) et à la deuxième (1939-1945), faisant partie des tirailleurs sénégalais. Le Congo ne s’est doté d’une armée qu’après adoption de la loi 17-67 portant organisation et recrutement dans les FAC.

La gendarmerie nationale est née de la maréchaussée française. Elle fut d’abord appelée « gendarmerie d’outre mer », avant de devenir gendarmerie de l’Afrique équatoriale française. C’est le 12 décembre 1961 que la gendarmerie nationale congolaise a été créée, mais intègre les composantes de la nouvelle armée populaire nationale en juin 1966. Elle sera dissoute en 1970, pour être restaurée en juin 1991.

Les FAC et la GN demeurent à l’avant-garde de la défense de l’unité, de l’intégrité territoriale et de la souveraineté du pays. Elles participent à la préservation de la sécurité et à la stabilité des institutions. Elles connaissent, depuis quelques années, une réorganisation qui se fait en trois paliers : la formalisation du processus décisionnel et la méthodologie pour la planification et la conduite des opérations ; la mise en application de l’instruction ministérielle relative à l’organisation, au fonctionnement et aux attributions des chaînes organique, opérationnelle et territoriale ; et la mise en œuvre d’une politique de formation dans les FAC et la GN.

Selon le préfet du département de Brazzaville, le général de division Benoit Moundélé-Ngollo, à travers l’organisation des 50 ans des FAC et de la GN, les Congolais viennent de démontrer ce qu’ils ont pu réaliser pour les deux institutions pendant 50 années.

« Il y a eu beaucoup de conférences-débats, des témoignages ont été faits. Je crois que c’est une symbiose entre le peuple et son armée, c’est-à-dire que les civils n’ont pas droit d’avoir peur de leur armée. L’armée est composée des enfants issus du peuple, donc de leurs propres familles. Ce n’est pas une armée étrangère, mais une armée composée des Congolais. Il ne devrait donc pas y avoir des Congolais qui peuvent avoir peur d’autres Congolais. Certes, ceux qui portent les armes ont une tâche difficile pour assurer la sécurité, mais ce n’est pas parce qu’ils portent des armes qu’ils doivent inquiéter leurs compatriotes », a-t-il indiqué.

Par Gos-Gaspard Lenckonov

Gaddafi vows to resist NATO strikes

Source: AlJazeera

NATO acknowledged on Sunday that an air strike in Tripoli had killed several civilians [Reuters]

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has accused NATO of murder and said his regime has its « back to the wall », three days after a NATO air strike on a house in Tripoli killed civilians.

« We will resist and the battle will continue to the beyond, until you’re wiped out. But we will not be finished, » Gaddafi said in an audio tape broadcast on state television on Wednesday night.

« You said, ‘we hit our targets with precision’, you murderers … One day we will respond to you likewise and your homes will be legitimate targets. »

Gaddafi, who referred to the June 19 strike specifically, called the NATO campaign a « crusade » against a Muslim country.

« We will stay, we will resist and we will not give in. Strike with your missiles, two, three, 10 or 100 years, » he said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said there was no doubt that Gaddafi’s men had « their backs against the wall. »

Clinton said Libya’s opposition was making very clear progress on the ground in Libya.

Civilian deaths have raised serious misgivings about the UN-authorised NATO intervention in Libya among the most ardent supporters of the ongoing air campaign.

Italy’s foreign minister and the outgoing head of the Arab League have each called for a halt to hostilities in the war-torn North African country.

Franco Frattini told members of parliament on Wednesday that the suspension of military operations in Libya was « essential » for immediate humanitarian aid, while Amr Moussa, the Arab League chief, called for a political solution to the crisis.

France expressed a different view, saying the military operations should be « intensified ».

« Any pause in operations would risk allowing him to play for time and to reorganise. In the end, it would be the civilian population that would suffer from the smallest sign of weakness on our behalf, » Bernard Valero, a French foreign ministry spokesman, said.

‘Strikes to continue’

On Wednesday night, NATO warplanes were believed to be bombing a government ammunition depot near the city of Zintan, according to Al Jazeera’s James Bays, reporting from a vantage point dozens of kilometres from the front line.

Explosions could be heard every 30 to 40 seconds, he said.

« Everyone talks about stalemate in Libya, but actually quietly there’s been some very steady progress here in the Nafousa Mountains in the western part of Libya, » he said.

« Here, the opposition has very slowly pressed forward, they’ve taken villages, they’ve taken towns … it appears that NATO realises that. »

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the NATO chief, said on Wednesday that the alliance would continue its operations in Libya.

« NATO will continue this mission because if we stop, countless more civilians could lose their lives, » Rasmussen said in a video statement on the NATO website.

Rasmussen also addressed charges that NATO caused civilian deaths in recent air raids.

« Since the start of this mission we have conducted over 5,000 strikes sorties, and as our record shows we have taken utmost care to minimise the risk of civilian casualties and we continue to do that every day and every hour, » he said.

« I deeply regret any loss of life in this conflict. »

Moussa’s ‘misgivings’

In an interview to Britain’s Guardian newspaper published on Tuesday, Moussa, the outgoing head of the Arab League, said the time was ripe for a political solution in Libyan.

The Egyptian diplomat, who played a central role in securing Arab support for NATO air strikes, also voiced reservations about the bombing campaign after seeing civilian casualties.

« When I see children being killed, I must have misgivings. That’s why I warned about the risk of civilian casualties, » Moussa said.

Moussa said the military campaign would not produce a breakthrough. « You can’t have a decisive ending. Now is the time to do whatever we can to reach a political solution, » he said.

« That has to start with a genuine ceasefire under international supervision. Until the ceasefire, Gaddafi would remain in office … Then there would be a move to a transitional period … to reach an understanding about the future of Libya. »

Asked whether that meant a halt to the NATO air raids, he said: « A ceasefire is a ceasefire. »

Moussa’s sentiment was shared by the Italian foreign minister, who called for urgent humanitarian aid to be delivered to trapped residents in cities like Tripoli and Misurata.

 

He said the people in those areas faced a « dramatic » humanitarian situation and added that a suspension of hostilities would also avoid « consolidating a division of Libya » between east and west.

He said he hoped the European Council in Brussels on Thursday would highlight an end to the fighting in Libya as « a practical solution ».

Frattini warned earlier this week that NATO’s accidental killing of civilians in an air strike was endangering the alliance’s credibility in the eyes of the world.

« With regard to NATO, it is fair to ask for increasingly detailed information on results as well as precise guidelines on the dramatic errors involving civilians, » he said.

« This is clearly not part of NATO’s mission. »

Libya is a former Italian colony and Silvio Berlusconi’s government had enjoyed close ties with the government of Gaddafi.

Italy was initially cautious in its reaction to the crackdown by the Libyan leader but has since played a key role in the NATO-led military operation by offering the use of its air bases to conduct air raids.

NATO launched its air campaign in Libya to protect civilians from a brutal crackdown launched by Gaddafi’s regime in response to an uprising against his four-decades long rule.

Congo-Brazzaville : les nouveaux généraux portent leurs galons

Source: Congo-site portail

Le Président de la République, Denis Sassou N’Guesso, a procédé le 21 juin à Brazzaville, au port des insignes de grade aux nouveaux généraux des Forces armées congolaises (FAC) et de la gendarmerie nationale, nommés le 17 juin dernier.

La cérémonie s’est déroulée sur l’esplanade du Palais des congrès. Le directeur général des ressources humaines des FAC, Fulgort Ongobo, a fait la lecture des décrets portant nomination à titre normal des nouveaux généraux.

Il s’agit des colonels Okoye Blanchard Guy, Bokemba Gilbert, Mouagni Paul Victor, Ossélé François, Avoukou Emmanuel, Mambou Guy Bleck Clément, Tchikaya Jean-Baptiste Philippe, tous nommés au grade de général de brigade ; et du capitaine de vaisseaux Bouagnabea Moundanza André, nommé au grade de contre-amiral.

La joie se faisait sentir sur les visages des promus au moment où le Chef de l’Etat, Chef suprême des armées leur portait les insignes de grade. Ils ont exprimé leur gratitude à l’endroit du Président de la République.

« C’est une grande joie et un grand honneur pour nous. Nous remercions sincèrement le Chef suprême des armées, le Président Denis Sassou N’Guesso, qui nous a fait cette confiance. Nous prenons, devant lui, un engagement que, quel que soit l’endroit où il nous mettra en mission, nous y irons et nous accomplirons notre mission, notre devoir dans l’esprit des lois et règlements de la République. C’est en cela que nous continuerons à bénéficier de la confiance de la hiérarchie », a déclaré le général de brigade Ossélé François.

Cette cérémonie a été sanctionnée par une parade militaire présentée par des éléments des FAC (armées de terre et de l’air ; la marine nationale ; etc.) et de la gendarmerie nationale.

Après la cérémonie, le haut commandement des FAC et de la gendarmerie nationale s’est rendu au monument aux morts de la force publique, où Charles Zacharie Bowao, Jean-Claude Gakosso et Raymond Zéphirin Mboulou, respectivement ministre à la Présidence chargé de la défense nationale, ministre de la culture et des arts, et ministre l’intérieur et de la décentralisation, ont déposé des gerbes de fleurs en mémoire des éléments de la force publique tombés au champ d’honneur.

Les travaux de ce monument érigé en 2006 ont été financés par le ministère de la défense nationale à hauteur de 290.880.215 francs CFA.

Libye : la Royal Air Force lance un cri d’alarme

Source: Le Point

Un avion britannique de la Royal Air Force © Rex / Sipa

C’est un véritable cri d’alarme que le numéro deux de la Royal Air Force, l’Air Vice-Marshal Simon Bryant, vient de lancer aux députés britanniques, repris ce matin par le Daily Telegraph.

Il estime que la capacité de la RAF à conduire des opérations inopinées serait « érodée » si la campagne de Libye devait se poursuivre après le mois de septembre. « Deux opérations simultanées [Afghanistan et Libye] imposent de lourdes contraintes aux équipements et aux personnels », poursuit l’officier, qui ajoute : « Le moral demeure fragile. » Il appuie là où ça fait mal, en affirmant qu’il existe « des préoccupations sur ce qui est perçu comme un manque de direction stratégique, qui réduit la confiance dans les autorités supérieures ».

Une situation périlleuse

Ce constat pessimiste d’un aviateur en activité fait suite à celui qu’avait fait connaître le 13 juin dernier le chef d’état-major de la Royal Navy, l’amiral Mark Stanhope. Il avait alors estimé que la Royal Navy ne pourrait plus assurer sa mission au large de la Libye au-delà des trois mois à venir. Alors que quatre navires de guerre britanniques sont impliqués dans cette opération, il a regretté que la marine ne soit plus du tout en mesure de réaliser une opération comparable à celle des Malouines, en 1982. L’amiral François Forissier, son homologue français, avait tenu un discours de la même tonalité quelques jours plus tard.

Le 10 juin, le secrétaire américain à la défense, Robert Gates, avait jugé dans un très sévère discours-testament prononcé à Bruxelles que la baisse des ambitions militaires européennes mettait en péril la solidarité avec les États-Unis : « Si l’actuel déclin des capacités militaires européennes n’est pas stoppé voire renversé, les futurs dirigeants américains – ceux qui n’ont pas connu comme moi l’enseignement de la guerre froide – risquent tout simplement de conclure que le retour ne mérite pas l’investissement des États-Unis dans l’Otan. »

Il paraît aujourd’hui acquis que si la victoire ne survient pas rapidement, c’est-à-dire si le colonel Kadhafi n’est pas ravi d’une façon ou d’une autre à l’affection des siens, les armées britanniques, mais aussi françaises, vont se trouver en posture difficile. Tout est possible, bien sûr, y compris que les militaires fassent des efforts démesurés pour faire marcher la machine de guerre. Mais tout a une limite, y compris leur bonne volonté.

Par Jean Guisnel

France-Tchad: un brigadier du SEA fait l’objet de poursuites judiciaires

Source: Secret Defense

Les faits remontent à décembre 2009. Un brigadier du Service des essences des armées (SEA), affecté à N’Djaména (Tchad) a un accident de la circulation, sans gravité, à l’extérieur du camp français. Sur place, les gendarmes de la prévôté constatent qu’il reste 3000 litres de carburant dans la citerne de son camion, alors qu’elle aurait dû être vide. Ce carburant est destiné à alimenter la centrale électrique de la base. Les enquêteurs découvrent que le brigadier allait revendre son chargement en ville…
Mis aux arrêts, puis rapatrié en France, il fait l’objet d’une enquête de commandant qui aboutit à la résiliation de son contrat et à son renvoi de l’armée. Le ministère de la Défense a décidé, en mai dernier, de porter l’affaire devant la justice en déposant une plainte.

Republic of South Africa: SISULU introduces OMBUDSMAN BILL in parliament

Source: SANDF

Ms Lindiwe Sisulu Minister of Defence South Africa

The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Ms Lindiwe Sisulu, introduced the Military Ombudsman Bill in Parliament today. She addressed the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans on the need and relevance of an Ombudsman for the South African National Defence (SANDF). The Minister identified the promulgation of the bill as one of her priorities.

The Ombudsman Bill comes shortly on the heels of the establishment of the National Defence Force Service Commission whose aim is to advise the Minister on the conditions of service of the soldiers. The Military Ombudsman will investigate complaints and serves as a neutral third party on matters related to the Department of Defence and the South African National Force, acting independently of the chain of command and managers.

The origin of the Ombudsman is in the White Paper on Defence of 1996 and the Defence Review which motivated for a Military Ombudsperson to investigate complaints, inter alia, of military personnel against the SANDF. It is envisaged that the Ombudsperson will address any military personnel matters which cannot be resolved through other existing mechanisms”

The White Paper further states that “ the Department of Defence supports the creation of the Military Ombudsman whose main duties are to monitor adherence to democratic civil-military relations, and undertakes investigations at the request of Parliament and investigates complaints against the SANDF by military personnel and members of the public”.

The office of the Ombudsman will act as a direct source of information, referral and education. It will help members of the Defence community navigate a large and complex organization in order to access existing channels of assistance or redress when they have a complaint or concern. The ultimate goal is to contribute to substantial and long-lasting improvements to the Defence community.
The Minister referred to a similar institution in Canada where the institution is tasked with the responsibility to review and investigate concerns and complaints from current and former members of the Canadian Armed Forces, departmental employees, and their immediate family members who believe that they have been treated improperly of unfairly by the Canadian Department of National Defence Force or Canadian Forces.

The introduction of the Ombudsman alongside the Defence Force Service Commission will go a long way towards promoting democratic civil-military relations in the SANDF. While the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans is still to deliberate on the bill clause by clause, the Committee expressed support for the bill and said it was long overdue.

Un tribunal de Nouakchott condamne des soutiens d’al-Qaida

Source: Magharebia

La Cour suprême de Nouakchott a condamné, dimanche 19 juin, huit personnes pour avoir apporté un soutien et une aide à al-Qaida au Maghreb islamique (AQMI).

Les peines de prison prononcées vont de cinq ans pour deux salafistes, Ahmed Sale Mould Hassan et Ely Cheikh Ould Wadiaa, à trois ans pour Hassan Ould Maata et deux ans pour les cinq autres accusés, les Mauritaniens Bah Ould Mohamed, Moustapha Ould Ahmed, Issa Ould Ahmed et Abdellahi Ould Hamadi, et le Tunisien Malek Lekrimi.

« Ils ont fourni au responsable du Bataillon des Masqués des appareils de communication, des quantités d’explosifs et un missile SA-7, un acte sanctionnable aux termes de la législation antiterroriste mauritanienne », a indiqué le tribunal.

Le procureur a indiqué au tribunal que « certains d’entre eux avaient aidé Aboul Abbas, alias ‘Balor’, le chef du Bataillon des Masqués basé dans le désert, en lui fournissant des outils logistiques qui l’ont aidé à perpétrer des attaques contre les armées des pays du Sahel, à enlever et tuer des ressortissants européens et américains, et à commettre des attentats à la bombe devant des représentations diplomatiques européennes et américaine. »

Utilisant un pseudonyme (Abul Hammam), Abdellahi Ould Hamadi avait reçu 3 000 euros de la part d’un collaborateur de Balor en échange de la fourniture de systèmes de communication et de téléphones, selon le procureur Ahmed Ould Abdellahi.

« L’accusé recevait des instructions de Sidi Ould Sidna, condamné pour l’assassinat de ressortissants français dans la ville d’Aleg, en Mauritanie, en décembre 2007″, a ajouté le procureur. « Il était également en contact avec les terroristes qui avaient participé à l’opération de Tourine menée par al-Qaida contre l’armée mauritanienne en septembre 2008. »

L’accusé Abdellahi Ould Hamadi a reconnu les charges pesant contre lui, expliquant que « il est normal de voir un convoi d’armes ou des marchandises de contrebande là où nous vivons dans le désert. »

« J’ai reçu 25 millions d’ouguiyas de Balor, que je devais remettre à certains collaborateurs d’AQMI. Mais j’ai été arrêté par les forces de sécurité mauritaniennes alors que j’envisageais de me rendre et de fournir des renseignements sur al-Qaida », a déclaré Ould Hamadi.

Concernant l’importance de ce procès, Rabii Ould Idoumou, journaliste spécialiste du terrorisme, a expliqué que « ces hommes ne possèdent aucun fichier dangereux, parce qu’ils n’étaient pas impliqués directement dans les assassinats ou les enlèvements. Il s’agit donc plutôt du procès de personnes que de celui d’un réseau organisé, dans la mesure où ils n’avaient ni liens ni coordination conjointe. »

L’analyste Yacoub Moustapha a indiqué que cette condamnation était un message adressé « aux nombreuses personnes qui ont eu des relations de commerce avec al-Qaida, pour leur signifier qu’elles ne seront pas exemptées de la prison ».

Le jeune militant Mohamed Ould Zeine a souligné que ce procès n’avait nécessité qu’une seule audience. « Cela laisse aux observateurs le sentiment du danger que représentent ces groupes ; une chose que certains pourraient percevoir comme une incitation à prononcer des condamnations à leur encontre », a-t-il ajouté.

« J’estime que les charges retenues contre ces jeunes ne sont pas très graves dès lors que les peines de prison sont de courte durée », a déclaré le professeur d’université Mohamed Kanté. « Je pense cependant que vendre des armes à al-Qaida ne diffère en rien du fait de tuer, parce que ceux qui aident à perpétrer ces meurtres, ne serait-ce que par un seul mot, sont assimilables à leurs auteurs. »

A propos de ces terroristes, Sidi Elmokhtar Ould Sidi, un étudiant, a dit : « Leur acte est considéré comme une trahison dans ce pays, et ce procès sera certainement dissuasif. »

NATO Confirms Loss Of Drone Helicopter In Libya

Source: RTT news

MQ-8 Fire Scout UAV

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) confirmed late Tuesday that it has lost an unmanned surveillance helicopter involved in the ongoing military mission in Libya, but dismissed claims by the Libyan government that its troops had downed a NATO Apache attack helicopter.

« This drone helicopter was performing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance over Libya to monitor Colonel Qadhafi’s forces threatening the civilian population, » NATO spokesman Wing Cmdr Mike Bracken said Tuesday.

Indicating that NATO’s command center in the Italian city of Naples had lost contact with the unmanned aircraft at about 0720 GMT on Tuesday, Bracken said: « We are looking into the reasons [for the loss]. We can confirm we have not lost any attack helicopters. »

Bracken’s remarks came hours after Libya’s state-run television aired images of what it said was a wreckage of a NATO Apache attack helicopter shot down by Libyan troops in the western district of Zlitan.

NATO began using Apache attack helicopters in the ongoing Libya mission earlier this month. Although the alliance is yet to disclose the type of drone helicopters being used in Libya, media reports suggest that they are MQ-8 Fire Scout helicopter drones manufactured by US firm Northrop Grumman.

The loss of the drone helicopter on Tuesday marked first such aircraft loss for NATO since it began its mission in Libya mission on March 15 to enforce a U.N.-mandated no-fly zone over the North African country and to protect civilians from attacks by pro-Qadhafi forces.

NATO had recently announced that it had extended its Libyan mission that began in March until the end of September.

Oil-rich Libya has been witnessing an armed revolt against the more than four-decade-long autocratic rule of Col. Moammar Qadhafi. The U.N. estimates that thousands have been killed in the fighting, besides forcing more than 750,000 to flee the Arab country.

In addition to its original intentions, the ongoing NATO-led operation has also assisted the Libyan rebels in their fight against the regime.

The rebels currently control most of eastern Libya and their leadership, better known as the Transitional National Council (TNC), is based in the Mediterranean port city of Benghazi. Nonetheless, Col. Moammar Qadhafi’s regime is still holding on to the western parts of the country, except for the city of Misrata.

Although several nations like France, Qatar, Germany and Italy have formally recognized TNC as Libya’s legitimate government, most others are yet to formally recognize the rebel group.

by RTT Staff Writer

Somalia Islamists vow loyalty to Zawahiri

Source: UPI

The al-Shabaab Islamist group has sworn allegiance to Ayman al-Zawahiri, the new leader of al-Qaida, and declared, « We await your instructions. »

Al-Shabaab — The Youth — is losing ground to an offensive by Somalia’s Western-backed Transitional Federal Government, backed by African peacekeepers, in Mogadishu, war-battered capital of the Horn of Africa state.

But with two dozen, possibly more, Somali-Americans reported to have joined its ranks, the group is seen as a threat to the United States. At least three of them have carried out suicide bombings in Somalia, raising fears their comrades could carry out similar operations in the United States.

Al-Shabaab lost its key commander, al-Qaida veteran Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, June 7. He was killed when he stumbled into a TFG checkpoint in Mogadishu.

He was a key link to al-Qaida Central in Pakistan and also coordinated with al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula based in Yemen, across the Gulf of Aden from Somalia, and one of the jihadists’ most aggressive groups.

It’s too early to determine whether al-Shabaab’s vow of allegiance to Zawahiri will result in greater support for the Somali fighters.

But the Egyptian, who co-founded al-Qaida with Osama bin Laden in 1988, and other jihadist leaders have frequently called on the Somalis to attack African states and the West.

Al-Zawahiri was named al-Qaida’s leader Thursday to replace bin Laden, who was killed May 2 by U.S. forces in Pakistan. Zawahiri had been his deputy and key strategist since the network was formed.

The SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors Islamist Web sites, said the pledge was made in a statement posted on the al-Andalus Islamic Station by the group’s spokesman, Ali Mohammed Raghe, aka Ali Dheere.

« The mujahedin in Somalia confirm to the mujahedin in al-Qaida: You are more experienced than us and you have better views than us on the future of the jihad … against the enemy, as we have experienced from you before, » the statement said.

« We await your instructions and we will act according to what you see in the coming stage to be in the interests of jihad the Muslim Ummah (nation), » it added.

« The mujahedin in Somalia say to the new emir: ‘Here we are, here we are and we are waiting for your instructions. »

In December 2010, Raghe publicly called on al-Qaida to send more fighters to Somalia « to expand the East Africa jihad. »

Al-Shabaab has sought affiliation with al-Qaida since 2007 and pledged allegiance to bin Laden in 2008 but hasn’t been formally merged with the jihadist network.

The presence of American citizens of Somali descent in al-Shabaab, part of a large contingent on foreign fighters with the group, is causing some anxiety in the U.S. security establishment.

Al-Shabaab’s 3,000 hardcore fighters include several hundred foreigners, some of them al-Qaida veterans, U.S. and Somali intelligence estimates say. Most are Africans, but there are also Afghans, Pakistanis and Arabs.

Terrance Ford, director of intelligence with the U.S. Africa Command, observed in October 2010 that Americans occupy senior leadership positions in al-Shabaab and that « must be a strategic concern for the United States. »

He said 43 of the group’s 85-member executive council are foreigners, including Americans.

Omar Hammami, an Alabama native, is a top field commander with al-Shabaab. His nom de guerre is Abu Mansoor al-Ameriki and he has featured in propaganda videos to attract foreign recruits.

« The foreign jihadists were once in the shadows but now there’s no doubt that they’ve taken control of the movement in Somalia, » Ford noted.

This includes fighters from the United States. « All of us have concern about which way the foreign fighters flow, i.e., will they flow back into the United States? »

In November 2010, undercover FBI agents in a sting operation prevented a Somali-born American, 19-year-old Mohammed Osman Mohamud, from blowing up a van full of explosives at a crowded Christmas event in Portland, Ore.

In Britain, the director of the nation’s domestic security service MI5, Jonathan Evans, warned in September 2010 that the country faced a growing threat from British residents trained by al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Evans said « a significant number of U.K. residents » were undergoing military training in al-Shabaab camps.

« It’s only a matter of time before we see terrorism on our streets inspired by those who are today fighting alongside al-Shabaab, » he declared.

ANALYSIS-North Sudan flexes military might before split

Source: Reuters

North Sudan has sent in the army along the vaguely-defined border area between north and south to stamp its authority there and eke out concessions before the south splits away with most of the nation’s oil.

Khartoum sent tanks into the disputed Abyei region on May 21 and two weeks later sent troops to crush southern-aligned fighters in Southern Kordofan, which has the most productive oilfields that will be left in the north after July 9.

The north Sudanese government seems to be betting the south, which voted to split in January, will be reluctant to challenge the north’s mightier army and risk a war that could threaten its goal of recognition from Khartoum as a new African state.

But Khartoum’s strategy has already angered Western powers, whose goodwill may prove vital in securing up to $38 billion in debt relief. It also fuels tensions in areas that produce oil, the lifeblood of both the northern and southern economies.

« (Northerners) are underdogs from the economic side. They are going to be more affected by the secession than the south. They want to offset that by being the ‘upper dogs’ on the security side, » said Fouad Hikmat from the International Crisis Group think tank.

Asserting military strength along the border could give the north leverage as the two sides hammer out unresolved questions like how to manage the country’s oil proceeds and divide debt.

« They are trying to corner the SPLM (the south’s ruling Sudan People’s Liberation Movement). They are putting the SPLM in a very difficult situation in Abyei, Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, » said Hikmat.

Sudan’s vast area and webs of ethnic and tribal loyalties have defied easy division, leaving flashpoints in border states like Abyei, Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile.

 

DIVIDING A NATION

Khartoum’s specific goals differ in each region.

In Abyei, with its valuable pasture land and some modest oil production, the north wants concessions, analysts say. The area is claimed by both sides. But a plebiscite on its fate has not happened because of disputes over who should be allowed to vote.

In Southern Kordofan, the north wants to crush a well-armed and seasoned group of fighters, many from the ethnic Nuba group who sided with the SPLM’s military wing in two decades of civil war that ended with the 2005 peace treaty. The north fears a resurgence by the group could threaten a vital oil area.

The 2005 treaty led to the referendum on secession, when Southerners overwhelmingly backed a split. It set the stage for Africa’s largest nation to be divided. But, until now, that had proceeded with far less violence than many had predicted.

Even when divided, the two nations will depend on each other. About 75 percent of Sudan’s total 500,000 bpd of crude output lies in the south. But exports depend on a pipeline that passes through the north.

Southern President Salva Kiir, speaking in May when the Abyei conflict flared, said the south would not strike back.

« We thought that as neighbours we would be the best friends. We need them and they need us, » he told a news conference.

But, as the deadline to separation approaches, analysts said Khartoum is determined to show it is the more powerful partner.

« Khartoum’s view of the July 9 date for Southern independence is rather different from Juba’s, » Eric Reeves, a researcher at Smith College and activist on Sudan issues, said.

« It wishes to settle various issues by military force, to change the facts on the ground as of July 9, » he said.

In Southern Kordofan, the north said it would not tolerate an armed group within its boundaries and demanded the Nuba fighters disarm or leave. Juba says it cannot ask the fighters to go south because they are northerners and not part of its army.

 

MOUNTING TOLL

The result could be a long guerilla war pitting the north against fighters who are familiar with the area’s hilly terrain. That would disrupt trade and transport with the south and also open up Sudan’s President Omar Hassan al-Bashir to more international criticism.

Bashir is already wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of masterminding genocide and war crimes in Darfur, another area that will stay in the north and where rebels have fought with Khartoum accusing it of neglect.

« I don’t think it’s really possible for the Sudanese armed forces to achieve complete victory in Southern Kordofan, » said Aly Verjee, researcher at the Rift Valley Institute think tank.

« They can drive the opposition into the mountains and weaken their classic military capabilities but they won’t fully defeat them, » he said.

Humanitarian groups fear a mounting death toll in Southern Kordofan. Over 60,000 people have fled, the United Nations says. Human rights groups have accused Khartoum of waging a campaign of « ethnic cleansing » against the Nuba.

Khartoum rejects this, saying it is fighting an armed rebellion and the army is there to protect civilians.

More than 100,000 have also fled violence in Abyei. The two sides signed a deal on June 20 to pull troops out and bring in Ethiopian peacekeepers after talks in Addis Ababa. But analysts say conflict could flare up again without a long-term solution.

Talks on Southern Kordofan have made less progress, officials say, with the north telling the south that it is an internal issue and they should not interfere. Even if a deal is reached it might not carry weight with Nuba groups who felt left out of the 2005 deal that left Southern Kordofan with the north.

« We might see, politically speaking, a de facto division of the state (Southern Kordofan), » analysts Verjee said.

« Not one with a nice, neat boundary, but one where pockets of the SPLM and associated elements are able to survive and exert control, » he said, comparing it to the pockets of resistance that have held out against Khartoum in Darfur.

By Alex Dziadosz

Guinee Conacry: reforme de l’armee le comité national de pilotage démarre

Source: Guineeconakry.info

Lundi 20 juin 2011, dans l’après midi, au Palais du peuple, a eu lieu la cérémonie de lancement du comité national de pilotage de la réforme du secteur de la défense et de la sécurité. L’occasion a été mise à profit par le Pr. Alpha Condé, qui en assurait la présidence, pour mettre à jour certains officiers de l’armée guinéenne par rapport au concept de changement. Pour l’opinion, cette cérémonie a permis de comprendre certaines erreurs, jusque-là ignorées par rapport à la libération récente des détenus par les autorités…

C’est tout d’abord au ministre délégué de la défense, Me Abdoul Kabélè Camara, qu’il est revenu de replanter le contexte qui a engendré la nécessité de la réforme du secteur  de la défense et de la sécurité. Il a ainsi rappelé la signature des accords de Ouagadougou, le 15 janvier 2010, qui définissaient clairement un chronogramme au bout duquel l’armée devait céder le pouvoir à un président civil élu.

En réalité, pour consolider le système, l’ensemble des acteurs, y compris la communauté internationale avaient estimé nécessaire de réformer l’armée et l’ensemble du secteur de la sécurité. Conformément donc à ce projet défini depuis janvier 2010, le comité national de pilotage de la réforme du secteur de la sécurité a ainsi pour mission d’assurer la supervision, l’orientation et le suivi de la mise en œuvre du programme de réforme, tel qu’élaboré par le séminaire national sur la réforme profonde des secteurs de défense et de sécurité organisé du 28 au 31 mars dernier.

De son côté, le président de la République en prenant la parole, a tout d’abord laissé entendre que la réforme du secteur de la sécurité et de la défense était une des priorités de son gouvernement. Pour lui, ces deux secteurs relèvent de ce qu’il appelle « les secteurs stratégiques de l’Etat » au nombre desquels figure également la justice. Il a également à faire savoir que le comité dont il était question du lancement était composé de toutes les entités de la nation : partis politiques, confessions religieuses, femmes, jeunes, syndicats, justice, forces de défense et de sécurité, etc.

Dans son fonctionnement, le comité national de pilotage est notamment composé d’une unité de gestion, une commission d’orientation stratégique, une commission technique et de suivi et des commissions techniques sectorielles.

Maniant à la fois la carotte et le bâton, le président de la République a promis de mettre à la disposition des forces de sécurité tous les moyens leur permettant d’assurer la sécurité des personnes et des pays, avant de s’en prendre à certains officiers de l’armée en ce qui concerne les risques de mauvaise gestions des ressources allouées aux forces armées. Comme pour dire que l’armée n’aura pas un statut d’exception par rapport au concept de changement.

Enfin, implicitement, le président de la République a révélé qu’il y a quelques erreurs lors de la récente libération massive de détenus. On l’a su quand le président a critiqué l’attitude du ministre de la justice qui, en ne consultant pas préalablement les services de police, a laissé sortir des bandits qu’il n’aurait pas du libérer. Cette erreur, confie le président : « fait que nous avons gracié des bandits de grands chemins qui utilisent aujourd’hui des armes de guerre contre la population… ».

Cette révélation risque bien de se retrouver au cœur des débats dans les prochains jours. Vu que manifestement que cette erreur ministérielle est à la base du regain de criminalité dans la cité. Une recrudescence qui, de son côté, expliquerait les récentes mesures notamment celles relatives aux patrouilles qui doivent avoir de 18 heures à 6 heures du matin.

Les privations de liberté ainsi que les éventuelles bavures dont d’honnêtes gens seront victimes seront alors la conséquence d’erreurs ministérielles. Et mêmes présidentielles quand on sait que c’est le Pr. Alpha Condé lui-même qui avait décidé d’élargir les dits détenus.

Salématou Diallo pour GuineeConakry.info

Madagascar: remise de vehicules aux Forces Armees

Source: Madagascar-Tribune

Le président de la Haute autorité de transition (HAT) a procédé ce lundi 20 juin à la remise officielle de 25 véhicules 4×4 de seconde main, de fabrication franco-allemande aux forces armées malagasy. Un autre lot est attendu, a-t-on appris lors de la cérémonie qui s’est déroulée au camp du 1er RTS à Fiadanana en présence du Premier ministre, du ministre des Forces armées, du secrétaire d’État à la Gendarmerie et de tous les commandants et autres chefs des différents corps qui composent les forces armées.

Faut-il souligner que cette remise de matériels roulants rachetés à l’Armée française intervient à quelques jours de la célébration de la fête nationale et du 51è anniversaire de l’Armée malagasy. Elle intervient également après les cérémonies de remises de médailles honorifiques malagasy aux coopérants militaires français et de remises de médailles françaises à des éléments de nos forces armées. Enfin faut-il rappeler que cette donation intervient après une autre donation d’équipements et effets vestimentaires le mois de mai dernier à ces mêmes forces armées ; mais surtout au moment où une vague de critiques acerbes de la part des observateurs venait de s’abattre sur les chefs militaires qui avaient réagi négativement à l’annonce par la SADC de son souhait d’un retour de Marc Ravalomanana sans condition ?

Quoi qu’il en soit, le président de la HAT, chef suprême des Armées malagasy, a saisi l’occasion pour faire passer son message ; une sorte d’avertissement et de mise en garde. « Aujourd’hui les forces de l’ordre peuvent lutter contre la recrudescence de l’insécurité, a-t-il expliqué, et désormais les forces armées sont unies et personne ne pourra les diviser. Nul homme, qu’il soit citoyen malagasy ou pas, ne peut les invectiver, ni les mépriser car cela touchera non seulement leur amour propre mais surtout celui de tout un peuple. L’Armée malagasy a sa place, son honneur et sa dignité, a-t-il déclaré à qui veut l’entendre devant l’assistance à la RTS Fiadanana ; car les forces armées sont le dernier rempart de la Nation ».

En tout cas, le président de la HAT, en sa qualité de Chef suprême des Armées, s’est dit fier de la place que tout un chacun a su redonner aux Forces armées malagasy au sein de la société et dans l’exercice de leur métier. Dans son allocution, il a souligné que l’Armée malagasy retrouve progressivement sa juste valeur.

Par Valis

Togo: début du championnat paramilitaire volley-ball

Source: Republicoftogo

Le 15e championnat militaire et paramilitaire de Volley-ball a débuté lundi à Lomé; 15 équipes sont en compétition jusqu’au 26 juin.

En 2007, dernière édition organisée, c’est le régiment parachutiste commando (RPC) qui s’était attribué le titre.

Ce tournoi est organisé conjointement par l’Armée de l’air et sapeurs pompiers.

Sa vocation première est de développer l’esprit de cohésion, l’amitié et la fraternité entre les différents corps.
Le tournoi prend fin le 26 juin 2011.

Africa Region Security Organs discuss GBV

Source: Ministry of Defence Rwanda

Opening of Africa Region Security Organs workshop on GBV. (L.-R.) Hon Mussa FAZIL, Minister of Internal Security; Hon Tharcisse KARUGARAMA, Minister of Justice; Lt Gen Charles KAYONGA, Chief of Defence Staff; CGP Emmanuel GASANA, Inspector General of National Police.

Africa Region Security Organs workshop on Gender Based Violence (GBV) against women and girls kicked off yesterday the 20th June 2011 at Lemigo Hotel, Kigali City.

In his welcoming remarks, the Rwanda Chief of Defence Staff, Lt Gen Charles Kayonga, said that the presence of eleven countries in the workshop is a clear indication of their respective governments’ commitment to end Violence against Women and girls.

He said Rwandan Security Organs are on the right track to meeting UN Resolution 1325 urging member countries to increase the participation of women and incorporate gender perspectives in all United Nations peace and security efforts.

The Minister of Justice, Tharcisse Karugarama, as the guest of honor, shared with participants the Rwandan experience. He described the tragic situation the leadership of Rwanda inherited from 1994 genocide against Tutsi.

He said that cases of sexual abuse of girls and women during genocide generated consequences of stigma and trauma among Rwandan society. He said people should fight to have stable nation in order to avoid such situations.

One of participant in the workshop, Inspector Odon-Pierre Ambama from DRC described the Gender Based Violence situation in Africa as catastrophic and said it is a result of bad politics. Odon said however, that Africans are taking the situation as serious since they are trying to share experience to find solution on the challenges.

The participants will discuss among other subjects definition of gender based violence, prevention, mitigation and response in the contexts of domestic and peace keeping programs. They will also discuss on international framework as well as African legal instruments for addressing sexual gender based violence.

Countries which are represented in the workshop are Burundi, Rwanda, DRC, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Botswana, Uganda, Ethiopia, Nigeria and Zambia. The workshop shall be closed the 24th June 2011.

Sudanese Forces to Withdraw From Abyei Region as Ethiopian Troops Move in

 

Source: Bloomberg news

Ethiopian Soldiers courtesy Somaliweyn.org

Northern and Southern Sudan agreed today to withdraw their forces from the disputed border region of Abyei and the United Nations Security Council prepared to authorize deployment of Ethiopian peacekeepers.

“The agreement provides for demilitarization of Abyei, so the Sudan forces that are there will pull out and be redeployed out of Abyei, as well as any other military force,” former South African President Thabo Mbeki, who negotiated the agreement as head of the African Union’s High-Level Implementation Panel on Sudan, told reporters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the UN, told a meeting of the Security Council in New York that her government would circulate a draft resolution authorizing the Ethiopian mission. Envoys of the Security Council 15 member governments are considering a U.S.-drafted statement endorsing the accord.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon backed the agreement in a statement released in New York and said both sides to the conflict should “establish an administration and police service and to provide their full cooperation to the United Nations and government of Ethiopia in deploying peacekeeping troops and police to the area.”

Sudan’s army seized the main town in Abyei on May 21 after accusing Southern Sudan’s security forces of attacking its troops. The south is due to become independent on July 9. Fighting in Abyei and the northern Sudanese border state of Southern Kordofan has raised concern of a return to the two- decade civil war in sub-Saharan Africa’s third-biggest oil producer that ended in 2005.

Comprehensive Proposal

Mbeki told the Security Council that “good progress” has been made in a broader agreement on post-independence issues, including Sudan’s foreign debt, trade, currency and apportionment of oil revenue. This “comprehensive proposal” will be discussed in Addis Ababa tomorrow, Mbeki said.

“We are hoping that by the end of this month we should have concluded all of these, so that there is a clear picture by the beginning of July of what will happen,” Mbeki said. He also said discussion of security arrangements on the border of Sudan and Southern Sudan was “close to resolution,” with the size and composition of the force the outstanding issues.

“The government of Sudan is sincere in its determination to resolve all pending issues,” Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman, Sudan’s ambassador to the UN told the Security Council.

Since the Sudanese army’s occupation of Abyei, about 113,000 people have fled their homes, according to the UN.

Security Committee

A five-member security committee, with of two members each from the north and south and a chairman nominated by the head of the African Union, will “take overall responsibility for security in the Abyei area,” Mbeki said. The Abyei legislature will have a chairman nominated by the government, he said.

“Both sides have agreed that you could not come to the matter of determining the final status of Abyei until you had stabilized the security situation and taken all these measures to ensure there will be no further conflict in this area,” Mbeki said.

Abyei is contested between the region’s Ngok Dinka people, who are settled in the area and consider themselves southerners, and Misseriya nomads who herd their cattle south in the dry season and are supported by the government in Khartoum.

A referendum in Abyei scheduled for January on whether to join the south or remain a special administrative region in the north was canceled because of disagreements over who was eligible to vote.

Right to Vote

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, in a 2009 ruling, set Abyei’s borders to the area around Ngok Dinka settlements. That largely excluded the Misseriya, who say that as seasonal inhabitants of the area, they should also have the right to vote.

The court also set key oilfields run by the Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Co., which is 40 percent owned by Beijing- based China National Petroleum Corp., outside of the Abyei region. Abyei produces less than 2,500 barrels a day, according to Sudan’s Oil Ministry.

Drug traffickers may be using submarines in Africa

Source: AP

Latin American cocaine traffickers may be using submarines to move the Europe-bound drugs across the Atlantic Ocean, a top official said Monday during a conference aimed at stemming the flow of the drugs through Africa.

Alexandre Schmidt, the head of the West African branch of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, said drug cartels are known to have already used submarines off the South American and Caribbean coast. Even though no submarines have been seized in West African waters, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest they are in use there as well, he said.

« We are not talking about military vessels here, but rather smaller ones which can be bought freely on the international market by anybody who has a couple of million dollars to spare, » said Schmidt, who spoke during the inaugural session of a policy committee, dubbed the West Africa Coast Initiative.

The initiative was launched in 2009, after a United Nations report showed that the illicit flow of cocaine through the region boomed, surpassing even the GDP of some of the countries through which the drugs were trafficked.

West Africa became a stopover point for drug cartels after demand began to wane in North America at the same time prices soared in Europe, prompting the traffickers to shift their operation.

Due to tightened airport and maritime controls in Europe, the traffickers needed to find a halfway point. Experts say that the drugs were first brought to West Africa in small boats, then twin-engine planes. They landed on deserted islands and abandoned runways, before being parceled out to be carried north.

The cartels took advantage of corrupt institutions and lax law-enforcement, and in some countries they operated with the complicity of ruling families.

The trade evolved with the use of cargo planes, first discovered in November 2009 when a Boeing 727 landed in the Malian desert, miles from the nearest town or commercial airport. When authorities arrived, the aircraft had already been set alight, prompting authorities to speculate that it was being used to carry cocaine.

The lightweight submarines could be the latest evolution of the trade, said Schmidt. He pointed out that cocaine seizures have gone down throughout the region, at the same time that consumption in West Africa is going up.

What that shows, he said, is that the actual trade is likely increasing and that the cartels are simply becoming more sophisticated at hiding their operation.

« We should not be naive, » he said. « We will not change the situation here overnight. »

By NILS ELZENGA, Associated Press

Three slain in southern Somalia battle

Source: AHN All Headline News

Map courtesy Cal.org

At least three people have been killed and ten others injured in southern Somalia’s Gedo region after bitter combat erupted between government forces and fighters loyal to moderate Sufi group of Ahlu Sunna Walajama ASWJ against al Qaeda-linked militants.

Local residents said fighting broke out early Monday morning after al Shabaab militants launched a surprise attack on a Somali-Ahlu Sunna military convoy traveling in the village of Bohol Bashir, about 27 kilometers west of Luq town.

“Our forces are well trained and equipped and they were heading towards to Bay and Bakool region where al Shabaab right controls” Abdihakim Mohamed Fiqi, the minister of defense told state run Radio Mogadishu.

Fiqi said that the government has recently wrapped up training courses for nearly one thousands soldiers, adding that those soldiers are take control the regions of Bay and Bakool in southern Somalia.

Diyad Abdi Kalils, government military officer in Gedo region told All Headline News by phone that Monday’s fighting has inflicted on extremists with heavy and irretrievable losses.

For his part, the spokesman of al Shabaab, Sheikh Abdul-aziz Abdu Mus’ab claimed they had the upper hand during the battle.

Abu Mus’ab noted that they killed 14 soldiers of Somali government, accusing Ethiopia military forces of crossing into Somalia and direct help to the Somali forces.

In the past, the president of Somalia, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed said his army wass getting logistical support from Ethiopia.

 

NATO ‘bombed Libya military target, not civilians’

Source: AFP

A picture taken on a government-guided tour, shows rescue teams inspecting damaged buildings in Tripoli (AFP, Mahmud Turkia)

NATO insisted an air strike west of Tripoli hit a military target and not civilians as claimed by Moamer Kadhafi’s regime, as a British air force chief warned Tuesday of Libya overstretch.

NATO, reversing an initial denial, acknowledged its warplanes early on Monday carried out strikes in the Sorman area, 70 kilometres (45 miles) from Tripoli, but said its warplanes bombed a « high-level » command and control node.

Libyan government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim said 15 people, including three children, were killed in the attack, which he slammed as a « cowardly terrorist act which cannot be justified. »

Ibrahim said the attack was on an estate of a veteran comrade of Kadhafi, Khuwildi Hemidi, who served on the Revolution Command Council Kadhafi created when the strongman seized power in 1969.

Journalists escorted there by authorities saw damaged buildings on the sprawling estate.

Reporters were also taken to Sabratha hospital some 10 kilometres from Sorman, where an AFP correspondent saw nine bodies, including two children. They also saw body parts including a child’s head.

Canadian Lieutenant General Charles Bouchard, commander of NATO operations in Libya, insisted the military was targeted.

« This strike will greatly degrade Kadhafi regime forces’ ability to carry on their barbaric assault against the Libyan people, » said Bouchard.

« Wherever Kadhafi tries to hide his command and control facilities, we will find them and destroy them. »

The new Libyan claim of civilian deaths came just hours after NATO acknowledged that one of its missiles had gone astray early on Sunday, hitting a residential neighbourhood of Tripoli.

Rebels fighting Kadhafi’s four-decade rule blamed the veteran strongman for the deaths, charging that his forces deliberately stashed arms in schools and mosques.

« We are sorry for the loss of civilian life, » said rebel spokesman Abdel Hafiz Ghoga, adding: « We hold the Kadhafi regime responsible for having placed military armaments and rocket launchers near civilian areas. »

Italy warned that NATO’s accidental killing of civilians was endangering the alliance’s credibility.

« NATO’s credibility is at risk, » Foreign Minister Franco Frattini told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Luxembourg.

« We cannot run the risk of killing civilians. This is not good at all. »

At the Luxembourg meeting, the EU foreign ministers urged the use of frozen funds to finance Libya’s opposition.

The bloc said in a statement that it « acknowledges the urgent financial needs of the Transitional National Council » (TNC) and said the aid « where possible » could include « the use of frozen Libyan funds, » while respecting international law.

On Monday, the central bank in the United Arab Emirates froze the assets of 19 Libyan figures in line with UN sanctions against Kadhafi’s regime.

The rebels have warned they are running out of money as their struggle enters a fifth month and called on governments in the NATO-led coalition to make good their promises of funds.

In London, Air Chief Marshal Simon Bryant, the deputy head of the Royal Air Force, has warned that Britain’s ability to carry out future missions is under threat if its involvement in Libya extends past the summer, a report said Tuesday.

The comments by Bryant come just days after the navy chief warned of tough choices if the Libyan campaign lasts more than six months.

In a briefing paper for lawmakers obtained by the Daily Telegraph newspaper, Bryant, the air force’s head of combat operations, said missions in Afghanistan and Libya were together placing a « huge » demand on resources.

« Two concurrent operations are placing a huge demand on equipment and personnel… Should Operation Ellamy (Libya) endure past defence planning assumptions the future contingent capability is likely to be eroded, » Bryant said.

Meanwhile senior Libyan rebel leader Mahmud Jibril arrived in China on Tuesday as Beijing intensifies its involvement in efforts to resolve the crisis in the wartorn country.

Jibril, the top foreign affairs official in the Libyan opposition’s National Transitional Council (NTC), will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi during his two-day visit, ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters.

« China’s immediate task is to promote peace and encourage talks, » Hong said, adding the situation in the north African state, where unrest broke out in mid-February, « should not be left as it is anymore ».

« The Libyan crisis has lasted for four months — during this period of time, the people of Libya have suffered to the fullest extent the chaos caused by war, and infrastructure was greatly damaged, » Hong said.

« China expresses great concern in this regard. »

By Imed Lamloum (AFP)

Congo-Brazzaville: nomination de nouveaux officiers generaux

Source: Congo-Site portail

Le Président de la République, Denis Sassou N’Guesso, vient de nommer des nouveaux généraux des Forces armées congolaises (FAC). Voici les décrets portant nomination de ces généraux.

Par décret n°2011-390 du 17 juin 2011, le Président de la République, sur proposition du comité de défense, décrète : article 1er, est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de terre, infanterie aéroportée, le colonel Okoye Blanchard Guy.

Décret n°2011-391 du 17 juin 2011, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de terre, infanterie aéroportée, le colonel Bokemba Gilbert.

Décret n°2011-392 du 17 juin 2011, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de terre infanterie, le colonel Mouani Paul Victor.

Décret n°2011-393 du 17 juin 2011, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de terre artillerie, le colonel Ossélé François.

Décret n°2011-394 du 17 juin 2011 portant nomination d’un officier général, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de terre génie, le colonel Avoukou Emmanuel.

Décret n°2011-395 du 17 juin 2011 portant nomination d’un officier général, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de terre armement et munition, le colonel Mambou Guy Bleck Clément.

Décret n°2011-396 du 17 juin 2011 portant nomination d’un officier général, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de Contre-Amiral pour compter du 17 juin 2011, marine nationale commandement, le capitaine de vaisseaux Bouagnabea Moundanza André.

Décret n°2011-397 du 17 juin 2011 portant nomination d’un officier général, le Président de la République décrète, article 1er : est nommé à titre normal au grade de général de brigade aérien pour compter du 17 juin 2011, armée de l’air pilote de chasse, le colonel Tchikaya Jean-Baptiste Philippe.

Article n°2: Tous ces décrets seront enregistrés et insérés au journal officier et communiqués partout ou besoin sera.

Fait à Brazzaville, le 17 juin 2011.

Le Président de la République

Denis Sassou N’Guesso.

Tanzanian forces commander visits Dalian Naval Academy

Source: PLA daily

Gen. Davis Mwamunyange, commander of the Tanzanian People’s Defense Forces (TPDF), and his party paid a visit to the Dalian Naval Academy of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on the morning of June 16. They visited the teaching and training venues such as the history museum and the simulation training center of the academy accompanied by Shen Jinlong, commandant of the academy.

It is learned that the PLA Dalian Naval Academy has trained 85 officers for Tanzanian Navy since 1965. Currently, two Tanzanian officers are studying the course for navigation department officers in the academy.

By Lv Xiaolin and Ni Chan

Rwanda Security organs to host International workshop on VAWG

Source: Ministry of Defence Rwanda

Rwanda Security Organs, the current hosts of the Kigali International Conference Secretariat, are organizing the “Africa Region Security Organs Capacity Building Workshop on Violence Against Women and Girls: Prevention, Response and Peacekeeping” in Kigali, Rwanda, at Lemigo Hotel from June 20th–24th 2011.

The workshop aims to strengthen the role of African security organs in ending violence against women and girls by scaling up sensitization, capacity building and training, targeting violence against women and girls by developing standardized modules and conducting training at the regional level.

Security organ representatives from 12 Kigali International Conference signatory countries: Botswana, Burundi, Central Africa Republic (CAR), Chad, DRC Congo, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, and neighbouring countries Kenya and Tanzania will participate in this five-day workshop.

The workshop will increase the capacity of security organs to end violence against women and girls, focusing on prevention, response and peacekeeping. The workshops will include presentations to articulate gender concepts, analysis, legal frameworks, and best practices relevant to the security organs’ context and their practical application to national and regional scenarios.

Specifically, the workshop will cover the following issues:

Sensitization—To increase personnel awareness and appreciation of Security Organs on Violence against Women and Girls as a security, human rights and development issue.

Response—To strengthen security organs’ personnel capacity • for faster, friendly and effective service delivery and response to survivors of Violence against Women and Girls.

Prevention—To strengthen security Organs’ Capacity for prevention of Violence against Women and Girls through Community Policing approach.

Peacekeeping—To improve Security Organs’ skills and knowledge for preventing Violence against Women and Girls in Peace Keeping missions.

Sudan: UN condemns harassment of its peacekeepers in Southern Kordofan

Source: UN News Centre

UN peacekeepers patrol the streets of Abyei town following the attack by the northern Sudanese Armed Forces

The United Nations today strongly condemned the detention and abuse by the Sudanese armed forces of four UN peacekeepers who were on patrol in Kadugli, the main town in Southern Kordofan, where fighting is raging between the northern and southern armies.

The harassment of the peacekeepers was blamed on members of the northern army known as the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), UN spokesperson Martin Nesirky told reporters in New York.

“The Sudanese Armed Forces, the [southern] Sudan People’s Liberation Army [SPLA] and other armed groups must immediately stop intimidating and harassing UN staff, who are critical to provide the necessary humanitarian assistance to the vulnerable populations,” said Mr. Nesirky.

He said security and the humanitarian situation in Southern Kordofan remained of very serious concern amid intermittent fighting, shelling and military build-up in various areas of the state.

In the other disputed area of Abyei, the UN peacekeeping Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) confirmed that six shells fired by SAF earlier today landed 150 metres away from an UNMIS base in Agok. There is no report of casualties.

“We are in the process of verifying the details, as the SAF is claiming the shelling was part of an exercise, while the SPLA is stating that the SAF shelling was targeting SPLA positions and intimidating the local population around Agok. It remains to be determined precisely what happened,” said the UN spokesperson.

“Both sides must stop military actions, which are not only a threat to the UN in the area but to the local populations in the area,” he added.

Yesterday, a UNMIS team landing in Magennes – a contested area along the border of Upper Nile and Southern Kordofan states – was briefly detained by Government of Sudan police. The UNMIS team was accompanied by two members of the United Kingdom and United States consulates in Juba, the capital of Southern Sudan.

According to the Government of Sudan officials in the area, the flight did not have the requisite landing authorization, although UNMIS had obtained flight clearances from the Government of Southern Sudan in Juba. The entire team was released and returned to Malakal in Upper Nile state and no one was harmed in the incident.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), meanwhile, reported that the situation in Abyei remains tense and volatile a month since fighting resulted in the displacement of nearly 113,000 people.

Clashes between SAF and SPLA were also reported on Wednesday near the Banton Bridge in Abyei, according to OCHA, which added that UNMIS had confirmed the movement of SAF troops from Abyei town southwards towards the bridge and that of SPLA forces northwards from Agok town and Twic county.

An inter-agency food security and livelihood assessment team last week visited Wunrok, Mayan Abun, Turalei and Agok, where internally displaced persons (IDPs) who fled Abyei when it was taken over by SAF on 21 May found that the prices of staple food, such as sorghum, have increased by 40 per cent in local markets.

The spike in food prices is a cause for concern considering that rainfall is expected to intensify in two weeks rendering roads to Agok impassable, a factor that will reduce grain supplies to the area, according to OCHA.

A second convoy of 13 trucks carrying humanitarian aid, including fuel and other non-food items, was due to depart from Juba today headed for Wunrok, Turalei and Kwajok in Warrap state, Malualkon and Aweil in Northern Bahr el-Ghazal state, and Wau in Western Bahr el-Ghazal. Warehouses have been erected in Wunrok and Turalei and another store is under construction in Agok, according to OCHA.

This year’s joint funding appeal for humanitarian work in Sudan, which is seeking $1.7 billion, has currently received $731 million.

In Southern Kordofan, insecurity and restrictions on movement of humanitarian personnel continue to severely limit access to IDPs around Kadugli and other areas, OCHA reported.

As part of an inter-agency response, members of the Humanitarian Country Team have called for the creation of humanitarian corridors, particularly between Kadugli and El Obeid, to allow the safe passage of people who wish to leave.

OCHA reiterated its call on all parties to the conflict in Southern Kordofan to refrain from targeting civilians and using indiscriminate military tactics. The Office urged them to respect and protect civilians and allow access to them by emergency aid workers as required under international humanitarian law.

Josette Sheeran, the Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme (WFP), expressed deep concern over the escalating conflict in Southern Kordofan, saying that further fighting may undermine the agency’s efforts to reach the 400,000 people it was feeding before the latest outbreak of violence.

In a related development, the Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Kang Kyung-wha, will begin an eight-day mission to Sudan on Monday.

During the mission, Ms. Kang is due to visit Khartoum, Southern Sudan, Darfur and the Transitional Areas, and meet high-ranking officials, including the Vice-President of Southern Sudan, the country’s Foreign Minister and the Chief Justice.

In Darfur, she will visit several camps for IDPs and places of detention. She will also use the opportunity to raise key issues and lend her support to human rights defenders.

Senegal intend to increase military and technical cooperation

Source: Ukrainian News/ Interfax-Ukraine

Maitre Madicke Niang Senegal Minister of Foreign Affairs

Senegal interested in developing cooperation with Ukraine, Foreign Minister of Senegal Madicke Niang has said.

« During the visit we discussed military and technical cooperation, I raised this issue with Ukrainian counterparts, » the foreign minister said in an exclusive interview to Interfax-Ukraine.

He said that on a global scale Senegal is one of the largest contributors to the UN peacekeeping operations. « We are 12th in the global rankings in terms of the number of peacekeepers, therefore the Senegalese army requires proper equipment and training, » Niang said.

The minister said that the parties have recently started to cooperate in the supply of spare parts from Ukraine for Senegalese helicopters, as well as in the extension of their service life, and repairs involving Ukrainian experts.

« But this is only the beginning. We have agreed that we’ll work to prepare an intergovernmental agreement on military and technical cooperation… In addition, we talked about other aspects of cooperation in this field, which I can not disclose, » the diplomat added.

Niger : le coup de griffe de l’armée contre Aqmi

Source: Jeune Afrique

Des militaires nigériens, le 25 septembre 2010 dans le nord du Niger. © AFP

L’armée nigérienne continue de ratisser la zone du nord du pays où elle a eu un accrochage dimanche avec des combattants d’Aqmi. Donnant la priorité à la lutte contre les terroristes islamistes, l’état-major a réussi mercredi à intercepter deux de leurs véhicules.

Si l’organisation terroriste Al-Qaïda au Maghreb islamique (Aqmi) frappe de plus en plus au Niger, l’armée nigérienne a contre-attaqué mercredi. Après l’accrochage dimanche 12 juin 2011, entre des militaires et des combattants d’Aqmi, qui a fait deux morts dont un soldat, les poursuites engagées par l’état-major ont conduit à la destruction de deux véhicules de l’organisation ayant servi durant l’attaque, d’après une source des services de sécurité nigériens.

Selon cette même source, l’armée nigérienne, qui avait reçu des renforts ces derniers jours, a « neutralisé » l’un des deux véhicules en milieu de matinée, entre Arlit et Agadez (la capitale régionale). Elle a retrouvé l’autre engin peu après, abandonné plus à l’ouest en direction de la localité d’Ingal. Le troisième véhicule utilisé avait été réduit en cendres dimanche.

C’est grâce au guide nigérien des terroristes d’Aqmi, Apta Mohamed, qui s’est livré lui-même à la gendarmerie d’Arlit, que l’enquête a pu avancer et permettre la destruction de ces deux véhicules. Apta Mohamed est connu pour être un ex-combattant des rébellions touarègues, qui ont sévi dans la région d’Agadez au cours des années 1990 et de 2007 à 2009.

La piste islamiste confirmée

La source anonyme a également indiqué que les hommes armés de la fusillade étaient bien des éléments islamistes d’Aqmi, qui détient toujours quatre des sept otages enlevés en septembre dernier. Mardi, le ministère de la Défense avait d’abord qualifié ces éléments de « bandits armés ».

640 kg d’explosifs, 435 détonateurs, et 90 000 dollars saisis.

Entrés sur le territoire nigérien via l’Algérie, selon la radio RFI, les trois 4X4 roulaient depuis de la Libye voisine. L’information a été confirmée par les caisses d’explosifs (640 kg), et de détonateurs (435), retrouvées dans le véhicule abandonné et estampillées « Libye », a rapporté une source militaire. À bord du véhicule abandonné, 90 000 dollars américains (environ 63 612 euros) ont été découverts, selon le journal burkinabè Le Pays.

Aucune précision n’a été donnée  ni sur la destination des combattants terroristes ni sur les conditions de cette opération de poursuite. L’intervention apporte néanmoins une preuve supplémentaire du transfert d’armes de la Libye en crise vers l’Afrique subsaharienne, au profit de terroristes comme les combattants d’Aqmi.

« Baptême du feu » pour Mahamadou Issoufou

Alors que l’armée nigérienne poursuivait près d’Arlit les deux véhicules, au même moment, le ministre de la Défense Karidjo Mamadou réaffirmait la volonté du gouvernement et du président Mahamadou Issoufou de renforcer les mesures de sécurité dans la zone, selon la télévision publique.

Devenue essentielle depuis la résurgence de l’organisation islamiste l’an dernier,  la lutte contre Aqmi devient donc, selon Le Pays, un vrai « baptême du feu » pour le président Issoufou, tout juste élu en mars dernier. En effet, cet accrochage intervient alors même que les autorités nigériennes envisageaient le retour prochain des expatriés sur les sites miniers d’Arlit et d’Imouraren.

Lire l’article sur Jeuneafrique.com : Niger : le coup de griffe de l’armée contre Aqmi | Jeuneafrique.com – le premier site d’information et d’actualité sur l’Afrique

US pays European groups $1 million to hunt for anti-aircraft missiles in Libya

Source: The Washington Post National

The U.S. is paying two European mine-clearing groups nearly $1 million to hunt and dispose of loose anti-aircraft missiles that could make their way from Libyan battlefields to terror groups.

The hiring of weapons demolition experts hardly dampens concerns about anti-aircraft missiles still in the hands of the Gadhafi regime’s military, which amassed nearly 20,000 of the weapons before the popular uprising started in March.

The State Department’s hiring of British and Swiss weapons demolition teams in Libya was prodded by fears that terrorists could use scavenged man-portable air defense systems, known as MANPADS. The action came after American and allied authorities made it clear to Libyan opposition figures that their cooperation on the missile launchers would be a factor in future assistance, said U.S. and United Nations officials familiar with the discussions.

“From the U.S. point of view, it was an issue of paramount importance,” said Justin Baker, officer-in-charge of the U.N. Mine Action Service, which is overseeing the weapons disposal effort in Libya. “The Libyans seemed to get the big picture of what was necessary to present a credible international face.”

The move has no effect on the massive numbers of mostly Russian-built anti-aircraft launchers and missiles still in the hands of Moammar Gadhafi’s forces. While some shoulder-held and truck-mounted launchers were pillaged by rebel forces when they seized Libyan ammunition stocks, the vast majority are still held by the regime.

“I can’t imagine the U.S. can do anything about Gadhafi’s inventory until they defeat him or negotiate his exit,” said Matthew Schroeder, an arms expert with the Federation of American Scientists in Washington. “But even without that, securing any MANPADS loose in Libya is a good thing.”

The Obama administration listed the nearly $1 million anti-MANPADS effort this week in a report to Congress defending the legality of its intervention in Libya. The report included classified documents detailing a “threat assessment of MANPADS, ballistic missiles and chemical weapons in Libya.”

Most U.S. warplanes have electronic evasion systems and can fly above the range of the missiles, but most passenger jets are vulnerable. Reports have surfaced in recent weeks from officials in Algeria and Chad, and recently from Russian media, that several anti-aircraft missiles and launchers looted from Libyan government caches have already wound their way to the North African terror group, al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb. American officials have yet to confirm any of the reports.

Officials with the two firms hired by the State Department, the British-based Mines Advisory Group and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action, said almost all of the Libyan weapons depots they surveyed in recent weeks showed clear signs of looting. Libyan opposition forces took almost any useful weapon from Gadhafi regime stocks in the opening weeks of the conflict, and search teams have found few inventory documents, so it is impossible to trace which are missing and whether any were sold to terrorists or criminal gangs.

“The ammo dumps we’ve seen are either partially destroyed or picked clean,” said Alexander Griffiths, director of operations for the Swiss group, which now has 35 disposal experts working in rebel territory under a $470,000 U.S. grant. “We haven’t seen MANPADS so far and my guess is we won’t see many because they’re such a high-value item. They would be the first items to go.”

The British mine disposal group located and destroyed two of the portable missile systems near the northeastern Libyan opposition-controlled town of Ajdabiya last week, spokeswoman Kate Wiggans said. The group also found two other stray anti-aircraft missiles in May and destroyed them. All four were SA-7s, Russian-made portable missiles that date to the 1970s. Experts say many Libyan MANPADS are probably of similar vintage and some may be too decayed to use.

 

The Mines Advisory Group has three workers in Libya but plans to expand to at least 20, operating with $486,000 in State Department funding and $290,000 in British government aid, Wiggans said. Both she and Griffiths said that their demolition experts were taking care to avoid hot battle zones, coordinating with U.N. officials overseeing relief efforts in opposition-held turf.U.S. officials would not say whether the funding would continue beyond the end of the year. The U.S. has been the lead player in efforts to round up and destroy stray missiles, hiring contractors like the two European firms to scour battlefields and, in some cases, discreetly paying armed governments like Yemen to turn over missile stocks. The U.S. programs have destroyed 32,500 missile systems in 30 countries since 2003, but officials say thousands more still pose a hazard among the estimated 1 million manufactured since the late 1960s.

Passenger flights have never been targeted inside the U.S. Nearly a dozen lethal strikes have brought down passenger and cargo planes over the past decade in Africa and Asia.

 

Nato uses Twitter to help gather targets in Libya

Source: Mail & Guardian online

Nato is using information gleaned from Twitter to help analysts judge which sites could be targeted by commanders for bombing and missile strikes in Libya.

Potentially relevant tweets are fed into an intelligence pool then filtered for relevance and authenticity, and are never passed on without proper corroboration. However, without « boots on the ground » to guide commanders, officials admit that Twitter is now part of the overall « intelligence picture ».

They said Nato scooped up all the open source information it could to help understand Gaddafi, who is constantly changing his tactics and concealing himself — and his forces — in places such as schools and libraries.

« We take all sorts of information, but we can’t act on a single source, » said a Nato official. « It helps draw our attention to certain areas of the country where we see Gaddafi forces.[That] allows us to take action. »

The official suggested the sheer size of Libya made it difficult to get a full picture of what was happening across the country.

He said the organisation monitors Twitter feeds from Tripoli and other places for « snippets of information ». These could then be tested, corroborated or not, by Nato’s own sources, including direct lines of communication with the rebels, and imagery and eavesdropping from Nimrod spy planes. Nato is also aware that Gaddafi might be using Twitter to feed false information. « We have to be careful it is not used for propaganda [by Gaddafi’s forces], » the Nato official said.

‘Fused information’
Wing Commander Mike Bracken, another Nato spokesperson, confirmed Twitter was being monitored.

« Any military campaign relies on something that we call ‘fused information’, » he told a briefing. « So we will take information from every source we can. And if we get information from a press conference in Rome or we get information from somebody passing secondhand, we’ll get information from open source on the internet, we’ll get Twitter, you name any source of media and our fusion centre will deliver all of that into useable intelligence.

« The commander will assess what he can use, what he can trust, and the experience of the operators, the intelligence officers, and the trained military personnel and civilian support staff will give him those options. And he will decide if that’s good information, I’m going to act on it. Where it comes from, again, it’s not relevant to the commander. He will use all that is available to deliver his mission. »

Nato, he said, was being astute and would « take information from any source it can. The role of the intelligence officers and the personnel who work in headquarters here and in the other Nato headquarters is to fuse all of that information together and then provide the commander the best situation awareness he can be given.

Open source information
« Let’s be quite clear, Nato does not have boots on the ground. »

The British Ministry of Defence said it was normal military practice to gather all sources of open source information and that tweets from people in cities such as Misrata and Benghazi would be thrown into the intelligence mix.

« All this material is brought together and the intelligence analysts then have to decide what weight to put on them, » said a spokesman. « You would never act on one single source of intelligence, but Twitter can contribute to the overall intelligence picture. »

The Guardian reported earlier this month that former SAS soldiers and other Western employees of private security companies are helping Nato identify targets in the Libyan port city of Misrata. Special forces veterans were passing details of the locations and movements of Gaddafi’s forces to the Naples headquarters of Lieutenant General Charles Bouchard, Canadian commander of Nato forces, official sources said. The targets are then verified by spy planes and US Predator drones.

« One piece of human intelligence is not enough, » a source said. « The former soldiers are there with the blessing of Britain, France and other Nato countries, which have supplied them with communications equipment. » – guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media 2011

Abuja blast hits Nigeria police headquarters

Source: BBC

The blast was heard across Nigeria’s capital city

A powerful explosion has hit the Nigerian police headquarters in the capital, Abuja, officials say.

« The police force headquarters has been bombed, everywhere is bombed, » deputy police spokesman Yemi Ajayi told AFP.

An emergency official said a suspected suicide bomber had died in the blast.

A Red Cross worker told Reuters other bodies were being evacuated from the scene, from where a large plume of smoke can been seen rising. No-one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

However, Islamist group Boko Haram has recently been targeting police and government officials.

The BBC’s Jonah Fisher in Lagos says for the Nigerian authorities, the attack is an embarrassing strike at the very heart of their security establishment.

Officials say the explosion took place in the car park of the police headquarters.

« A suspected suicide bomber died in the incident. Many vehicles were destroyed, » Yushau Shuaib, a spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency told the AFP news agency.

Residents say the explosion was heard across the city.

Inauguration bombing

« My windows were shaking and I heard the loud noise. I saw smoke coming up, » Reuters news agency quotes one witness as telling a local television station.

An eyewitness told the BBC Hausa Service that he heard two explosions and saw more than 30 dead bodies and about 40 vehicles destroyed.

A bus commuter who saw the blast told the BBC’s Focus on Africa programme: « All of a sudden there was this loud explosion. Everybody was scared and people began to run around. »

He said police and Red Cross officials had rushed to the scene, and had moved people away from the area.

« We are evacuating the dead bodies, it is too early for us to judge how many. Our priority is to treat the living casualties right now, » a Red Cross spokesman told Reuters.

Most of Boko Haram’s attacks have been in the northern city of Maiduguri.

But the group said it was behind a series of bombings that took place hours after President Goodluck Jonathan’s inauguration last month.

On Tuesday, Nigeria’s police chief promised to decisively deal with the group by sending more troops and equipment to the north, declaring they would be finished within a few months.

The group accuses Nigeria’s government of being corrupted by Western ideas and wants to overthrow the state and impose Islamic law on the country.

It has killed dozens of people, mostly shot by gunmen riding motorbikes, in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state.

Last year, officials blamed two explosions in Abuja during celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of Nigeria’s independence on militants from the oil-rich Niger Delta around Port Harcourt.

Des hélicoptères russes pour Alger

Source: TTU

		Mi-28NE Crédits: OKB Mil

Le groupe russe Rosvertol a recemment indiqué, que les négociations avec l’Algérie pour la vente de son hélicoptère de combat Mi-28NE Havoc étaient en bonne voie.

Un contrat qui pourrait porter sur une vingtaine de machines et aboutir à une livraison entre 2012 et 2017. Une offre commerciale du groupe russe a été faite à Alger et les négociations devraient débuter cette année, indique le directeur général de Rosvertol, Boris Slyusar.

Le contrat avec Alger, évoqué depuis 2007, marquerait le second succès à l’export pour l’hélicoptère russe, dont une dizaine d’exemplaires ont été acquis par le Venezuela en 2010. L’Algérie dispose d’une flotte importante de près de 70 Mi-24/Mi-25, dont une trentaine ont été modernisés par le sud-africain ATE (SuperHind MkIII).

Hélicoptère de combat de douze tonnes biplace, le Mi-28NE est doté d’un mât radar et d’une conduite de tir par ondes millimétriques permettant l’emploi de missiles guidés de type 9M120 Ataka-V et 9K-121 Vikhr d’une portée de 10 km. L’appareil dispose d’un canon 2A42 de 30 mm (approvisionné à 250 coups) et les quatre points d’emport permettent la mise en œuvre de 16 missiles antichars, de pods roquettes et de missiles air-air Igla.

 

Africans Training Africans in Cameroon

Source: US Africom

DOULA, Cameroon – Commander Tim Keeton teaches a human rights and gender based violence course June 13, 2011, as part of African Partnership Station (APS) 2011 in Cameroon. APS is an international security cooperation initiative, facilitated by Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa, aimed at strengthening global maritime partnerships through training and collaborative activities in order to improve maritime safety and security in Africa. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Gary A Prill)

Senegalese military contributed a mobile training team in support of Africa Partnership Station (APS) 2011 in Cameroon, June 10.

For the first time in APS history, Senegal contributed a three-man team to teach a five-day visit board search and seizure (VBSS) course to Cameroonian, Congolese and Gabonese students.

« APS has grown, » said Captain Lawrence Rollo, maritime affairs officer for Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa. « We have more hubs focused on more training with international and multinational exercises at sea. In the future, we hope that this continues to grow and more African partners will step up as training teams for APS. »

Prior to this year, all APS training was conducted by country trainers from nations outside of Africa. Trainers have consisted of teams from Brazilian, Italian and the United States.

« APS is a program of partnership among African nations and other friends. It helps create fraternity, solidarity and cooperation among these African states, » said Senegalese instructor Raphael Toudji. « Already the communication is easier; we have shed the language barrier we had when working with many non-African partners. Additionally, our countries are becoming more aware that we truly have the same adversaries. They are not our neighbors’ militaries, but the illegal actors in our region. »

One of the most significant impacts of having African Nations teaching other African Nations is the relationship reinforcement the two countries receive.

« We need to reinforce these relationships of cooperation against the traffickers and pirates. The increase of sharing of intelligence and training among our nations ensures that the bad actors who are trying to take advantage of us will not prevail, » Toudji explained.

APS is a multinational security cooperation initiative, currently comprised of 34 nations and sponsored by Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa. It is aimed at improving maritime safety and security in Africa while building lasting relationships.

APS brings together an international team of expert trainers in a variety of military capabilities, and a handful of civilian fields. It focuses on addressing maritime professionals, maritime infrastructure, maritime domain awareness and response capabilities while simultaneously fostering regional and comprehensive approach.

By Petty Officer 2nd Class Gary A. Prill
U.S. 6th Fleet Public Affairs

Zimbabwe Military Said to Plan Own Ruler Should Mugabe Be Too Ill to Lead

Source: Bloomberg News

General Constantine Chiwenga Zimbabwe Defence Force Commander

Zimbabwe’s military and state security agencies plan to install the head of the armed forces as president should Robert Mugabe become too ill to rule, three officials familiar with the situation said.

Constantine Chiwenga will take over as national leader, sidelining Defense Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa, 64, and Vice President Joice Mujuru, 56, as potential presidents, according to the plan discussed by Mugabe loyalists who control the army, police, secret police and prison services. The officials, a military officer and two members of the highest decision-making body in Mugabe’s party, spoke over the last week and declined to be identified because the plan is secret and they fear reprisals for giving out the information. The military is concerned by Mugabe’s repeated trips to Singapore for medical treatment.

Zimbabwe is in the third year of an economic recovery after a decade-long recession caused by Mugabe’s policy of seizing white-owned commercial farms and distributing them to black subsistence farmers, which caused a collapse in export income and shortages of imported goods ranging from gasoline to corn meal, the country’s staple food. The stability brought by a coalition between Mugabe’s party and the Movement for Democratic Change has prompted investment in mining and agriculture.

Installing an army official as president would “send the few investors we have running,” said John Robertson, an independent economist who advises international companies with assets in Zimbabwe, in an interview from Harare, the capital. “There would be very considerable worry in the business community.” Zimbabwe has the world’s second-biggest reserves of platinum and chrome after South Africa as well as significant deposits of coal, gold and iron ore.

Cataracts

Mugabe, 87, has been in power since the country won independence from the U.K. in 1980 and has traveled to Singapore for treatment several times, according to the state-controlled Herald newspaper on May 19 and Zimbabwe’s Daily Mail on May 31.

He says the trips are for cataract operations and follow-up treatment, the Herald reported.

“I want to live to over 100,” Mugabe said, according to the newspaper. “For now I am as good as my age says. It is not an ailment.”

Zimbabwe has a number of eye surgeons including Solomon Gurumatunhu, who has treated Mugabe in the past, NewsDze – Zimbabwe, a website that publishes news on the country, said today.

In May ANC Today, the official newsletter of South Africa’s ruling African National Congress, said negotiators from the Southern African Development Community, which stretches from South Africa to the Democratic Republic of Congo, said they were concerned about leadership succession in Zimbabwe should Mugabe die before a new constitution is put in place.

‘Spill Blood’

The military is concerned that competition for the leadership of Mugabe’s Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front will split the party and weaken its chances of keeping power if Mugabe’s health deteriorates, the officials said.

Mujuru, as vice president of the party, is next in line as Zanu-PF’s candidate, John Makumbe, political science professor at the University of Zimbabwe, said from Harare today. Mujuru, a former guerrilla known by the nom de guerre of “comrade spill blood,” is the wife of Solomon Mujuru, the former head of the Mugabe’s liberation army in the 1970s.

“Zanu-PF rarely shifts from its protocol and Joice Mujuru is the most likely successor to Mugabe, ahead of Mnangagwa or anyone else.” Mnangagwa has served in Mugabe’s cabinets since the early 1980s.

Election Timing

Mugabe wants elections to be held before the end of the year while Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the MDC and prime minister in the coalition government, has demanded a new constitution be put in place first. Leaders of SADC agreed in Johannesburg on June 12 that a new constitution must be in place before the vote, the group’s Executive Secretary Tomaz Salomao said.

The MDC won a majority in parliamentary elections in 2008 and Tsvangirai boycotted the second round of a presidential election that year, saying his supporters were being attacked and killed by ruling party loyalists. Tsvangirai garnered more votes than Mugabe in the first round.

Chiwenga, who would quit the army to become president, will fill his cabinet with military officials, the army general said. The plan has the backing of Zimbabwe’s police chief, Augustine Chihuri, prison service commissioner, Paradzai Zimondi, and army and air force generals, some of whom fear prosecution if Zanu-PF loses power because of their participation in violent election campaigns over the last decade, the officials said.

Calls to the Harare office of Chiwenga, who was born in 1956 according to the Zimbabwe Independent newspaper, weren’t answered today. George Charamba, Mugabe’s spokesman, didn’t answer calls made to his office or mobile phone.

By Brian Latham

Madagascar security forces oppose ex-president’s return

Source: AFP

Madagascar’s security forces vowed Tuesday to block the return of exiled ex-president Marc Ravalomanana, rebuffing a bid by southern African leaders to end the island’s long-running political crisis.

The heads of the army, police and gendarmarie made the declaration at a military barracks after a Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit called Sunday for Ravalomanana to be allowed home two years after his ouster.

They said Ravalomanana’s return could threaten « public order and security, » pledging to « take all measures necessary » to prevent it.

Ravalomanana has been in South Africa since stepping down in March 2009 amid violent street protests.

He handed power to the military, which promptly ceded it to self-declared president Andry Rajoelina, then mayor of the capital Antananarivo.

The 15-nation SADC, trying to mediate in the crisis sparked by Ravalomanana’s ouster, on Sunday endorsed in Johannesburg a « roadmap to bring Madagascar into constitutional normalcy ».

The plan sees Rajoelina remaining in power until general elections are held, although no timetable has been fixed.

SADC however also urged the Rajoelina government « to allow Malagasy people in exile for political reasons to be allowed to return to the country unconditionally, including Mr Marc Ravalomanana. »

Ravalomanana faces life in prison in Madagascar after being sentenced in absentia for the killing of demonstrators by his presidential guard during the protests that led to his overthrow.

Thirty-six people were killed and hundreds wounded.

He denies any wrongdoing but Rajoelina’s camp has not backed down from threats to jail him if he returns.

Rajoelina also said his rival would only be allowed to return when security conditions were « favourable », as laid out in the roadmap.

Claiming to not know of SADC’s call for Ravalomanana to be allowed home, he added: « If he comes back to the country, matters of justice await him. »

The three security force chiefs said in Tuesday’s declaration that they were « deeply worried by the risks and real threats of trouble and confrontations that could be caused by his return. »

Army chief Brigadier General Andre Ndriarijaona, gendarmerie commander Brigadier General Jean Bruno Razafindrakoto and police Inspector General Desire Ranaivoson said there had been a « progressive return to normalcy in the life of the nation » since the start of the year.

The impoverished Indian Ocean island country has been gripped by political tensions since the ex-president’s ouster.

It has been suspended from both SADC and the African Union, and is losing 600 million euros ($861 million) a year from the European Union as the bloc suspended aid over the deadlock.

Its economy has shrunk since the start of the crisis — 3.7 percent in 2009 and two percent last year, according to a report by the National Coordination of Civil Society Organisations. It grew 7.1 percent in 2008.

Ravalomanana attempted to fly back to Madagascar with his family in February after announcing that he would return to help bring about democratic elections.

Officials at a Johannesburg airport would however not let them check in, saying they were « non grata persons in Madagascar ».

SADC also convened talks between Rajoelina, Ravalomanana and nine other political leaders in Botswana last week at which the return of the ousted president was a sticking point.

It follows a string of mediation talks, with Rajoelina refusing to honour a power-sharing deal reached in August 2009.