AFRICOM Related News Clips 25 May 2011

8/6/2019 AFRICOM Related News Clips 25 May 2011

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United States Africa CommandPublic Affairs Office25 May 2011

USAFRICOM - related news stories

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

Congolese battalion trained with purpose, but armed mostly with promises (Starsand Stripes)(Congo) The oppressive afternoon sun was still hours away, but by mid-morning themen in this American-trained battalion of Congolese soldiers were already exhausted.

Reid: Senate not to vote on Libya resolution this month (CNN)(Libya) The exact timing of a Senate vote on a resolution to back U.S. military action inLibya is not decided, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday, adding the votewould not come this month.

NATO Bombs Libyan Capital in Heaviest Strikes Yet (NYT)(Libya) In the heaviest attack yet on the capital since the start of the two-month-oldNATO bombing campaign, alliance aircraft struck at least 15 targets in central Tripoliearly Tuesday, with most of the airstrikes concentrated on an area around Col.Muammar el-Qaddafis command compound.

Exclusive: Libya's Ghanem may be on secret government mission (Reuters)(Libya) Top Libyan oil official Shokri Ghanem has not defected, contrary to widespreadreports, and is secretly working for Muammar Gaddafi to maintain ties with big oilcompanies, sources at western firms said.

Tunisian army fires tear gas at Libya border (AP)(Tunisia/Libya) Tunisian troops fired tear gas and warning shots on Tuesday to stopfighting between local residents and refugees at a camp on the border with Libya.

West Africa Rising: Ivory Coast recovering from season of violence (Christian ScienceMonitor)(Ivory Coast) Its now been six weeks since Laurent Gbagbo, the erstwhile president ofIvory Coast, emerged in his undershirt from a bunker beneath the presidential palace inAbidjan, ending a four-month standoff that claimed 3,000 lives and ground thecountrys economy to a halt.


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South Sudan Accuses Khartoum of Depopulation Campaign in Abyei(VOA)(South Sudan) South Sudan is accusing the Khartoum government of waging acampaign to depopulate southerners from the contested Abyei region and replace themwith nomads loyal to the north. Control of the oil-producing area is at the heart of abitter argument as Africas largest country prepares to divide into two in early July

Sixth and seventh Somalis enter guilty pleas in piracy trial (CNN)(Somalia) After cruising the high seas for nine days, a young crew of Somali andYemeni pirates spotted a U.S.-flagged yacht and boarded the vessel unbeknownst to itssleeping passengers in the hopes of cashing in on a big ransom, according to a courtstatement of facts.

Aid Groups: US Must Do More to Stop LRA in Central Africa (VOA)(Central Africa) A coalition of human rights groups says the United States should domore to stop the rebel Lord's Resistance Army in central Africa.

Museveni Sacks Bukenya As VP (The Monitor)(Uganda) President Museveni yesterday asked Vice President Gilbert Bukenya to resignfrom Cabinet, exactly eight years after he was first appointed to the job.

UN News Service Africa Briefs

Full Articles on UN Websitey UN-managed irrigation project in Sudan boosts communitys crop productiony Clashes in south-western Cte dIvoire hamper UN humanitarian effortsy UN human rights chief urges immediate end to violence in Abyei

-------------------------------------------------------------------------UPCOMING EVENTS OF INTEREST:

WHEN/WHERE: Wednesday, May 25; 10:00 a.m.; CSIS - 1800 K Street NW, B-1Conference Level, Washington, D.CWHAT: Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) discussion on "AfricanFutures 2050," a study released by the Institute for Security Studies and the PardeeCenter for International Futures at the University of Denver.WHO:Jakkie Cilliers, executive director of the Institute for Security Studies, Pretoria,South Africa; and Jennifer Cooke, director of CSIS Africa ProgramInfo: Andrew Schwartz, 202-775-3242, [email protected]; web site: www.csis.org

RSVP: [email protected]

WHEN/WHERE: Wednesday, May 25; 10:30 a.m.; 2172 Rayburn House Office BuildingWHAT: House Foreign Affairs full committee hearing on "War Powers, United StatesOperations in Libya, and Related Legislation."WHO: Members of Congress testifyInfo: 202-225-5021; web site: http://foreignaffairs.house.gov


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WHEN/WHERE: Wednesday, May 25; 12:30 p.m.; American Bar Association, 740 15thStreet NW, John Marshall Conference Room, Washington, D.C.WHAT: American Bar Association book discussion on "Darfur: When the Stars Fall tothe Earth."

WHO: Author Rebecca Tinsley, former BBC reporterCONTACT: Rabiah Burks, 202-662-1002, [email protected]: Rabiah Burks at [email protected]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------FULL ARTICLE TEXT

Congolese battalion trained with purpose, but armed mostly with promises (Starsand Stripes)By John VandiverPublished: May 24, 2011

KISANGANI, Congo The oppressive afternoon sun was still hours away, but bymid-morning the men in this American-trained battalion of Congolese soldiers werealready exhausted.

Where is your weapon? asked an American trainer after observing a young soldiersaunter by without his AK-47.

I dont have, the soldier answered with a shrug.

Infantry with no weapon? the American muttered to himself, shaking his head.

While the Congolese troops battled through a day of physical fitness tests, squeezingout as many pushups and sit-ups as they could, they were fighting the sluggishness thatcomes from training on an empty stomach.

Train, train, train No eat! shouted a Congolese enlisted soldier when asked aboutconditions at Camp Base, where meals arrive only once a day.

For the U.S. Africa Command, here to build a new rapid reaction battalion, the inabilityof the Congolese government to adequately pay, equip and feed its troops is deeplyworrying. Without a reliable food source, troops in the field have often resorted tostealing from vulnerable civilians to say nothing of the negative performance impactsof inadequate nutrition.

When they hit the bush, you can tell the difference between three meals a day andone, said Ken Spueil, a former U.S. soldier who works with reconnaissance troops atthe Kisangani camp. Youre limited with what you can do with these guys.


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By noon, theyve reached their training threshold, said Lt. Drew Giacomucci, a U.S.sailor based in Rota, Spain, who is helping train Congolese troops in de-miningtechniques.

The difficulty for the U.S. now lies in deciding how far to go with its military

partnership, and whether the training can have far-ranging effects.

Since last year, the U.S. has poured $35 million into its efforts at the camp in Kisangani,but without continued assistance in the form of money and trainers, it is unclearwhether the Congolese will be able to sustain what the Americans have helped themstart.

For example, in September, when the U.S. stopped providing food for the battalion atthe camp, transferring that responsibility to the Congolese government, meals abruptlydropped from three a day to just one.

Lt. Col. John Pierre Molengo, the commander of the Kisangani camp, downplayed thesignificance of the food and salary problems, instead blaming U.S. troops whointroduced a standard that is difficult to match.

AdvertisementWe were spoiled by eating like Americans, he said. The soldiers normal way ofeating changed.

Now, as the battalion prepares to embark on military operations against the rebel

Lords Resistance Army on a far-flung battlefield in the countrys north, it is unclearhow a steady supply of food and equipment will reach the soldiers.

The U.S., which isnt providing such operational support, is gambling that Congoleseofficials will make good on their promises to feed and equip their men and thusdiscourage them from preying on the very civilians they are supposed to protect.

But even before deploying, frustrations were mounting among the troops, whocomplained that their $45 monthly salary is not enough to feed their families.

The stakes

Here in the Democratic Republic of the Congo soon to become second-largestcountry in Africa once Sudan splits, bordering nine other nations in a tough andunfriendly neighborhood theres hardly been a time when large-scale humanitariancalamities didnt loom as an everyday threat.


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Between 1998 and 2003, more than 5 million people died as a result of war in the Congo,which drew in eight countries and dozens of armed groups. Many of the tensionscontinue today between rebels and military forces in the eastern part of the country,where the conflict is fueled by a competition for territory and valuable minerals.

James Entwistle, the U.S. ambassador to the DRC, said U.S. involvement is intended tomake sure what happened here in the late 90s, early 2000 doesnt happen again.

The needs here are overwhelming, he said.

U.S. officials say the Congolese battalion America has trained represents a small steptoward building a more professional force capable of securing Congos porous borders.

If you want stability in central Africa, you need to be involved here, said a U.S.military official speaking on background about the mission in Congo.

Greater security also could open the door to more economic development in a countrythat possesses some of the worlds largest reserves of rare-earth minerals essential forproducing everything from nuclear bombs to cell phones.

Congo also encompasses half of Africas forests and a river system that could providehydro-electric power to the entire continent, according to a United Nations report onthe countrys strategic significance.

This should be one of the richest countries on earth, said Entwistle. They potential

here is phenomenal.

The treacherous security climate has deterred many Western corporations frominvesting here. But China has not hesitated to fill the void, investing billions of dollarsto support its mining interests and feed the Chinese appetite for resources.

They focus on development projects, rather than worry about good government,Entwistle said. Still, they have some of the same frustrations that other foreigninvestors have here.

The strategy

The governments military, known as the FARDC, or Forces Armes de la RpubliqueDmocratique du Congo, is largely an army in name only. The soldiers at Camp Basereflect the countrys fragmented military past: an amalgamation of some 55 rebelgroups integrated over the past 10 years with virtually no training.


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The troops have come from all over the country. Some speak French, others Lingala orSwahili. The ranks are filled with the very young and the very old.

Against this backdrop, Special Forces troops from U.S. Africa Command launched a six-month program in early 2010 to build the new rapid-reaction battalion. In September,

those soldiers handed the mission off to U.S. contractors.

The U.S. has spent $15 million refurbishing facilities at the base, which could serve as aninstructional hub for soldiers across the country. Construction crews are buildinghardcover barracks to replace the tents soldiers currently call home.

Since 2009, AFRICOM also has trained about 100 Congolese personnel as part of ahumanitarian de-mining program.

The focus now is on getting these guys to lead the training themselves, said Jack

Holly, the chief of AFRICOMs humanitarian mine action branch.

Already, a cadre of Congolese soldiers who have been singled out for their skill areleading a similar effort to serve as trainers for the infantry.

During a recent training day, the hand-picked Congolese mentors were busy workingon their room-clearing skills with American instructors. Unlike many of the soldiers onthe base, who have little formal training, these men had many years of experience, andthe difference quickly showed as they swiftly moved through the drill with their riflesfixed on the target.

Were trying to reform our army, and were doing what we can to enforce armydoctrine here, said 2nd Lt. Konga Muhgbohgi, a 65-year-old soldier who attendedmilitary schools in France and Belgium during the early days of a military career thatstarted in 1968.

Though Muhgbohgi is outranked by men half his age in todays Congolese army, thesoldier said he was pleased to have a job.

I have no money and there is no retirement system in this country, he said.

While many of the men being trained come from undisciplined rebel groups, the olderCongolese trainers are a remnant of a once-formidable force that operated underregimes with reputations for brutality. The soldiers know about tactics, and theycontend that their younger counterparts are learning.


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These guys want to go out and defend their county, said Capt. Josef Ngbale, who alsoreceived training from foreign armies in the 1970s. If we can continue with thistraining, we will build a strong army.

Off to the fight

Among the rank-and-file soldiers, Spueil said hes seen a slow transformation. Aftermonths of training, the battalion has begun to develop the kind of esprit de corpsessential for unit cohesion.

Still, he harbors concerns. Theres a history of violence among the men and many havewitnessed searing atrocities. Will the lessons about rule of law and discipline hold upunder the strain of combat? Or will the men fall back on old ways when they disappearinto the bush?

Pvt. Kasereka-Kasivire Heritier, a baby-faced but boastful 21-year-old, said civilianshave nothing to fear when he deploys.

Im fit for war, said Heritier, who was first tested in battle as a 13-year-old childsoldier fighting as a rebel in Congos violent northeast. Our job is to protect.------------------Reid: Senate not to vote on Libya resolution this month (CNN)By Unattributed AuthorMay 24, 2011Washington - The exact timing of a Senate vote on a resolution to back U.S. military

action in Libya is not decided, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday, addingthe vote would not come this month.

Specifically, he said the vote would not happen before the Memorial Day recess, whichbegins when senators leave this week and is scheduled to run through June 5.

Veteran U.S. Sens. John Kerry, D-Massachusetts, and John McCain, R-Arizona, formallyintroduced a bipartisan resolution Monday expressing Congress' support for U.S.military action in Libya, laying the groundwork for what could be the firstcongressional action on the mission since it began more than two months ago.

The resolution falls short of explicitly giving the president congressional authorizationfor U.S. military involvement in Libya.

Friday marked a 60-day deadline that, under the War Powers Act, required PresidentBarack Obama to get congressional authorization for the war in Libya or begin towithdraw troops.


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The president never met that deadline, but late Friday, he sent a letter to congressionalleaders endorsing the Libya resolution Kerry and McCain had been working on assomething he would welcome.

"It has always been my view that it is better to take military action, even in limited

actions such as this, with congressional engagement, consultation, and support," Obamawrote in the letter.

The resolution by Kerry and McCain, which they had been working on for some timebut until Monday had not made public, is not a formal authorization of military actionin Libya. The resolution makes no mention of the War Powers Act.

It "supports the limited use of military force by the United States in Libya as part of theNATO mission to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 (2011), asrequested by the Transitional National Council, the Arab League, and the Gulf

Cooperation Council."

It also calls on the president to:

-- Submit to Congress a description of U.S. policy objectives in Libya, both during andafter the rule of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, and a detailed plan to achieve thoseobjectives

-- Consult regularly with Congress regarding U.S. efforts in Libya.

As for House action, Kevin Smith, spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, toldCNN Monday, "No decisions have been made about how to proceed and we'll discuss itwith our members."

Earlier, House Majority Whip Eric Cantor suggested Libya may be addressed in anamendment as part of a broader House debate this week on a defense bill, but it'sunclear what the language would be, if included.

In a statement announcing the resolution, senators said they sought strong bipartisanbacking for the Libya mission.

"The country is on the strongest footing when the president and Congress speak withone voice on foreign policy matters," Kerry said in the statement. "I'm pleased to haveworked on this resolution with a strong bipartisan coalition and I welcome debate andcongressional action on this important issue."--------------------------NATO Bombs Libyan Capital in Heaviest Strikes Yet (NYT)By John F. Burns


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May 24, 2011TRIPOLI, Libya In the heaviest attack yet on the capital since the start of the two-month-old NATO bombing campaign, alliance aircraft struck at least 15 targets incentral Tripoli early Tuesday, with most of the airstrikes concentrated on an areaaround Col. Muammar el-Qaddafis command compound.

The strikes, within a 30-minute period around 1 a.m., caused thunderous explosionsand fireballs that leapt high into the night sky, causing people in neighborhoods a mileor more away to cry out in alarm.

Just as one strike ended, the sound of jet engines from low-flying aircraft in the stormyskies above the capital signaled the imminence of another. Huge plumes of black smokerose and converged over the darkened cityscape.

We thought it was the day of judgment, one enraged Libyan said.

The intensity of the attacks, and their focus on the area of the Bab al-Aziziya commandcompound in central Tripoli, appeared to reflect a NATO decision to step up the tempoof the air war over the Libyan capital, perhaps with a view to breaking the stalematethat has threatened to settle over the three-month-old Libyan conflict.

As NATO intensified its airstrikes, the American State Departments highest-rankingMiddle East official, Jeffrey D. Feltman, was in Benghazi on Tuesday on a visit aimed atproviding fresh impetus to the rebel cause. Speaking at a news conference, Mr. Feltmansaid that the Obama administration had invited the Libyan opposition to open an office

in Washington, but stopped short of offering the formal recognition the rebels havebeen seeking.

This step marks an important milestone in our relationship with the TransitionalCouncil, Mr. Feltman said, referring to the rebel governing body, who he said hadaccepted the American invitation.

Several countries, including France and Gambia, have recognized the rebel council, butthe United States and Britain have not, instead sending diplomatic envoys.

In answering a question about what the rebels would have to do to earn formalrecognition, Mr. Feltman cited concerns about historic, legal precedents, but said thequestions about recognition frankly miss the point.

The point is Qaddafi and Tripoli are increasingly isolated diplomatically, he said. Hedid not announce any funding for movement, which has sought billions of dollars inaid and weapons. Were looking at what else we can do, Mr. Feltman said. Icertainly got some strong messages yesterday from council members.


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On Monday, Mr. Feltman toured the rebel headquarters, a visit that coincided with anannouncement by Frances defense minister, Grard Longuet, that Britain and Francewould add attack helicopters to the NATO force as soon as possible. The moveappeared to go at least some way toward meeting rebel appeals for stronger attacks on

Qaddafi loyalist fighters. British officials, however, said on Tuesday that London hadnot made a final decision on the deployment of attack helicopters, news agenciesreported.

As the rebels pushed for helicopter attacks, Tuesdays airstrikes shook the center of thecapital near Colonel Qaddafis compound. Libyan officials have accused NATO ofrepeatedly trying to assassinate Colonel Qaddafi with airstrikes on and near thecompound, and Colonel Qaddafi himself has mocked the attacks, saying NATO cannotreach him as he lives in the hearts of millions.

In a familiar pattern, the accounts of the latest attacks given by NATO and the Qaddafigovernment varied widely. A government spokesman, Moussa Ibrahim, said the strikeshad hit a compound housing units of an auxiliary army force known as the PopularGuard. He said military commanders had largely cleared the compound in anticipationthat it would be hit, and that casualties which he gave as 3 dead and 150 wounded were civilians from a nearby neighborhood.

NATOS account, issued from the alliances southern European headquarters in Naples,Italy, said the target was a government vehicle storage facility adjacent to the Qaddaficompound. It said the facility had been used by the Qaddafi forces since the revolt

against the government began in February, and has remained so ever since,resupplying the regime forces that have been conducting attacks against innocentcivilians.

Reporters taken to the Tripoli Central Hospital were shown three dirt-strewn malebodies in civilian clothes with gaping shrapnel wounds to their heads, and half a dozenother men being treated for what appeared to be light wounds. Mr. Ibrahim said thatthe other wounded had been treated and released before reporters arrived, or had beentreated at another hospital.

It was one of the few instances in recent weeks when reporters who have been told ofcivilian casualties from a NATO attack have seen any casualties, a pattern that has ledto persistent uncertainties about official accounts. Most NATO attacks are launched lateat night, and many of the buildings struck appeared to have been empty.

NATO has called the targets military, and often designates them as command-and-control centers; Qaddafi government spokesmen say the bombs and missiles have hitcivilian structures.


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Despite more than 2,500 NATO airstrikes, and an increasing focus in the past twoweeks on targets in Tripoli, there have been few signs of an imminent collapse of theQaddafi government, and rebel forces in the east, despite recent gains around the city ofMisurata, have shown no sign of a broader breakthrough to the west.

Low-flying helicopters, including Britains fleet of American-built Apaches and FrancesTigre gunships, would give allied air commanders more flexibility to strike atgovernment targets than the fast combat jets used until now.-------------------------Exclusive: Libya's Ghanem may be on secret government mission (Reuters)By Tom Bergin and Bill MacleanMay 24, 2011 11:34am EDTLONDON - Top Libyan oil official Shokri Ghanem has not defected, contrary towidespread reports, and is secretly working for Muammar Gaddafi to maintain ties

with big oil companies, sources at western firms said.

A Libyan opposition source and a source at a major international oil company saidGhanem, one of the most senior figures in Gaddafi's government, had invitedrepresentatives of oil companies to meet him last week in Tunisia, to discuss oilcontracts.

"There were some invitations or advances but we did not accept," said the source at awestern oil company. "He was holding court in some form."

A third source, at another western oil company, with operations in Libya, said thereports that Ghanem had deserted were incorrect.

"It is completely false that Shokri Ghanem is no longer working for Gaddafi'sgovernment," the source said.

Ghanem himself could not be contacted to comment.

A Libyan official representing Gaddafi's government is attending a meeting of theOrganization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' governing board in Vienna thisweek, an OPEC delegate said on Tuesday.

The official has told other OPEC governors Ghanem will represent Libya at the June 8OPEC ministers' meeting, the delegate said. OPEC officials had said they did not knowwho would attend from Libya after reports of Ghanem's defection.


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Companies have been unable to conduct operations in Libya due to the uprising againstthe regime and military strikes by western powers, which means they are not incompliance with the obligations in their contracts.

Ghanem wanted to reassure the groups that contracts would not be voided because of

this, and would be respected in future, the opposition source said.

This waiver could allow companies to return quickly to Libya, which is reliant on oilrevenues, should Gaddafi re-establish control and have international sanctions lifted.

Were the western oil companies to stay away from Libya for a protracted period, thecountry would struggle to rebuild production, which has been cut to a trickle by theviolence.

Libya's government said last Thursday that Ghanem had not defected and was instead

on an official visit to Tunisia and some European countries to " continue his work."

However, Tunisian Foreign Minister Mouldi Kefi said on Monday he believed Ghanemwas no longer working for Gaddafi's government and was staying in a hotel on thesmall southern island of Djerba off Tunisia. Big investors in Libya include Royal DutchShell Plc, France's Total, BP Plc, Norway's Statoil and Austria's OMV.

Sources at those companies said their representatives had not recently met Ghanem.-----------------------Tunisian army fires tear gas at Libya border (AP)

By Unattributed AuthorMay 24, 2011RAS AJDIR, Tunisia Tunisian troops fired tear gas and warning shots on Tuesday tostop fighting between local residents and refugees at a camp on the border with Libya.

The U.N. refugee agency withdrew its staff from the camp because of the unrest, saidspokeswoman Sybella Wilkes in Geneva and spokesman Firas Kayal in Tunisia.

At one point, an angry crowd of about 100 Tunisians fighting with the refugees at theChoucha refugee camp in Ras Ajdir used iron bars and clubs to attack a car carryingjournalists covering the unrest. Ahmed Bahadou, a freelance video journalist onassignment for The Associated Press, said the attackers tried to pull him and theTunisian driver from the vehicle.

The journalists, including American freelance photographer Gaia Anderson and Frenchradio producer Marine Olivesi, eventually sped away, but not before equipment such asa satellite telephone was stolen, Bahadou said in an interview.


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No casualties were immediately reported at the camp of 3,500 refugees on Tuesday, butviolence earlier this week has killed people.

Wilkes said tensions escalated Sunday when some of the refugees staged a protestbecause they believed they were going to be sent back to their home countries. Four

Eritrean refugees died when a fire spread through the Choucha camp, raising tensionamong its residents, she said.

In response, UNHCR, the Red Cross Federation and the Emirati Red Crescent withdrewtheir staff from the camp, fearing for their safety.

On Monday the protesters blocked a highway near the camp, angering locals andsparking clashes during which at least two people died, Wilkes in an interview. Thatprompted the UNHCR to call in Tunisian authorities to restore order.

"We understand there is a general atmosphere of lawlessness in the camp," Wilkes said."We are obviously very worried about the refugees."

Refugees blocked the main cross-border highway again on Tuesday, prompting morefighting between refugees and local residents.

Tunisian troops moved in and fired tear gas and warning shots to restore order, awitness said on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

The refugees mostly foreigners from Eritrea, Somalia and Ivory Coast who had

moved to Libya to work, then fled its unrest are frustrated at being kept in the campsso long.

In all, tens of thousands of refugees have fled Libya's fighting to Tunisia, which isstruggling to rebuild its economy after a popular uprising forced out its longtimepresident.

That uprising unleashed a wave of pro-democracy protests now taking place in theArab world.------------------------West Africa Rising: Ivory Coast recovering from season of violence (Christian ScienceMonitor)By Paige McClanahanMay 24, 2011Its now been six weeks since Laurent Gbagbo, the erstwhile president of Ivory Coast,emerged in his undershirt from a bunker beneath the presidential palace in Abidjan,ending a four-month standoff that claimed 3,000 lives and ground the countryseconomy to a halt.


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With its ports reopened and a new leader in place, Ivory Coast once West Africasmost vibrant economy has begun to get back on its feet. But the country has beendeeply wounded by its season of violence, and the effects of the turmoil are lingering.

In a key political display on Saturday, Mr. Gbagbos successor, Alassane Ouattara, wasformally sworn in as the countrys fifth president. Twenty heads of state attended theinauguration, as did United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

This ceremony today is not about the victory of one side over another, but aboutrediscovered brotherhood and new beginnings, Mr. Ouattara told the gathereddignitaries in the capital Yamoussoukro, AP reported.

Meanwhile, nearly 200 miles away in the remote northern city of Korhogo, Gbagboremained under house arrest in a villa guarded by UN peacekeepers and soldiers loyal

to Ouattara. The former leader, who refused to relinquish his decade-long hold on thepresidency after losing an election late last year, is being held for questioning over hisrole in the violence that gripped the country during the ensuing power struggle.

Think you know Africa? Take our geography quiz.

Its not yet clear whether Gbagbo will face any sort of trial in his home country, but itseems increasingly likely that he could face prosecution by the International CriminalCourt. Earlier this month, Ouattara invited the ICC to look into the countrys post-election violence, saying that conducting such an investigation within Ivory Coast

would risk running into all kinds of difficulties.

As the political dust begins to settle, life is slowly getting back to normal in Ivory Coast.Banks have reopened, schools are back in session, government salaries are being paid,and the ports are functioning again.

Critically, exports of cocoa Ivory Coasts most important cash crop resumed earlierthis month. About 400,000 tons of cocoa beans had accumulated in warehouses sinceJanuary, when Ouattara announced a ban on all exports in an attempt to cut off funds toGbagbo, who still controlled the ports. The resulting drop in supply caused cocoa to hitits highest price since 1979.

The first post-election shipment of cocoa sailed on May 8, Reuters reported, and priceson the international market have eased. But in many of the rural areas where cocoabeans are picked, life hasnt yet returned to normal.


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Aid groups say that many of the roughly one million Ivorians who fled their homesduring the crisis are too scared to return. An estimated 160,000 refugees are still livingin Liberia, according the UN refugee agency.

I can't go back to my field, one refugee in western Ivory Coast told Reuters last week.

I think someone has occupied it. The cocoa's just sitting there.

They killed a lot of people, the farmer added. I saw my neighbor shot dead with aKalashnikov in front of me, but I ran away.-------------------------South Sudan Accuses Khartoum of Depopulation Campaign in Abyei (VOA)By Peter HeinleinMay 24, 2011Juba, Southern Sudan - South Sudan is accusing the Khartoum government of waging acampaign to depopulate southerners from the contested Abyei region and replace them

with nomads loyal to the north. Control of the oil-producing area is at the heart of abitter argument as Africas largest country prepares to divide into two in early July.

Abyei remains under siege four days after Sudanese government troops and alliedmilitias bombed and shelled the town, forcing a mass exodus. United Nationspeacekeepers holed up in a compound reported the deserted town was being lootedand burned.

The south's dominant party, the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement (SPLM), hascharged Khartoum with deliberately driving out southerners from Abyei to make way

for nomadic Misseriya tribes that fought for the north during Sudans civil war. SPLMofficial Antipas Nyok told reporters the government is moving in Misseriya families toserve as a bargaining chip in future talks on whether Abyei goes north or south.

"Now they are transporting people from over 1,000 miles [1,600 kilometers],transporting them to Abyei, the Arab Misseriya, under pretext that these people willcome and occupy the houses which they have chased people of Abyei away, so later onthese people will claim the ownership of Abyei area," said Nyok.

Word that Misseriya are moving into the deserted town comes as the U.N. SecurityCouncil wraps up a three-day visit to Sudan to look at restructuring U.N. peacekeepingmissions after partition. The fighting forced cancellation of the Councils scheduledvisit to Abyei.

British U.N. Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said the northern governments seizure ofthe town must not be allowed to stand.


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"There are looting and burning now of the town, particularly by some of the Misseriyaand other militias, and we have made it very clear that it is the responsibility of theSudanese government to get their forces and their militias under control and towithdraw from Abyei town to allow some sort of independent security presence to bere-established there," Grant said.

Ambassador Lyall Grant said decisions on how to design a successor to the U.N.Mission in Sudan, UNMIS will depend on how events play out in the next few weeks.

"Part of the reason for coming at this time is that we want to be in a position before 9July to decide what the U.N. presence should be," added Grant. "There is an UNMIS,which is a north-south presence. The question is, do you continue that for severalmonths while the north-south issues are resolved, or do you split it into to two, andhave a border force, and then you have a new U.N. mission purely for the south."

Sudanese officials this week suggested they might not accept the continued presence ofU.N. peacekeepers after the UNMIS mandate expires July 9. But Ambassador LyallGrant expressed confidence that skilled diplomacy would be able to bridge what hecalled the very wide differences between Khartoum and Juba on Abyei and otheroutstanding issues.

The mediation is being led by former South African President Thabo Mbeki, head of theAfrican Union High Level Panel on Sudan, along with U.N. Special RepresentativeHaile Menkerios.

The Khartoum government suffered a setback Tuesday with word that a minister hasresigned, saying war crimes had been committed in the Abyei region. Minister LukaBiong Deng, a southerner from Abyei, said in a resignation statement that he could nolonger work in a national unity government with President Omar al-Bashirs rulingNational Congress Party.

Pressure on Khartoum is also mounting from Washington. U.S. Special Envoy to SudanPrinceton Lyman said Monday the seizure of Abyei could jeopardize plans to normalizeU.S.-Sudan relations, and for billions of dollars in debt relief.-----------------------Sixth and seventh Somalis enter guilty pleas in piracy trial (CNN)By David AriostoMay 24, 2011After cruising the high seas for nine days, a young crew of Somali and Yemeni piratesspotted a U.S.-flagged yacht and boarded the vessel unbeknownst to its sleepingpassengers in the hopes of cashing in on a big ransom, according to a court statement offacts.


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But the February hijacking went awry when the men allegedly opened fire on theyacht's four American passengers amid a standoff with U.S. Navy ships more than 400miles off the coast of Oman.

On Tuesday, two men involved in the incident pleaded guilty to acts of piracy in a

Norfolk, Virginia, federal court.

A 22-year-old man named Said Abdi Fooley said he had been looking for a job andjoined the group, carrying a semiautomatic assault rifle during the hijacking, accordingto the U.S. Attorney's Office in Norfolk.

The other man, Abdi Jama Aqid, said he had hoped to net between $70,000 and $80,000-- a fortune in Somalia, a poverty-stricken east African country -- for a job that involvedspotting potential targets for his pirate crew.

According to court documents, the group's financier was expected to receive 35% of anybounty paid, while the rest of the money would go to the alleged pirates and theirinterpreter.

Both men are set for sentencing on September 9 and could face life behind bars.

Their plea comes after two other alleged pirates -- Burhan Abdirahman Yusuf and JilaniAbdiali -- pleaded guilty to similar charges Monday.

A total of seven men have pleaded guilty to piracy and hostage-taking in the deadly

February 22 incident, though all have denied pulling the trigger or triggers that resultedin the deaths of their American hostages.

The men are among 14 alleged pirates from Somalia and one from Yemen who facecharges related to the hijacking and subsequent killing.

In a plea agreement, Yusuf said a person named Ibrahim -- the supposed leader of thegroup who was killed in the ensuing firefight -- told the pursing U.S. Navy ships, "Weare not going to stop; you try to stop us if you can."

Yusuf said that some of the men had discussed killing the captured crew in an effort tocompel the U.S. boats to retreat.

He later identified the alleged killers as co-defendants Ahmed Muse Salad, AbukarOsman Beyle and Shani Nurani Shiekh Abrar. Two other gunmen were killed by theNavy during the ensuing fight, according to court documents.


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When U.S. forces engaged the hijackers and clambered aboard the vessel, theydiscovered the bodies of ship owners Jean and Scott Adam and Phyllis Macay and BobRiggle.

Vice Adm. Mark Fox said the Navy responded after a rocket-propelled grenade was

fired at a U.S. Navy ship from about 600 yards away -- and missed -- and the sound ofgunfire could be heard on board the yacht.

The incident took place as negotiations involving the FBI were under way for thehostages' release, Fox said.

Two of the alleged pirates were found dead on board the vessel, he said. In the processof clearing the vessel, U.S. forces also killed two others, one with a knife, Fox added.

The incident marks one of the deadliest pirate hijackings involving U.S. citizens in

recent memory and comes at a time that the International Maritime Bureau describes asan "all-time high" for pirate attacks.------------------------Aid Groups: US Must Do More to Stop LRA in Central Africa (VOA)By Unattributed AuthorMay 24, 2011A coalition of human rights groups says the United States should do more to stop therebel Lord's Resistance Army in central Africa.

In a joint statement, the 39 groups urge the Obama administration to increase efforts to

arrest leaders of the LRA, which continues to terrorize communities in three Africancountries.

The groups also ask the White House to appoint a special envoy for the affected regionand support stronger U.N. peacekeeping efforts there.

The coalition says in the first four months of 2011, the LRA carried out at least 120attacks, killing 81 civilians and kidnapping 193 others, many of them children.

It says the governments of Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the DemocraticRepublic of Congo have not shown the capability or resolve to protect civilians from theLRA abuses.

The coalition said a U.S. law adopted a year ago gave the Obama administration an"unprecedented mandate to end LRA atrocities and help affected communities recover."

The human rights groups said while the United States has made improvements in someareas, it has failed to strengthen efforts to protect civilians and arrest top LRA leaders.


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Three LRA leaders - Joseph Kony, Okot Odhiambo, and Dominic Ongwen - are wantedby the International Criminal court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The LRA, once based in northern Uganda, is accused of killing, kidnapping, and

mutilating tens of thousands of people across central Africa over the last two decades.

The rebels have split into small groups in recent years, attacking and looting villagesacross the region.--------------------Museveni Sacks Bukenya As VP (The Monitor)By Richard Wanambwa24 May 2011Kampala President Museveni yesterday asked Vice President Gilbert Bukenya toresign from Cabinet, exactly eight years after he was first appointed to the job.

Prof. Bukenya confirmed the development in a telephone interview with thisnewspaper last night. "This is a relief," the out-going Vice President said. "Now I canlive my private life and make decisions that I would want to make. I will continueopenly to fight and remove poverty in the country."

Prof. Bukenya's resignation is expected to be confirmed today when PresidentMuseveni meets the NRM Parliamentary Caucus to discuss his new Cabinet. A renownacademic and scholar, Prof. Bukenya had a meteoric rise to the top of the political treebut his stint as the longest-serving VP under Museveni has been marred by allegations

of corruption - which he denies - and colourful revelations about his private life.

Prof. Bukenya, whose re-election as MP for Busiro North is being contested in court,said he would remain a faithful member of the ruling NRM party. "I will remain strongin NRM and I will continue supporting government's strong and positive programmesbut I will not hesitate to criticise wrong programmes," he told Daily Monitor last night."I thank those Ugandans who have been supporting me and look forward to moreadvancement of Uganda."

Prof. Bukenya's sacking comes after Parliament yesterday ordered ministers who wererecently re-appointed by President Museveni without parliamentary approval to vacateoffices as MPs voiced concern over the delay to constitute a new government.

While State House did not have an explanation on the delays to appoint a newgovernment, sources told Daily Monitor last evening that the President had summonedthe NRM Caucus for an impromptu meeting today at 7:30am, among others, to approvekey Cabinet appointments.


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Although the 8th Parliament on May 11, a day before President's swearing-in, hadrejected Mr Museveni's request to re-appoint ministers to their positions in actingcapacity, it emerged yesterday that the "Acting" Prime Minister Apolo Nsibambi,writing on behalf of the President on May 16, asked the ministers to stay in office.

Kasilo MP Elijah Okupa and Bugweri MP Abdu Katuntu raised the concerns inParliament-describing ministers as 'masqueraders' and accused the President ofdisrespecting Parliament. "We have illegal people in public offices masquerading asministers," Mr Okupa said. "Parliament has not approved any minister to serve in thenew government yet these people continue to serve illegally. They must leave publicoffices immediately."

Speaker Rebecca Kadaga told the House that the President wrote to her in the last weekof the 8th Parliament, re-appointing ministers, a move MPs insisted was illegal. "I havea letter from the President, he communicated to me. If you want the letter I can bring it."

But when she brought the letter at 3pm, she only waved it and promised to share thedetails with the members after the session. She later adjourned the House at about6:40pm without showing them the alleged letter from the President.

New yet old letter

A copy Daily Monitor obtained shows that the same letter Prof. Nsibambi referred to inthe House on May 11 when Parliament rejected President's request was the same letterMs Kadaga brought. However, the date on the "new" letter was changed to read May 16instead of April 8.

MPs were concerned that in a letter tagged as "Most Urgent" from the Prime Ministercommunicating President Museveni's decision, a specific Article of the Constitutionempowering the President to re-appoint ministers in acting capacity in a newgovernment and without the parliamentary approval was not indicated.

Mr Ladislaus Rwakafuzi, a city lawyer, said: "The law is clear; this is a new governmentwith fresh mandate from the people. All ministers must be vetted afresh by Parliamentbecause their term of office expired on May 11 before midnight. It's unconstitutional, it'sillegal and they need fresh mandate to serve as acting ministers."

The deputy Principal Private Secretary to the President, Mr Kintu Nyago said: "It'swithin his (President Museveni's) right. He is the one with the mandate to appointministers. Those people (complaining) can sue him. He received advice from theminister for Constitutional Affairs." Meanwhile FDC Leader Dr. Kizza Besigye willtoday name the leader of opposition in parliament.--------------------------UN News Service Africa Briefs


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Full Articles on UN Website

UN-managed irrigation project in Sudan boosts communitys crop production

24 May Irrigation equipment provided through an initiative managed by the UnitedNation Development Programme (UNDP) has enabled more than 1,000 farmers in

north-eastern Sudan to increase harvests and boost incomes from the sale of theirproduce.

Clashes in south-western Cte dIvoire hamper UN humanitarian efforts24 May Armed clashes in south-western Cte dIvoire have displaced thousands ofwomen and children, halted a vital polio immunization campaign, and are threateningother forms of life-saving assistance, the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF)reported today.

UN human rights chief urges immediate end to violence in Abyei

24 May The United Nations human rights chief today condemned the recent attacks inthe disputed Sudanese region of Abyei and called on the governments of both the northand the south to peacefully resolve the crisis.

Documents

AFRICOM Related News Clips 25 May 2011