Consuming Fire on the Mountain of Africa?: Islamist Terrorists from Somalia hit Kenya

RT latest report says Kenyan military spokesperson Colonel Cyrus Oguna confirmed that “most of the hostages have been released, and the Kenya Defence Forces has taken control of most parts of the building," where at least 68 people were killed in an attack. Four military personnel were injured during the latest rescue operation, Kenya Defense Forces stated. Kenyan authorities have regained control of most of the mall and have rescued most of the hostages, Kenya Defense Forces tweeted.

Kenyan forces have launched a major assault to free the hostages trapped inside the mall. US President Barack Obama has also called Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta to say that the US will support Kenya's efforts to bring the perpetrators of the shopping mall attack to justice. Former Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, said that the militants had established contact with the country’s authorities. He did not mention the attackers’ demands. Beside Kenyans, among the victims of the attack are also citizens of France, the UK, Canada, China, South Korea and India.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has sent a telegram of condolence to Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta, saying Russia strongly condemns this act of terrorism, the Kremlin’s press-service reported. Security forces have “a good chance” of neutralizing the attackers at the shopping mall, said Kenya's president Uhuru Kenyatta. "The criminals are now located in one place within the building. With the professionals on site, I assure Kenyans that we have as good a chance to successfully neutralize the terrorists as we can hope for," he told reporter

At least 68 people are now reported to have been killed according to Kenyan Red Cross and over 200 others wounded by Al-Qaeda-linked militants in a Nairobi shopping mall, as the hostage crisis there has entered its second day. Foreigners are among the casualties. 10 to 15 gunmen are still inside the shopping mall, a Kenyan minister has reported. 30 hostages are still inside the building, according to the country’s officials and Western diplomatic sources cited by CNN. AP journalists reported from the scene that gunfire was heard in the mall on Sunday morning.

They added that following the shooting, two wounded Kenyan security forces were carried from the mall. Israeli advisers are reportedly helping Kenya to work out a strategy to end a siege at the mall. "There are Israeli advisers helping with the negotiating strategy, but no Israelis involved in any imminent storming operation," an Israeli security source told Reuters. President Kenyatta also lost close members of his family. Ghanaian poet, Kofi Awoonor also died in the Westgate attack after sustaining serious injuries. Awoonor was in Nairobi to speak at the Storymoja Hay Festival, a four-day celebration of writing, thinking and storytelling.

Along with Ghanaian poets Nii Parkes and Kwame Dawes, Awoonor was due to perform on Saturday evening as part of a showcase of award-winning poetry from both sides of Africa. He died age 78. One of the smiles of Africa is gone. His son was severely injured too but new report shows he has been discharged from the hospital. Witnesses said the attackers ordered all Muslims to leave the premises, as only non-Muslims would be targeted. "The casualties are many, and that's only what we have on the outside. Inside there are even more casualties and shooting is still going on," Kenya Red Cross Society Secretary General Abbas Guled said.

A police officer inside the shopping centre said the gunmen had barricaded themselves into the Nakumatt supermarket. "We have reports of American citizens injured in the attack, and the US Embassy is actively reaching out to provide assistance," State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said in a statement, Reuters reports. Al Jazeera International has reported that Al Shabaab, a hardline Islamist group with a stronghold in neighbouring Somalia, told them that they carried out the Nairobi shooting.

"We got three bodies from this shop. And a couple of bodies here," he said pointing to an abandoned hamburger bar, Reuters reports. Some local television stations are reporting that hostages have been taken, but there has been official confirmation. A Reuters photographer earlier said he saw five bodies outside the mall and a former British soldier said he saw four more people who had also been killed.

At least two dozen wounded were wheeled out on stretchers and shopping carts. Many of the victims had sustained what appeared to be superficial wounds inflicted by flying debris. Others were seen walking out of the building with bloodied articles of clothing wrapped around their injuries. "I Personally touched the eyes of four people and they were dead. One of them was a child. Its carnage up there," said a former British soldier at the scene.

Police are currently engaged in an ongoing shop-by-shop sweep of the complex. "They have seven hostages, confirmed," an officer told AFP. Kenyan soldiers were also deployed to take part in the operation to bring the shopping complex back under control. Police helicopters circled over the building as sporadic gunfire could be heard more than two hours after the attack was launched. Police cordoned off the roads surrounding the mall in central Nairobi's Westlands neighborhood.

Kenya’s interior minister said the mall shooting may be “an attack by terrorists.” "It is a possibility that it is an attack by terrorists, so we are treating the matter very seriously," Mutea Iringo, the principal secretary in the Ministry of Interior told Reuters. Asked if foreign security services were involved in the operation to flush out the attackers, he said, "At this stage it has not become necessary yet." Nairobi police Chief Benson Kibue blamed the attack on terrorists, though he did not name a group. Five assailants, armed with AK-47s and grenades launched their attack on the Westgate shopping mall in the Kenyan capital around midday.

Gunmen were said to have lobbed grenades at the onset of the strike. They then proceeded to shoot indiscriminately and took several people hostage at the mall in Nairobi, a senior Kenyan government source said. Armed police arrived on the scene nearly half an hour later and could be heard shouting "get out, get out" as scores of shoppers fled the building. Smoke billowed out of the entrance, which was believed to have been caused by the grenade attack.

"They don't seem like thugs, this is not a robbery incident," Yukeh Mannasseh who was on the mall's top floor when the shooting started, told Reuters. "It seems like an attack. The guards who saw them said they were shooting indiscriminately." Other witnesses said that the gunmen had asked all Muslims to vacate the mall, as only non-Muslims would be targeted in the attack. When asked if the attack was a robbery, one paramilitary officer replied, "No, terrorist".

An AFPTV reporter said police and security guards were trying to secure a multi-screen cinema complex inside the mal where many had taken shelter. The reporter said she saw at least 20 people rescued from a toy shop on one of the upper floors of the building. A shop manager who managed to escape said it had appeared “the shooters had taken control of all the mall.”

The Somali militant group al-Shabaab had earlier threatened to strike the mall, as it is a popular destination for the city’s expatriate community. However, no one has yet to claim responsibility for the assault. One victim said that he had been shot by a man who appeared to be Somali, while others noted the gunmen were speaking in a foreign language. "A Somali guy shot at me. The guy who shot me was carrying a rifle, an AK-47," said  Saptal Singh, who was in a cafe in the top floor of the mall.

The sleeping of Africa on the world stage will eventually consume it. Apparently, most of the people involved in this attack were foreigners. The consuming war of Washington versus Al Qaeda is fast moving around countries close to Muslim-populated countries or countries with a sizable number of Muslim population. One begins to wonder when Africa will wake from slumber and see itself losing in the Imperialism versus Fundamentalism game despite not being a participant and has no interest whatsoever. Nigeria is currently battling its own. Mali just ended and one only hopes for a better future ahead, now Kenya.

Of what benefit is a belief that people use to send wrong signals to the world? Of what benefit is the follower-ship of a country that is really and advantageously secured where it is located but continuously precariously spread its tentacles of hatred with its policies? The two camps are same and Africa seems to be caught between the era of Trans-Saharan and Trans-Atlantic trades again. Somalia has continually been the albatross of the continent as many of today's fundamentalists had received their training in that country since 1991. Al Shabaab has already claimed responsibility for the Kenyan attack. The Twitter account of Al Shabaab which announced the attack has been suspended.

Macky Sall, Senegalese President says 'It's easy to condemn Africa'

Senegal has long been revered as one of Africa’s model democracies, one of the very few West African states with a tradition of civilian rule.

'It's easy when you are far away to condemn Africa. Africa is a continent that suffered injustices for ages. We can go back to slavery, colonisation.... All this led to a situation of neo-colonialism ... This is a complex phenomenon and we, heads of states, are aware of it. Today this is our responsibility. Believe me when I say we will sort out this situation'. ~Macky Sall, the President of Senegal

The country gained independence from France in 1960, and has suffered no serious upheavals since. It has an established multi-party system and boasts one of the region’s most stable economies despite high unemployment and poverty. The relative stability in Senegal is now threatened by the conflict in  neighbouring Mali.

The presence of Senegalese soldiers together with the West African and French troops in the fight against Islamists in the north has raised fears of reprisal attacks.

This stability record is also threatened by is its long running separatist war in the southern Casamance region [since the 1980s] that has claimed hundreds of lives.

The government’s refusal to extradite former Chadian dictator Hissene Habre, accused of crimes against humanity, has also led to widespread criticism. However, Senegal’s president strongly defends his country’s actions.

Elected in April 2012, over one year ago, Macky Sall, who describes himself as the “best-elected president in Africa”, has placed significant emphasis on the fight against corruption and bolstering Senegal’s position in Africa and the global stage.

After coming to power, Sall stated his intention of making peace with rebels in Casamance, as did his predecessor Abdoulaye Wade when he came to power in 2000.

Will he deliver on his promises or is it all just a political facade?

Courtesy: Aljazeera

United States Deploys Forces to Niger; Nigeria to host Drone Base

It is no longer a surprise that energy drove France to Mali because of Niger's Areva. Though France had an ulterior motive of her own to be in Mali, she however received massive accolades for the intervention. On getting to Mali, she deployed troops to Areva in Niger. Now, it is the US' turn.

The US military deployed about 100 troops in Niger to help coordinate intelligence sharing with the French, whose forces are currently fighting to seize Islamist-controlled territory in Mali, President Obama announced Friday.

The US forces are armed with “weapons for the purpose of providing their own force protection and security,” Obama said in a letter to Congress, adding that Niger officials consented to their deployment. The president said the troops will operate out of Niger to help gather intelligence information about the conflict in Mali, but did not elaborate on any specific plans that will be assigned to them.

The announcement comes just a few weeks after the Nigerian Defence Ministry revealed their approval to host an airbase for unarmed American spy drones, which could be used in Mali to monitor Islamists.

Nigeria, Israel and Iran: Treading a Dangerous Path

Nigeria might be threading a path so dangerous for the corporate existence of the country with the SSS report that Iranian Terror Cell was uncovered in Lagos.

The State Security Service said in Abuja on Wednesday that it had uncovered a terror network, coordinated by Iranians, in Lagos.

 The SSS said this while parading a leader of an Islamic sect, Abdullahi Berende, and two others said to be operators of the Iranian terror cell gathering information about Israelis and Americans living in Nigeria.

Paraded alongside 50-year-old Berende were Sulaiman Saka and Saheed Adewunmi. The three were said to be working for Iranian terrorists planning to attack Americans and Israelis in the country. Another suspect, Bunyamin Yusuf is said to be at large.

This report comes a day after Nigeria signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Israel on irrigation farming. The report has every semblance with the model employed by the United States last year to pit Saudi Arabia against Iran when she announced a terrorist trained by Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRG), the highly trained and professional paramilitary body of the Islamic Republic's Armed Forces, wanted to attack the Saudi Arabian embassy in Washington.

The allegation died a natural death. Experts in the United States reported that the alleged attacker has psychological disorder and that Iran and the IRG could not have carried out such attempted attack. The body is far sophisticated in acts than that.

Now, Nigeria wants to follow the same path. Why Iran? These two nations; US and Israel have the most sophisticated intelligence units (CIA and Mossad) that can penetrate any regime and destabilise any government. Already, they believe Nigeria will disintegrate come 2015. Now, we are inviting them in full.

The implication of this with regards to the Tel Aviv and Washington styles is that militants will be annoyed in the North of Nigeria, hence they will increase attacks all in the name of the incident. Nigeria will then call on the US and Israel to send in 'intelligence experts' who rather than uncover plots to attack Nigeria will work secretly for the demise of the fragile entity.

Nigeria will be so gullible if all because she has signed an MOU with Israel on farming, she wants to frame and rope Iran in other to appease her and the US.

Seven French nationals kidnapped in Cameroon; taken to Nigeria

Armed gunmen have again seized seven French citizens in the north of Cameroon on Tuesday and were heading to Nigeria, media reports say.

A spokeswoman at the French embassy in Cameroon confirmed there had been a kidnapping, Reuters reported.

The tourists were kidnapped in the morning in a small village about 10km from the Nigerian border. The kidnappings come amid a French-led intervention in Mali to oust Islamist rebels. Eight French citizens are being held in the Sahel region by Islamist groups.

This is coming after a new militant group, Ansaru, claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of seven foreigners in Northern Nigeria.  The incessant kinapping cases are not unconnected with the promise of the al Qaeda-linked rebels in Mali to give France and Western nations a 'long war'.

Beyond the Invasion: Western Designs for Mali

The United States is likely to eventually resume direct support for Mali's military, but only after full restoration of democracy through elections, the head of a visiting US Congress delegation said.

Senator Christopher Coons, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on Africa, led the first American congressional visit to the West African nation since France sent a military force there last month to halt the advance of al Qaeda-allied islamists.

The United States and United Kingdom have been providing airlift and refueling support for the French-led operation involving hundreds of French and African troops that has driven the Islamist rebels from a string of northern Malian towns in the last five weeks.

Washington has also been sharing intelligence to back the operation, but ruled out sending its own ground troops mainly because of Afghanistan and Iraq's experiences as well as its battered image in the Islamic world.

Coons, heading a four-member delegation from the US Senate and House of Representatives, said both French and African military commanders were happy with the support that Washington was providing, but he indicated they might welcome more.

Asked if increased US support for the military intervention could materialize, Coons said US law prohibited direct assistance to Mali's armed forces because of the military coup there last year that toppled the elected government.

"After there is a full restoration of democracy, I would think it is likely that we will renew our direct support for the Malian military," Coon said.

French and African forces are hunting the Islamist insurgents who have retreated to Mali's remote Northeast, and Malian interim President Dioncounda Traore has said presidential and parliamentary elections will be held in July.

Coons said al Qaeda's North African wing AQIM and its allies in Mali and elsewhere posed a "very real threat" to Africa, the United States and the wider world and he said the United States wanted to be part of the response to this security challenge.

Before last year's coup in Mali - led by a US-trained Malian army captain - the American military had been providing combat training to several Malian army battalions.

But this was quickly suspended after the coup, which plunged Mali into chaos and led to the occupation of its Saharan north by jihadists who hijacked a rebellion by Tuareg separatists.

Although the French-led offensive has driven the bulk of the Islamist forces northwards back up to the Algerian border, there are fears their fighters and sympathizers could strike back with reprisal attacks in Africa and elsewhere.

The election in Mali will be largely determined by Western whims and caprices. France, UK and America's energy interest will determine who wins or not and this will likely contribute to more insurgencies which has always characterised Western interference in nations. This could ruin France's international accolade though they do not care  for as long as the uranium keeps coming.

Islamists Threaten to Attack Germany

A German Islamist threatened in an internet video to attack Berlin this summer and kill Chancellor Angela Merkel, Die Welt newspaper reported.

The video threat is being evaluated by the country’s security services, an intelligence spokesman said.

The Islamist Abu Azzam, believed to be a radical Salafist who moved to Egypt last year, added that Germany's Reichstag parliament building would be subject to attacks like those on New York's World Trade Center in 2001.

This event could not be unconnected from the activities of France in Mali and the worldwide support she receives especially from Europe. The Islamists in Mali have threatened to give France a long war through their axis in Europe and elsewhere.

Clashes in Senegal: 3 Senagalese and a French Die

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As France battles Islamists in Mali, another flashpoint seems to rear its ugly head in Senegal. The long-standing but internationally silent religious face-off in Senegal led to the death of four.

Four people, one French and three Senegalese nationals, were killed in Senegal's Southern Casamance region in clashes between suspected separatist rebels and government soldiers late Friday, a military source said.

He added that the death of the French citizen may not be related to the long-running war for independence in the mostly Christian Southern region of Senegal, which is predominantly Muslim.

West Africa is gradually turning into a complete haven of and for militants and islamic fundamentalists. This trend could consume the sub-region if not quickly checked and curbed.

Mali and the Burnt Manuscripts : A blow to History, Culture and Civilisation

Despite the claim by archivist that precious manuscripts have been safely moved earlier from Timbuktu to Bamako, some precious artifacts and manuscripts must also have been lost due to the destructive activities of the islamists in Mali.

A building housing over 60 thousand manuscripts from the ancient Muslim world and Greece was set aflame, raising fears of further damage to the country's cultural heritage after months of destruction by Islamists.

Timbuktu mayor Halley Ousmane, who is in Bamako, confirmed the fire at the Ahmed Baba Centre for Documentation and Research, which housed between 60,000 and 100,000 manuscripts, according to Mali's culture ministry.

"I spoke to my media officer this morning. What has happened in Timbuktu is dramatic," he said.

Ousmane said he had also been informed that Islamists had "burnt alive" a resident who had cried out "Vive la France".

The Ahmed Baba institute was set up in 1973. A new building was opened in 2009 following a bilateral agreement with South Africa to promote the conservation, research and promotion of the manuscripts as African heritage.

Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti on Monday indicated Rome was scrapping plans to provide logistical support for French-led forces in Mali due to a failure among the main parties to reach a political deal ahead of elections next month.

"I asked the leaders of the three parties of the majority to give their views but we did not receive the support we had hoped for," Monti, who is himself running as leader of the coalition of centrist parties, said in an interview with La7 television.

Defence Minister Giampaolo Di Paola last week said Italy would send a refuelling plane and two transport planes to carry troops and equipment in the conflict against Islamist-led rebels in Mali.

While expressing Italy's "strong support" for the operation, however, Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi said that "internal political conditions" meant Rome could not offer concrete backing at the moment.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Monday that London was "keen" to contribute more in addition to two transport planes and a surveillance aircraft which have already been provided.

The manuscripts are very crucial to West Africa as well as African civilisation and history. Most of them represent the earliest objective and undiluted accounts and experiences of travellers; most especially Arab traders and Islamic missionaries.

France has so far done the best. The French troops have successfully taken over Kidal, the last stronghold of the Islamists. Reports have it that some of the main leaders of the Islamists have escaped into neighbouring countries especially Nigeria.

Mali is being liberated

PARIS, Jan 28 (Reuters) - A French-led offensive in Mali that forced out al Qaeda-allied Islamist insurgents from the towns of Gao and Timbuktu at the weekend shows that Mali is slowly being freed, the French foreign minister said on Monday.

"Little by little, Mali is being liberated," Laurent Fabius told France 2 television. But Fabius cautioned that armed fighters from the Islamist alliance in north Mali, who had sought to impose Islamic law in the vast desert area, were now hiding and could reappear.

"The terrorist groups are carrying out a strategy of evasion and some of them could return in the north, primarily in Mali," Fabius warned. He declined to say whether France would intervene again if the militants returned.

Weekend gains by French and Malian forces capped a two-week offensive, involving warplanes and ground troops, launched to halt a southward push toward the capital, Bamako, by the loose coalition of Islamic militants.

French and Malian armoured columns forced fighters out of the central Malian towns of Diabaly and Douentza last week, and in recent days have inched their way northward.

"We are winning back a series of towns with the Malians," said Fabius, adding that troops from an African intervention force were preparing to deploy. Soldiers from Chad and Nigeria are already on the ground. (Reporting By Alexandria Sage)

Africa: Libyan Militants Supported Algerian Islamists

The interconnectedness among various militants and Islamist groups in Africa is growing nauseously. The militants who seized an Algerian gas plant before they were killed in a bloodbath received logistical aid from Islamists in Libya, a well-informed source told AFP on Tuesday

International media groups, including AFP, were able to get from Islamist circles based in Eastern Libya telephone numbers of the kidnappers as they last Wednesday overran the In Amenas gas plant in the deep Algerian desert.

37 foreigners were killed in the 4-day siege of the remote desert gas plant, some of them executed with a bullet to the head, Algerian premier Abdelmalek Sellal said on Monday. He said that a total of 29 militants were also killed and three captured in the siege, which got concluded on Saturday when Algerian special forces stormed the gas complex.

Algeria said its special forces managed to free 685 Algerian and 107 foreign hostages, most of them on Thursday, during their first rescue operation. During the deadly standoff, several media outlets had talked of a “Libyan connection” to the siege.

Algerian website TSA cited a security source saying the kidnappers had entered Algeria from Libya in official Libyan vehicles, while other outlets argued that the weapons the kidnappers used came from Libya.

When questioned by AFP, Libyan officials simply reiterated the words of their prime minister, Ali Zeidan, who denied that the kidnappers entered Algeria from Libya, saying the Libyan territory was not being used for launching operations that threaten security of neighbouring countries.

Algerian premier Sellal on Monday that the militants had crossed from Northern Mali. The Libyan source said that Libyan Islamists had no organisational link with the group, “Signatories in Blood” which led the four-day siege of the gas complex.

The group is led by one-eyed Mokhtar Belmokhtar, one of the founders of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM ). Belmokhtar left Al-Qaeda in October to create his own group. Jaber al-Abidi, an analyst, has no doubt Libyans were involved.

“It is clear that there is a link between Libyan extremist groups and those who led the In Amenas operation,” said Jaber al-Obeidi, an analyst and political activist. “Libyan extremists are present in northern Mali and helped carry weapons from Libya after the fall of the regime” of Gaddafi, he added.

The “Signatories in Blood” group had said that its attack on the gas complex was in retaliation for French intervention in northern Mali. Algeria’s Sellal dismissed this, saying the assault had been planned for nearly two months, long before France intervened in northern Mali.

Since the fall of Gaddafi’s regime in October 2011, Libyan Islamists have gained influence and inherited a large military arsenal from the conflict that ousted and killed him. Their ability to strike was illustrated by the murderous assault launched September 11 on the US consulate in Libya’s eastern city of Benghazi that killed the American ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans coupled with attacks on security men.

According to the Libyan source, the Islamists who attacked the gas facility entered Mali “transiting through Niger and Libya from the Salvador triangle,” a barren stretch of desert that borders Libya, Algeria and Niger. Libya has long struggled to monitor its 4,000-kilometre (2,500-mile) land border. Boko Haram is also said to be strengthened by the various Islamist groups around Nigeria, in the Sahel and Sahara.

Mali and the Return of Mass Unrest in Africa: Remembering Kwame Nkrumah

The various resurgent unrest in Africa in both Sudan and South Sudan, attempted coup in Eritrea, lack of peace in DR Congo, rebel movement in Central African Republic, Islamists in Mali, Somalia and Algeria, Boko Haram in Nigeria and in other numerous flash-points around the continent remind one of nothing than the exertions of Nkrumah towards building a formidable continent and his predictions just as accurate as they are happening now.

The Osagyefo (Kwame Nkrumah) in the independence era of Africa; 1960, worked tirelessly across Africa preaching the gospel of a united and unified Africa. He postulated that Africa is not yet fully independent till she can control her destiny economically. Nkrumah strive for an Africa with a global voice. His actions were hinged on the creation of a United States of Africa with a United African Government backed militarily by an African High Command.

The African High Command will be a standing and standby force responsible for checking any heinous, nefarious and nauseous activities of saboteurs and rebels. The African High command will be a readily available force to be deployed. The failure of ECOWAS to act fast in Mali, AU's obfuscating mission in Somalia and Sudan are cases that proved the neglected sagacity of Nkrumah right.

The rationale for this was emphasised. He stated that Africa shall be consumed by smaller wars due to the numerous arbitrary borders created by the departing Europeans. They succeeded in establishing a 'keg of destructive explosive missiles' meant to be detonated continuously to ensure and preserve Western agenda on the continent. Nigeria and Liberia were two countries that stood against the futuristic wisdom of Nkrumah cogently and they are reaping from the sabotage anyway.

The Osagyefo was accused of pursuing a programmme for personal benefits because Ghana seemed sound as at then having got independence earlier. One wonders what difference exists in getting independence three years earlier. The foundation he laid in Ghana in making the country a unified whole without tribal tones represents the pillar for Ghana's advancement today. Those countries who stood against a united Africa's mission are today in abject poverty and unrest.

Most African leaders abhor unity because of greed. The lack of trust they display all the time is to ensure nothing tampers with their greed and avarice. Their corrupt personal gains are above the continent's glory and advancement.

Nigeria and Religion Again!!! Fall of France and Nigeria Predicted in Mali

“No Nation Can Fight Islam And Succeed” (Sheik Gumi)
Islamic cleric Sheik Ahmad Mahmoud Gumi has raised an opposing view to the decision by the Nigerian government to send troops to fight on the side of France against so-called “Islamic terrorists” in Mali.

In a post on his website, the cleric argued that there was no justifiable reason to send troops.

He wrote:

“Today Nigerian troops are committed in Mali to fight ‘Islamic terrorists’ without intellectually looking at the repercussion of such an adventure. We all know that the ‘War against terror’ which Islam also fights can easily be turned into war against Islam. There is a thin line between the two. And if caution is not taken, the situation can seriously be dangerous for the nation and more so for the government.

“One thing is very clear. No nation on earth can fight Islam and succeed. A Russian General was interviewed just before the illegal Bush Jr's attack on Iraq to oust Saddam Hussein and he urged Bush to tap into Russia's experiences in Afghanistan. The General said: “I advise the US not to attack Iraq, because if it does that, then it will be fighting the whole Muslim community and whoever fights the whole Muslim community will not succeed”.

"When I heard those words, I was amused. First I knew that Saddam Hussein was not a favorite of many Muslims, I therefore wondered who will fight for him if Iraq is attacked. Secondly, what weapons do the Muslims have that the superpowers cannot defeat in warfare?

“I now see what he means. The Soviet Union fought the Mujahideen for almost 13 years in Afghanistan and ended up disintegrated. Now, the USA is facing a similar challenge that made the Soviet Union unmanageable and finally fall. The USA has been a free country where money flows in and out, where business flourishes with little hindrance. But the moment Bush lied and tried to attack Iraq, a sovereign nation, all the Muslim states - even those that are moderate – were frightened by his recklessness.

“Americans were also frightened of a possible backlash from such an adventure, inflaming an already volatile situation. The end result has been stringent monitoring and restriction of the flow of money in and out of the country. A self-imposed umbilical stenosis, a self-imposed strangulation. Nobody will again trust the USA, therefore people now prefer Asia for their business, medical care and even education.

“All this was started by an idiot who caused untold hardship for his citizens and others alike. Today, Bush Jr and his defense secretary ‘Hamana’ Rumsfeld are nonentities even in their own country. They are not respected and they will forever be tormented with the sights of so many American youth that were maimed and had limbs amputated from the deceptive war against ‘terror’ they manipulated.

“As for Nigeria, we can see a parallel when in the late 60’s Maj. Nzeogwu assassinated the Northern premier and the Biafran War ensued. Ojukwu, in his declaration of war,said bluntly that he was fighting Islam and the menace of Arabs which he claimed. The end results were that he destroyed lives, went into exile and to date Biafra ceases to exist except of course in the mind of its proponents.

“And worse still for him, Islam has reached the shores of the Delta. This brief description of a chain of events should be a clear counsel to people leading Nigeria today; no one can fight Islam or the Muslims and succeed. It is futile to attempt it. They will only destroy their own lives and cause untold hardship to others. They will be cursed not only by people they injured but by their own people as Bush Jr is regarded now in America. Therefore if the government has such plans or are deceived by some Islamaphobes in their circles they should reverse their policies immediately.

“There is no border sharing between Nigeria and Mali. There is Niger republic, Burkina Faso and Togo in between. All these nations did not report terrorism and yet suddenly we read in the news that ‘the Army Chief of Staff (COAS) Azubuike Ihejirika, who did not offer evidence, claimed that terrorists trained in Mali had already arrived on Nigerian shores. See: http://saharareporters.com/news-page/‘terrorists’-mali-seen-nigeria-..., Posted: January 17, 2013 - 22:19.

“If what he said is true, then Nigeria is unnecessarily plunging itself into a War that will have a grievous consequence on our security without any foreseen benefit.

"Let us encourage the Malians to tackle their insurgency peacefully, and not by taking sides. If however, the SS&SE (COAS) wants to use the volatile situation to build on what his predecessor Azazi implanted, then we leave him to posterity. Time will tell. All we do is to urge Muslims to be calm, prayerful and watchful.” 

The US and NATO in Mali?

The stage could be set for the coming of the United States and NATO into Mali. NATO and the United Kingdom has reiterated that they will not intervene militarily in Mali with boots on the ground. UK has sponsored France with aircraft and ready to provide more logistics. The call within the Republican circle that Obama should respond to France is reminiscent of Libya.

France has called on the Security Council of the United Nations to discuss and this might shore of international support for the mission. The Islamists on their part have promised France a long war. The have being launching a counter-offensive to drive home the point that the war is continuous and could get to mainland France.

The Obama administration should give France whatever aid it needs to combat Islamist militants in Mali, the top Republican on foreign affairs issues said Tuesday. 

“I expect the Obama administration to honour appropriate requests for intelligence and logistics support from France,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) said in a statement. “When confronting a shared threat, we should have our ally’s back.”

Royce's comments come amid reports that France is beefing up its intervention to roll back Islamists who have taken over the northern part of the desert country and are threatening the rest of the country. The French intervention was requested by the country's president, who took over following a military coup last year that has been denounced by the Obama administration.

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said Monday the United States has a “responsibility” to help roll back the al Qaeda-linked militants in Mali.

“I welcome France taking the initiative to combat this serious security threat in West Africa,” Royce said. “The vast area of Northern Mali gives these al Qaeda-linked militants space to operate, and the weapons flowing out of Libya makes them deadly. This cancer could not go unaddressed.

“This isn’t avant garde for the French. They have shown leadership in working with Ivory Coast and other African governments to improve security. Paris understands the high stakes.”

If the United States is involved, then NATO cannot be extricated from Mali too. The fear is that another Libya might be brewing in West Africa and more weapons will be in circulation; hence, another vicious circle of violence and instability if they leave.

UN Security Council, Ecowas and Mali

UN Security Council and Ecowas to meet on Mali

France has called on the Security Council to hold a meeting to discuss the situation in Mali, where Paris intervened on Friday to help fight the Islamist insurgency there. The meeting will take place Monday afternoon, a spokesman for the French UN Mission Brieuc Pont, said in a tweet posted Sunday.

This comes as the French operation in its former African colony enters its third day. On Sunday, French fighter jets bombed strongholds in northern Mali, targeting airports as well as training camps, warehouses and buildings used by the Islamists controlling the area.  The militants are said to have links to al-Qaeda.

Ecowas on Monday made it known that the regional group will meet and discuss Mali. This comes after France, the erstwhile colonial master has taken up the challenge and lead to combat the Ansar Dine Islamists. The United Nations last year September gave Ecowas the green light to tackle the insurgency in Mali but the group decided to act in autumn giving the rebels more time to act and cover more tracks.

France has been heavily bombarding the rebels with heavy firepower but has met stiff and unflagging resistance from the islamists too. The rebels are reported to be in possession of heavy ammunitions with sophisticated trainings and military skills.