africom related news clips 2 june 2011

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United States Africa CommandPublic Affairs Office2 June 2011

USAFRICOM - related news stories

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

US general says no evidence Algeria backing Kadhafi (AFP)(Libya) The top US general responsible for Africa said Wednesday he had no evidencethat Algeria has sent mercenaries to support the regime of Libyan strongman MoamerKadhafi.

CDS visits US Africa Command in Germany (Ghana News Agency)(Ghana) The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), LieutenantGeneral Peter Augustine Blay, has paid a five-day official visit to the headquarters ofUnited States Africa Command (AFRICOM) in Stuttgart, Germany.

House GOP Delays Vote on Libya (WSJ)(Libya) House Republican leaders on Wednesday abruptly canceled a vote on aresolution forcing U.S. withdrawal from Libya amid signs an unusual alliance of liberalsand conservatives could approve the measure, indicating Congress's growingdissatisfaction with the extent of U.S. military operations overseas.

NATO Extends Libya Air War (Radio Netherlands Worldwide)(Libya) NATO agreed Wednesday to extend its Libyan air war by three months anddismissed charges by Moamer Kadhafi's regime that the bombing campaign has alreadykilled 718 civilians.

UN Panel: Libyan Forces, Opposition Committed War Crimes (VOA)(Libya) A U.N. panel investigating the conflict in Libya says forces loyal to Libyanleader Moammar Gadhafi and opposition forces in the country have committed warcrimes.

Libyan rebels in a fight they don·t control (Washington Post)(Libya) As part of their mission in Libya, the United States and its European allies haveunleashed a high-tech assault from the air, deploying AWACS spy planes, unmannedaircraft and sophisticated satellite systems.

Many CiviliansHave Been Killed in Disputed Region of Sudan (NYT)



(Sudan) Officials from the disputed Abyei area of Sudan said Wednesday that 116civilians, including many children, had been killed last month when the northernSudanese army seized Abyei.

US says Somalia needs governance to defeat piracy (AP)

(Somalia) A top U.S. commander Wednesday said piracy in Somalia can only bedefeated if the international community helps restore governance in the poor, lawlessAfrican country.

Growing Numbers of Young Children Wounded, Killed in Somalia (VOA)(Somalia) In the Somali capital Mogadishu, more and more children are becomingvictims of the fighting between pro-government forces and the Islamist militia alShabab.

Africa's Green Revolution may be a long time coming (Christian Science Monitor)

(Pan-Africa) It's tough to keep your eye on the long view when the prospect of famine isat the door. But that's what organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,CARE, and the United Nation's World Food Programme are trying to do more andmore.

Public Information is Set Free As FOI Becomes Law (This Day)(Nigeria) Do you want to know how much Nigeria spends on importing petroleumproducts and who the contractors are? Simple. All you have to do now is write a letterto the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to request the information.

UN News Service Africa Briefs Full Articles on UN Websitey Delegates to UN-backed gathering on Darfur endorse draft document on peace

pact

y UN official arrives in DR Congo to spotlight humanitarian crisis

y Sudan: UN delivers food aid to thousands displaced by conflict in Abyei-------------------------------------------------------------------------UPCOMING EVENTS OF INTEREST:

WHEN/WHERE: Thursday, June 2, 2011 - 09:00 - Thursday, June 2, 2011 - 0930-1130;U.S. Institute of Peace Headquarters

B241, 2301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. 20037WHAT: High Stakes: New Reports on the Democratic Republic of CongoWHO: Laura Seay, Professor, Morehouse University, Blogger, TexasinAfrica; JoshuaMarks, Central Africa Program Officer, National Endowment for Democracy; TiaPalermo, Assistant Professor, Stony Brook UniversityInfo: http://www.usip.org/events/high-stakes-new-reports-the-democratic-republic-congo



WHEN/WHERE: Tuesday, June 14, 2011 - 2:00 pm-3:30 pm; U.S. Institute of PeaceHeadquartersB241, 2301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. 20037WHAT: The Future of South Sudan: A Conversation with H.E. Vice President RiekMachar

WHO: �H.E. Lt General Dr. Riek Machar, Vice President, the Government of SouthernSudan; Tara Sonenshine, Introduction, Executive Vice President U.S. Institute of Peace;David Smock, Moderator, Senior Vice President, Center of InnovationU.S. Institute of PeaceInfo: http://www.usip.org/events/the-future-south-sudan-conversation-he-vice-president-riek-machar ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------FULL ARTICLE TEXT

US general says no evidence Algeria backing Kadhafi (AFP)

By Unattributed Author June 1, 2011ALGIERS ³ The top US general responsible for Africa said Wednesday he had noevidence that Algeria has sent mercenaries to support the regime of Libyan strongmanMoamer Kadhafi.

"I have seen absolutely no reporting that indicates that Algeria is suporting themovement of fighters to Libya," General Carter Ham, who heads the US Africacommand (AFRICOM), told journalists in Algiers.

"To the countrary, Algeria has been suporting and strongly so regional security andcountering terrorism," Ham added.

Libya's National Transitional Council, an umbrella group for the various rebel forcesfighting to topple Kadhafi, has accused Algeria of sending mercenaries to support theembattled dictator.

Algeria has strongly denied the accusations.

On his first visit to the country since taking charge of AFRICOM, Ham said his"command is commited to strengthening and expanding this relationship and workingwith Algeria in a number of areas regarding mutual security cooperation interests."

Ham discussed the unrest in Libya and regional security with Abdelkader Messahel,Algeria's minister responsible for Africa and the Sahel, according to a statement fromthe Algerian foreign ministry.

Ham also met with President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.



----------------------CDS visits US Africa Command in Germany (Ghana News Agency)By Unattributed Author June 1, 2011Accra, June 1, GNA ² The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of Ghana Armed Forces (GAF),

Lieutenant General Peter Augustine Blay, has paid a five-day official visit to theheadquarters of United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) in Stuttgart, Germany.

The visit from May 2-6, which was at the instance of AFRICOM, was to enable the CDSto attend training and logistics conference to consider the assistance AFRICOM couldextend to GAF.

A statement issued by the GAF Public Relations Directorate in Accra on Tuesday saidthe US military had a long history of cooperation with GAF.

´This is centred around training and logistics support for the professional developmentand training of personnel of GAF.

´It is therefore in the spirit of this cooperation and in furtherance of the cordial relationsthat already existed between the US and GAF that the CDS attended the conference,µthe statement added.

The statement said at the end of the visit, AFRICOM pledged to provide training andlogistics support valued at several millions of dollars for GAF between 2011 and 2013.

The support pledged included provision of vehicles, communication equipment, roadconstruction at Bundase Training Camp, repairs of naval boats as well as humanitarianassistance in some communities.

The CDS was accompanied by Deputy Director General in-charge of Training at theGeneral Headquarters, Directors of Training of the three services, his Military Assistantand Aide-de-Camp.

The CDS and his team have since returned home.-------------------------House GOP Delays Vote on Libya (WSJ)By NAFTALI BENDAVID And SIOBHAN HUGHES June 1, 2011WASHINGTON - House Republican leaders on Wednesday abruptly canceled a voteon a resolution forcing U.S. withdrawal from Libya amid signs an unusual alliance ofliberals and conservatives could approve the measure, indicating Congress's growingdissatisfaction with the extent of U.S. military operations overseas.



The House had been scheduled to vote on a resolution by Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D.,Ohio) requiring President Barack Obama to withdraw from Libya within 15 days. Themeasure cites the 1973 War Powers Resolution, which says the president must getapproval from Congress if a military operation lasts 60 days or more.

But at a closed-door meeting of House Republicans Wednesday, GOP leaders weresurprised by members' strong concerns about the Libya operation. Some conservativeswere prepared to support Mr. Kucinich's resolution, Republican aides said.

The House is now expected to take action on Mr. Kucinich's measure on Friday, eitherby voting on it or setting a date for a vote. At the same time, Republican leaders areworking to come up with alternatives that are less far-reaching than the Kucinichprovision to allow lawmakers to vent their displeasure.

The reaction to Mr. Kucinich's measure reflects a growing dissatisfaction in Congress

with the extent of U.S. military operations overseas, in Iraq and Afghanistan as well asLibya. These concerns have brought together liberals and conservatives in an unusualalliance.

Last week, the House failed by a narrow margin of 204 to 215 to approve a measure thatwould have required an "accelerated" withdrawal from Afghanistan. The bill,sponsored by Reps. Jim McGovern (D., Mass.) and Justin Amash (R., Mich.), wasbacked by 26 Republicans, including Rep. Ron Paul (R., Texas). All but eight Democratsvoted in favor.

"I don't see it as a partisan issue," Mr. Kucinich said of his resolution. Many Housemembers are concerned the White House is bypassing Congress's power in times ofwar. "If we do not challenge the president's usurpation of the war power, we are settinga historical precedent that is very dangerous," he said.

Yet Republican leaders were concerned about another type of precedent if Mr.Kucinich's resolution were approved. Presidents, and many scholars, question theconstitutionality of the War Powers Resolution. Beyond that, congressional leaders arewary of forcing the commander-in-chief's hand in the middle of a military operation.

One possible GOP alternative to the Kucinich resolution would simply declare thatCongress has not approved the Libya operation. In any case, no measure, including theKucinich resolution, would have authority if it were not also approved by the Senate,and Senate leaders do not seem inclined to jump into the issue at this point.

U.S. involvement in Libya was discussed extensively at Wednesday's meeting of theRepublican Study Committee, which represents the most conservative Republicans."We ought to send a very strong message to the president that he did not have the right



to do this unilaterally," said Rep. Dan Burton (R., Ind.), a co-sponsor of the resolutionwho attended the study committee meeting.

At the study committee meeting, "there was overwhelming support for letting thepresident know that this is something that will not be tolerated again³putting our

money and our troops and our into a conflict without complying with the War PowersAct," Mr. Burton said.

Mr. Burton said that there was talk of advancing another resolution that would say thatMr. Obama exceeded his authority when he committed U.S. troops to Libya, but addedhe didn't feel that went far enough.

"In my opinion, we need to send not just a letter to him saying you exceeded yourauthority³we need to send him a message that you cannot do it again," Mr. Burtonsaid in an interview. When the full Republican caucus meetings [Thursday] morning,

Mr. Burton will "try to convince leadership" to hold a vote on the Kucinich/Burtonresolution.

Even if Congress does not take action to restrict Mr. Obama's actions in Libya,lawmakers say their restlessness reflects the concerns of their constituents. "Everyone inmy district comes to me and says, 'What are we doing there?' " said Rep. Jim Lankford(R., Okla.).

The 60-day deadline for seeking congressional approval under the War PowersResolution was May 20. Mr. Obama has said he supports a resolution by Sens. John

Kerry (D., Mass.), Carl Levin (D., Mich.) and John McCain (R., Ariz.) approving theLibyan effort, but so far Senate leaders are showing no indication of bringing it to avote.

The issue is pitting leaders of both parties against a restlessness among their rank-and-file. Rep. Steny Hoyer (D., Md.), the second-ranking House Democrat, objected thisweek to Mr. Kucinich's resolution.

"If that means not supporting the NATO allies who jointly undertook this enterprise, Idon't intend to support that," Mr. Hoyer said Tuesday.

Lawmakers have sought in recent weeks to signal their discomfort with the Libyaoperation in other ways. The House, in a 416-5 vote, said last week the U.S. cannotestablish ground operations in Libya, something the president has said he would not doin any case.



Rep. Tim Scott (R., S.C.) said the military may be getting stretched too thin with threeengagements. "I think at some point we need to figure out when we're getting out," Mr.Scott said regarding Libya.-------------------------NATO Extends Libya Air War (Radio Netherlands Worldwide)

By Unattributed Author June 1, 2011Hilversum ³ NATO agreed Wednesday to extend its Libyan air war by three monthsand dismissed charges by Moamer Kadhafi's regime that the bombing campaign hasalready killed 718 civilians.

Hours after NATO-led aircraft launched new raids on Tripoli, ambassadors of themilitary alliance meeting in Brussels decided to renew the mission for another 90 daysto late September.

"This decision sends a clear message to the Kadhafi regime. We are determined tocontinue our operation to protect the people of Libya," said NATO Secretary GeneralAnders Fogh Rasmussen.

"We will sustain our efforts to fulfil the United Nations mandate" to defend civiliansfrom Kadhafi's forces, he said in a statement, adding: "We will keep up the pressure tosee it through."

NATO, whose current campaign expires on June 27, has intensified its air raids in recentweeks with daily strikes on command and control bunkers in Tripoli to prevent Kadhafi

from crushing a revolt that began in mid-February.

Wednesday's decision would give individual nations time to prepare their contributionsfor the next 90 days, a NATO diplomat said.

"There were very positive signs that nations will extend with the appropriate number ofresources," the diplomat said.

The Libyan government said Tuesday that the air war has so far cost the lives of 718civilians and wounded more than 4,000.

"Since March 19, and up to May 26, there have been 718 martyrs among civilians and4,067 wounded -- 433 of them seriously," government spokesman Mussa Ibrahim said,citing health ministry numbers which cannot be independently verified,

Ibrahim said these figures do not include Libyan military casualties, a toll the defenceministry refuses to divulge.



NATO cast doubt on the Libyan claim.

"We have no indications that that is the case," NATO deputy spokeswoman CarmenRomero told AFP, adding the alliance has no way to verify the claims because it doesnot have troops on the ground.

"NATO is conducting its operations to implement the UN mandate to protect civilianswith great care and precision," she said. "This is in clear contrast with the indiscriminateattacks of the Kadhafi regime on his own people."

At a news conference in Tripoli, Ibrahim warned the departure of Libya's veteranleader, as demanded by NATO and the G8, would be a "worst case scenario" for thecountry.

"If Kadhafi goes, the security valve will disappear," he said.

"Kadhafi's departure would be the worst case scenario for Libya," he told reporters, andwarned of "civil war."

Soon after he spoke late on Tuesday, six powerful explosions rocked the centre ofTripoli, the target of more and more intensive air raids by NATO warplanes for morethan a week, an AFP journalist reported.

It was not possible to determine the targets.

In its latest operational update, NATO said Wednesday its key hits included a vehiclestorage facility and three surface-to-air missile launchers in Tripoli, among similartargets in Brega, Hun, Misrata, Mizdah and Zawiya.

Ibrahim also denied that South African President Jacob Zuma, who met Kadhafi inTripoli on Monday, had discussed an "exit strategy" with him.

Zuma "never discussed any exit strategies as they have been described in the media,"the spokesman said.

The South African presidency said previously that Kadhafi would not leave Libyadespite growing international pressure and intensified NATO strikes on his regime.

"Colonel Kadhafi called for an end to the bombings to enable a Libyan dialogue. Heemphasised that he was not prepared to leave his country, despite the difficulties,"Zuma's office said in a statement.



In London, The Guardian newspaper reported former members of Britain's Special AirService (SAS) working for private security companies were in Misrata -- the main rebel-held city in western Libya -- advising the rebels and supplying information to NATO.

The former soldiers were in Libya with the blessing of Britain, France and other NATO

countries, and were gathering information about the location and movement ofKadhafi's troops and passing it on to NATO's command centre in Naples, militarysources told The Guardian.

Defence ministry officials denied the private soldiers were being paid by the Britishgovernment and insisted it had no combat troops on the ground.

The Guardian said the soldiers were reportedly being paid by Arab countries, notablyQatar.

Reports of their presence emerged after Arabic news channel Al-Jazeera on Mondayshowed video footage of six armed westerners talking to rebels in Misrata.--------------------------UN Panel: Libyan Forces, Opposition Committed War Crimes (VOA)By Unattributed Author June 1, 2011A U.N. panel investigating the conflict in Libya says forces loyal to Libyan leaderMoammar Gadhafi and opposition forces in the country have committed war crimes.

The report, published Wednesday by three U.N.-appointed experts, says the violations

committed by pro-Gadhafi forces were severe enough to also constitute crimes againsthumanity. They said violations by opposition armed forces, however, were not severeor widespread enough to be considered crimes against humanity.

Last month, the chief prosecutor the International Criminal Court requested arrestwarrants for Libyan leader Gadhafi, his son Saif al-Islam, and Intelligence ChiefAbdullah al-Senoussi for alleged crimes against humanity.

Libyan officials dismissed the ICC request, saying the court has no jurisdiction in thecountry.

The U.N. report came the same day that NATO extended its military mission in Libyafor 90 days.

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the move is meant to send aclear message to the Gadhafi government that the pressure to oust him will continue.



The current NATO mission, comprising of airstrikes and enforcement of a no-fly zone,would have ended in late June. The extension carries it to September.

Meanwhile, in the rebel-held eastern city of Benghazi, witnesses say a large blast hasdamaged the Tibesti hotel. The hotel is where foreign diplomats holding talks with

rebel leaders stay while in the city. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Also Wednesday, another high-ranking Libyan official announced that he has partedways with the government. Oil Minister Shukri Ghanem said in Rome that he has lefthis country and his job but has not yet decided if he will join the anti-Gadhafi rebels.

Last month, Libyan officials denied reports that Ghanem had defected in Tunisia,saying instead that he was abroad on business. His announcement in Rome comes twodays after eight Libyan army officers held a news conference there to say they had left

Libya's government forces.

U.S. State Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will travel to the United Arab Emirates nextweek for a meeting of the 22-nation Libyan Contact Group. Earlier this month, thegroup agreed to set up a fund to help provide Libyan rebels with food, medicine andmilitary supplies in the areas under their control.---------------------------Libyan rebels in a fight they don·t control (Washington Post)By Sudarsan Raghavan June 1, 9:48 PM

BENGHAZI, Libya ³ As part of their mission in Libya, the United States and itsEuropean allies have unleashed a high-tech assault from the air, deploying AWACS spyplanes, unmanned aircraft and sophisticated satellite systems.

But in the rebels· operational command center in eastern Libya, there are no televisionscreens beaming satellite images, no detailed maps with Global Positioning Systemcoordinates. They don·t even have a direct phone line to their NATO counterparts.

So when a rebel officer on the front line called in one recent morning in need of help,Brig. Gen. Abdulsalam al-Hasi had little choice. He walked down the corridor andasked the American and European advisers in his command center to request a NATOairstrike ³ and then prayed for quick action.

´Sometimes they are late, very late,µ said Hasi, shaking his head.

The episode highlights an inescapable dilemma facing the rebel military. After morethan three months of stalemate, the rebels· quest to remove Gaddafi from powerdepends almost entirely on a NATO force that they do not control and that insists its



mandate is restricted to protecting civilians. Rebel commanders can only ask NATO forhelp, then wait and hope.

A few weeks ago, there was virtually no coordination between the rebels and NATO.The situation has since improved, rebel commanders acknowledge.

But top rebel military officials say the still low level of coordination and lack ofresources means they are being left out of key decision-making in a war they launched.

´We·re talking to them through their switchboard,µ Hasi said. ´There·s no direct line.It·s like ordering room service.µ

The rebel officers complain that NATO has not posted a liaison officer in the commandcenter. Hasi and his team do not speak to the AWACS controllers to coordinateairstrikes, and they get little feedback from their NATO counterparts.

´We have no contact with anyone except those people that are next door,µ Hasi said.´We need more contact with NATO. We need more of everything.µ

But even as he complained, Hasi was wary of criticizing NATO too much. He knew therebels· hopes of overthrowing Gaddafi, who has been in power for 41 years, hinged onattacks by the alliance·s forces.

´Mostly, they are doing good. They are improving,µ he said.

Confines of a mandate

NATO officials say their decision to keep the rebels at arm·s length was deliberate.

´For us, it·s all about not wanting to contravene or jeopardize the U.N. mandate thatwe·re following,µ said a NATO official in the alliance·s headquarters in Brussels,speaking under NATO ground rules that he not be named. The U.N. resolutionauthorizing military action in Libya speaks only of protecting civilians from attacks byGaddafi·s forces, he said.

´We cannot be [the rebels·] air power,µ the official said. ´This was a popular publicuprising, and it has to unfold that way, in a natural way. It·s not for us to do any morein terms of support.µ

The grumblings from top Libyan rebel military officials come as NATO intensifies its aircampaign against Gaddafi·s forces to break the stalemate. Battle lines are shiftingrapidly and expanding to areas in the mountainous western region. France and Britain



have sent attack helicopters to launch more precise strikes against Libyan governmentforces.

NATO announced Wednesday that it was extending its mission in Libya by 90 days, alargely symbolic move that nevertheless suggested no imminent letup in the military

pressure on Gaddafi·s forces. But with no troops on the ground, NATO mightincreasingly need to rely on the rebels to coordinate pinpoint attacks.

¶We have nothing·

The command center is inside a brown, one-story building on a large government-owned campus. Rebel officials requested that the exact location not be revealed forsecurity reasons. On one end of the corridor is Hasi·s spacious office; on the other end isa room in which the Western advisers work. Hasi·s team of analysts works in between.

Rebel commanders declined a request to interview the Western advisers, whom theyrefused to identify. Hasi said the advisers include Americans, British, French, Spaniardsand Qataris, most of whom appear to have a direct line to NATO officials in Brussels.Officers from the CIA and special operations troops from Britain, France and otherallies are also thought to be working on the ground with the rebels.

Hasi·s analysts field phone calls from all over Libya, collecting information onmovements by Gaddafi·s forces, accounts of deaths, and pleas for fuel and otherassistance. They try to ensure that the reports are accurate, and, if there·s an emergency,such as the threat of an imminent strike by government forces, they alert Hasi, who

relays the information to the Western advisers.

Analyst Omran Senussi, 29, a former civil engineer, said he and his team are alwaysconcerned about the safety of civilians and rebel fighters. Since NATO strikes began inmid-March, there have been at least two ´friendly fireµ incidents, which killed morethan a dozen rebel fighters.

´We have to move very carefully,µ Senussi said.

An official at NATO·s operational headquarters in Naples said information from therebels did filter up to the alliance·s command. ´Various allies have people on theground and are working with the Transitional [National] Council,µ he said, referring tothe body established by opposition leaders in their de facto capital, Benghazi.

´Those guys do pass information back up to us. . .. That may be a little less than somepeople would like,µ he said, but NATO had thought it was important to draw clearlines.



But that could change. The official said NATO was discussing whether to send a liaisonteam to Benghazi.

For now, though, Hasi and other Libyan rebel commanders insist that NATO is notlistening to them closely enough and that it is not sharing intelligence it gets from other

sources.

´NATO receives information from everyone. We are the official operational commandcenter of the Free Libyan Forces,µ Hasi said.

Like other Libyan military officials, Hasi defected shortly after the populist rebellionerupted Feb. 17. Before the revolution, he was a top commander in eastern Libya, incharge of the nation·s special forces.

A short, sturdy man with gray hair, Hasi speaks English, often peppered with jokes. But

he does not mince words when talking about the state of the rebels· military. ´We havenothing. We are starting from a big zero.µ

Hasi said that the rebel fighters need more advanced reconnaissance technology andthat they lack critical equipment, including long-range radios, armored vests andavionic infrared binoculars. He does not even have enough four-wheel-drive vehicles,he said.

But sometimes he gets what he wants. A little more than two hours after he walkeddown the hall, Hasi received a call from the field commander near the front line

between the towns of Ajdabiya and Brega. Hasi quickly flashed a smile and nodded.NATO had come through with swift assistance.

As the commander had reported, ´I can hear the planes.µ---------------------Many CiviliansHave Been Killed in Disputed Region of Sudan (NYT)By JEFFREY GETTLEMAN and JOSH KRON June 1, 2011 JUBA, Sudan ³ Officials from the disputed Abyei area of Sudan said Wednesday that116 civilians, including many children, had been killed last month when the northernSudanese army seized Abyei.

The figures were the first attempt at calculating the death toll from the incursion, Abyeiofficials said, and did not include soldiers and policemen also killed in the fighting,which set off fears across Sudan that a larger conflict may be looming.



Acuil Akol, the Abyei administration·s finance minister, said that the death toll wastabulated by surveying leaders of the area·s traditional Dinka chiefdoms, and that thenumber was most likely a low estimate.

He said that the fighting also drove tens of thousands of people into the bush, with

many now sleeping in the open, exposed to torrential downpours.

´They are traumatized and terrified,µ Mr. Akol said.

United Nations officials said that several waves of looters had pillaged Abyei and thatthere was even a market in town now for looted goods.

The northern Sudanese military sent thousands of troops and militiamen into Abyei onMay 21 after repeated clashes between northern and southern Sudan forces. Both sidesclaim the area, and with southern Sudan gearing up to declare independence on July 9,

military action around the contested border has intensified as the date draws near.

The African Union said Tuesday that the north and south had struck a deal to defusetensions along the border. But on Wednesday, northern Sudanese officials were backingaway from the idea.

´There is no comprehensive agreement about such case of the border,µ said Rabie A.Atti, a Sudanese government spokesman. ´Up to now, there is nothing agreed upon.µ

The Obama administration on Wednesday dispatched its top counterterrorism official,

John O. Brennan, to the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, where he ´underscored PresidentObama·s deep concern over the continued presence of Sudanese armed forces in Abyeiand urged a rapid and peaceful resolution to the crisis,µ the White House said in astatement.

Also on Wednesday, United Nations officials said they were preparing withdrawalplans for hundreds of United Nations employees and millions of dollars of equipmentfrom northern Sudan, because the government in Khartoum has demanded that theUnited Nations mission entrusted with monitoring Sudan·s border leave by July 9.

According to one United Nations official, there is a plan to hire 250 barges to cart awayUnited Nations equipment, which would be floated down the Nile River fromKhartoum to Juba, the capital of southern Sudan, where the new United Nationsmission is expected to be based.

But there are complications to operating in southern Sudan. United Nations officialshave complained that soldiers from southern Sudan·s armed forces routinely attack aidconvoys traveling through rural areas. Col. Philip Aguer, a spokesman for the southern



forces, did not directly dispute this, saying, ´if it has happened that is completely awrong action,µ and that it is ´uncommon.µ

The southern military is under pressure on a number of fronts. The northern Sudangovernment had given southern-allied forces until Wednesday to pull out of all

contested areas north of the internal border. On Wednesday, officials in Blue Nile state,home to several thousand heavily armed southern-allied soldiers, said there had beenno clashes.

´So far it is okay,µ said Malik Agar, Blue Nile·s governor. But, he added, ´there is a deafdialogueµ and ´we are ready to defend ourselves.µ---------------------US says Somalia needs governance to defeat piracy (AP)By Unattributed AuthorMay 31, 2011

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia ³ A top U.S. commander Wednesday said piracy inSomalia can only be defeated if the international community helps restore governancein the poor, lawless African country.

Adm. Robert Willard, chief of the U.S. Pacific Command, said navy patrols alone cannotstop the hijacking of ships if pirates' bases onshore are allowed to operate withoutinterference. The international community is spending millions of dollars a daymaintaining a flotilla of warships to protect key shipping lanes off East Africa.

"The organizers, the funders are the central problem ... but the international community

has been unable to determine how to tackle the problem onshore," Willard told aregional forum in Malaysia.

"Clearly, one thing is to help Somalia recover from being the ungoverned state that itis," he said.

"Unless the international community goes to the root, and not the far end of theproblem, it won't be solved."

Somalia has not had an effective government since 1991, when warlords overthrew alongtime dictator and then turned on each other, plunging the country into chaos andanarchy. A transitional government, established in 2004 and backed by about 9,000African Union troops, has been fighting Islamist insurgents.

Last year, pirates seized 53 vessels and captured a record 1,181 hostages, almost all ofthem off the Somali coast. Some 30 ships and more than 600 hostages are still in pirates'hands.



Pirates are becoming increasingly violent in retaliation to navy interference in theirmultimillion dollar trade. Earlier this year pirates killed four American hostages whileU.S. Navy warships were shadowing the hijacked yacht, the first time pirates had donethat.

The U.N. Security Council last month demanded that Somalia's feuding president andparliament reach agreement quickly on holding elections by August when the mandatefor the country's transitional government ends.

Somali lawmakers ³ who in February unilaterally extended their own mandate bythree years ³ have been vowing for months to hold a presidential vote despite thepresident's objections. The president wants to extend his term for a year without a vote.------------------------Growing Numbers of Young Children Wounded, Killed in Somalia (VOA)By Joe DeCapua

May 31, 2011In the Somali capital Mogadishu, more and more children are becoming victims of thefighting between pro-government forces and the Islamist militia al Shabab.

The World Health Organization (WHO) says the number of weapon-related casualtiesat the city·s three main hospitals reached a new peak last week. Of the nearly 1600casualties, 46 percent were under age five.

Many ways to wound a body

´Beginning of May, we found the increase in the number of casualties under five andmortalities under five. The main types of injury are burns and shrapnel, blast injuriesand bullets,µ said Dr. Omar Saleh, a WHO trauma surgeon.

Many of the burns are third degree. Children suffer from disfiguring scars and infectionover much of their bodies. One child had a bullet in his head.

´His body,µ said Saleh, ´is half paralyzed and he·s under five years old. It is a tragedythere.µ

Injured children cannot be treated the same as injured adults.

´That was the main reason actually why I went to Mogadishu,µ he said, ´Usually,children under five, they have special physiology and anatomy different than adults.And that·s why there should be a different approach.µ



Saleh conducted training programs at two of the major hospitals in Mogadishu, whichincluded preparing children for surgery, special surgical techniques, post operativefollow-up care and maintenance.

Because a child·s body is not fully developed, care must be taken when administering

drugs. ´The doses should be calculated carefully, otherwise they will die from thetreatment itself,µ he said.

Worst cases

´Usually, those third degree burns are a big challenge. They need a lot of transfusions.They need antibiotics. They·re liable to infection, the wound infects, and thensepticemia and they die from infection,µ he said.

Some children have lost an arm or a leg.

´Imagine a child under five years old who loses his hand or his leg. How is he going tolive afterwards?µ

None of the children are expected to be transported to other countries for special care orreconstructive surgery. Saleh said the children·s families are too poor to pay for that.However, his training classes for Somali health workers did include skin grafts,cosmetic and reconstructive surgery.

Why so many kids?

There·s a simple reason why so many children are being wounded now in the Somalicapital.

´People live in Bakara market. The fighting now in Mogadishu is in Bakara market«one of the cheapest areas in Mogadishu. So imagine the IDPs [internally displacedpersons] after the drought«. They come back to Mogadishu to Bakara market and theytake their chances just to be able to live there. If some family was killed or something,the next day you·ll find another family staying there,µ said Saleh.

The trauma surgeon said international help is needed to fund Somalia·s battered healthcare system. He said about $60 million has been requested, but so far, only about $16million has been given by donors.

´This fighting in Mogadishu is far from over. It·s going to continue for some time andwe need the international community to pay attention to what·s happening to dosomething,µ he said.



The WHO said that since the beginning of 2011 about 4,000 people injured in the Somaliconflict have been admitted to the capital·s three main hospitals.---------------------Africa's Green Revolution may be a long time coming (Christian Science Monitor)By Gregory M. Lamb

June 1, 2011It's tough to keep your eye on the long view when the prospect of famine is at the door.But that's what organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, CARE, andthe United Nation's World Food Programme are trying to do more and more.

The old adage seems to have truth in it: Give people a fish, they eat for a day. Teachthem to fish, and they can feed themselves for a lifetime.

The Gates foundation is committed to spend $1.7 billion to alleviate the underlyingconditions that create poverty and hunger in Africa, says an Associated Press story. But

it may take two decades or more to bring its work to fruition.

RELATED: Think you know Africa? Take our geography quiz.

"It takes years and years to shift the system," says Roy Steiner, deputy director of globaldevelopment for the Gates foundation. "Giving food to people is certainly necessarywhen there's a crisis," he said. "But these people don't want to be depending on outsidecharity. And, frankly, who is going to pay for all of that food being given?"

The "fishing poles" that it and other relief agencies are trying to provide include more

drought-tolerant seeds, better fertilizers, educating farmers on better farmingtechniques, and helping them get their crops to market more easily.

Agriculture has come under the spotlight as world population grows along withconcerns about how changing climates may affect food production. A report releasedyesterday by the aid agency Oxfam, called Growing a Better Future, "warns thatspiraling prices and endless cycles of regional food crises will create millions morehungry people unless we transform the way we grow and sell food." It predicts that theprice of basic foods such as corn could more than double in the next 20 years.

What's needed in Africa is the kind of Green Revolution seen in other parts of the worldin the 20th century. Whether genetic-modification of plants will be a key part of theanswer in Africa remains to be seen (see "How science could spark a second GreenRevolution").

The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, led by African scientists, economists, andbusiness leaders, helps small farmers, especially women, improve their farmingmethods. It's just one effort receiving aid from the Gates foundation.



------------------------Public Information is Set Free As FOI Becomes Law (This Day)By Idowu Sowunmi1 June 2011Abuja ³ Do you want to know how much Nigeria spends on importing petroleum

products and who the contractors are? Simple. All you have to do now is write a letterto the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to request the information.

Within seven days, you are entitled to a response. If not, you can take NNPC to courtand get an order to compel the corporation to reveal the information.

It may even get better: if any NNPC official attempts to destroy or doctor the records,he or she will be liable to a criminal prosecution, which may result in a one-year prisonterm.

Welcome to the age of Freedom of Information in Nigeria where many files marked"top secret" by government officials can now be made available to ordinary Nigeriansunder the Freedom of Information Act, which was signed at the weekend by PresidentGoodluck Jonathan after passage by the National Assembly last week.

This is expected to promote transparency and accountability in government.

The Bill was sent to the president on May 27, 2011 and he assented to it in 24 hours,thereby ending a long, tortuous journey that started on December 9, 1999 when it wasfirst gazetted. It was the oldest legislation in the works in Nigeria's legislative history.

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2011, any Nigerian is free to apply to agovernment institution to request access to public information and records.

If this application is not granted in seven days, it would amount to refusal, except theinstitution seeks additional seven days because of the volume of the records requested.

If the request is to be turned down, the public institution must state the reason underthe law. The refusal letter must contain the name, designation and signature of everyofficial involved.

Failure to respond within the stipulated number of days would amount to a denial ofaccess, which is punishable with a fine of N500,000, according to Section 5(7) of the Act.

Section 10 prescribes a minimum of one year imprisonment for any officer or head ofany government or public institution "to which this Act applies to wilfully destroy anyrecords kept in his custody or attempt to doctor or otherwise alter same before they arereleased to any person, entity or community applying for it".



All public institutions are compelled to keep records and information and organisethem in a way that is accessible to the public.

The Act states some exemptions to the rule - namely information that could

compromise national security and the conduct of international affairs.

Also exempted from public access are records that could expose trade secrets, tradeparty intrusion into contractual negotiation process, test questions, architectural andengineering designs, research materials under preparation, legal practitioner-clientrelationship, health worker-patient relationship and journalist's confidential source ofinformation.

Also exempted are records for international use of organisation that could interfere withlaw enforcement and fair trial or amount to intrusion of privacy or exposure of a

confidential source.

However, if a court deems public interest to be more paramount in these instances, theinformation may still be made available to the applicant.

A statement from Presidency Tuesday said the FoI Bill was signed by Jonathan onSaturday to show his support for the law expected to help transform the country.

The signing of the law was obviously done outside the klieg lights as newsmen werenot part of the signing ceremony.

The statement said: "President Goodluck Jonathan has signed the Freedom ofInformation Bill 2011 into law.

"The Bill, which was passed by the outgoing National Assembly was conveyed to thePresidency on Friday, May 27, 2011. President Jonathan assented to it on Saturday, May28.

"The objective of the Act is to make public records and information more freelyavailable and to also protect public records and information to the extent consistentwith the public interest and protection of personal privacy.

"The Freedom of Information Act also seeks to protect serving public officers from anyadverse consequences of disclosing certain kinds of official information withoutauthorisation, and to establish procedures for the achievement of these purposes."



The Newspaper Proprietors' Association of Nigeria (NPAN) Tuesday commended thetimely assent in a statement signed by the President of the association, Mr NdukaObaigbena, who is also the Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of THISDAY Newspapers.

He also commended the leadership of the outgoing National Assembly, civil society

groups, media, labour, other groups under the canopy of the Freedom of InformationCoalition, and the general public for their dedication to the cause of an informedcitizenry, which is the bedrock of democratic practice.

He urged Nigerians to avail themselves of the opportunities offered by the Freedom ofInformation Act, to enhance transparency and good governance and to work towardsachieving a zero tolerance for corruption and impunity.

Responding to the news Tuesday, the Nigeria Guild of Editors, in a statement signed byits president, Mr. Gbenga Adefaye, commended the president for keeping to his words.

He said the media "has expanded the frontiers of press freedom for Africa's mostvibrant press. No more will it be permitted for the journalists to hurry to press with halftruth and misinformation when they can officially verify their facts".

Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State said the signing is a "victory for all Nigerianswho waged relentless war to entrench transparency in governance".

Commenting on the development, Chairman of Senate Committee on Federal Characterand Inter-governmental Affairs, Senator Smart Adeyemi, said the signing of the FoI Bill,

was a testimony that the President has kick-started his transformation project forNigeria.

Highlights:� Any Nigerian can apply for access to public records and information.�Any institution that fails to provide the information required would be fined N500,000�An applicant can sue the agency that refuses to release information.�Certain information can be withheld if it could compromise national security, giveaway a confidential source, be injurious to international affairs, intrude privacy, exposetrade secrets etc�Nevertheless, a court may compel the release of such information if the nationalinterest is considered to be more paramount�If any public officer destroys or doctors public records before making them available,he risks criminal prosecution and imprisonment of a minimum of one year�There shall be no liability for a public officer who makes the information availableunder the Act. The applicant is also not liable-------------------------UN News Service Africa Briefs



Full Articles on UN Website

Delegates to UN-backed gathering on Darfur endorse draft document on peace pact

1 June ² United Nations-backed inclusive consultations on the conflict in the Sudaneseregion of Darfur has ended in the Qatari capital, Doha, with delegates voicing support

for a draft document that will form the basis of a permanent ceasefire and acomprehensive peace agreement.

UN official arrives in DR Congo to spotlight humanitarian crisis1 June ² A top-level United Nations humanitarian official started a five day visit to theDemocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) today, ´aiming to draw internationalattention to one of the world·s most serious and chronic humanitarian crises.µ

Sudan: UN delivers food aid to thousands displaced by conflict in Abyei1 June ² The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) said today it has provided

food aid to more than 45,000 people who were displaced from Sudan·s disputedSudanese area of Abyei during the recent fighting that culminated in the taking over ofthe territory by Government troops.

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