Witnesses: Missiles Hit Somali Town

By MOHAMED OLAD HASSAN – 42 minutes ago

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Planes fired three missiles at a Somali town held by Islamic extremists early Monday, destroying a home and seriously injuring eight people, including four children, residents and police said.

The missiles that struck Dobley, some four miles from the Kenyan border, were from military aircraft, but it was not clear from which country they originated, witnesses said. Remnants of an Islamic force that had once ruled much of southern Somalia took over Dobley last week.

Last year, the U.S. shelled suspected al-Qaida targets in Somalia, one of the most lawless and violent countries in the world. Neither U.S. Africa Command nor U.S. Central Command said it was aware of Monday's missile strike. A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, whose mandate covers Somalia, did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

"We woke up with a loud and big bang and when we came out we found our neighbor's house completely obliterated as if no house existed here," a resident of the town, Fatuma Abdullahi, told The Associated Press. "We are taking shelter under trees. Three planes were flying over our heads."

A police officer who gave only his first name, Siyad, because he was not authorized to speak to the media said the eight wounded were hit by shrapnel. He also said the planes were military aircraft.

An aid worker in Dobley said up to six people were still trapped in the rubble at midday. It was not clear if these victims were included in the police officer's tally.

"A minimum of two bombs were dropped," the aid worker, who asked that his name not be used because he is not authorized to speak to the media, told the AP by telephone. "Between four and six people are in the rubble."

Clan elder Ahmed Nur Dalab said a senior Islamic official, Hassan Turki, was in town Sunday to mediate between his fighters and a militia loyal to the government. Turki's forces took over Dobley last week.

In early 2007, Somali troops and their Ethiopian allies drove out a radical Islamic group to which Turki is allied that had taken over much of southern Somalia. The Islamic forces have fought to regain power.

Somalia has been mired in chaos since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other.

The United States has used precision missiles to strike a "known terrorist target" in southern Somalia, a U.S. military official said. The strike destroyed two houses killing three women and three children, a local official told CNN. full story

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Gitmo nothing! There at least you get a sham trial...

If you anywhere else in the world you (and your kids) get a missile if they "believe" you're guilty.

Dammit Yanks! You guys have just plain gone rabid.

There is only ever one enemy, and that is the military. It doesn't matter which side they purport to be on.

"Oh, I dunno. I was thinking maybe boonie crashing or having a nap or something. Condi gave me a copy of that Ruskie book, "War and Peace" a few years ago. I keep meaning to start reading it, but..."

"Wanna bomb Iran?"

"Nah, Dick says it's not time yet."

"Wanna bomb Cuba?"

"Nah, Jeb says it could be a problem."

"Wanna bomb Somalia?"

"Uhm, why?"

"Well, Somalia is already traumatized, pulverized and brutalized by endless wars of succession and border conflicts and famine, where an estimated two thirds of the country's primarily nomadic population is estimated to be suffering from post traumatic stress disorder; has one of the highest child mortality rates in the world; is a country with no central government and no standing army; and where the last refugee camp was dismantled only a couple of years ago. Oh, did I mention it has a strategic location on the approach to the Suez Canal? Besides, we have "actionable intelligence" that confirms there's a family of evil doers holed up in a house there."

"Sounds good. Let's roll."

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,334531,00.html

Notorious Al Qaeda Operative the Target in U.S. Strike in Somalia

U.S. forces struck an Al Qaeda training camp in southern Somalia Monday, and officials say the target was a notorious Al Qaeda operative whom FOX News has exclusively determined to be Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan.

Nabhan is wanted for questioning in connection with a hotel resort homicide bombing in Mombasa, Kenya, five years ago, and for a shoulder-fired missile attack on an Israeli passenger liner.

Monday's attack on Nabhan was executed with two missiles fired from a U.S. Navy vessel at sea, off the coast of Somalia, FOX News has learned.

Planes fired at least one precision-guided missile at the Somali town of Dobley, a senior U.S. defense official told FOX News.

"On March 2 the U.S. conducted an attack against a known Al Qaeda terrorist in southern Somalia," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said in a statement. "As we have repeatedly said, we will continue to pursue terrorists' activities and their operations wherever we may find them."

There was no immediate word on casualties, but the residents and police told The Associated Press that a home was destroyed and eight people, including four children, were injured.

U.S. officials at Central Command said the overnight strike targeted fewer than 20 Al Qaeda terrorists.

They were assessing the damage done by the attack and digging through the rubble on Monday, and said they'd know more about its success later in the day.

The missiles that struck Dobley, some four miles from the Kenyan border, were from military aircraft. Remnants of an Islamic force that had once ruled much of southern Somalia took over Dobley last week.

Last year, the U.S. shelled suspected Al Qaeda targets in Somalia, one of the most lawless and violent countries in the world.

A police officer who gave only his first name, Siyad, because he was not authorized to speak to the media said the eight wounded were hit by shrapnel. He also said the planes were military aircraft.

An aid worker in Dobley said up to six people were still trapped in the rubble at midday. It was not clear if these victims were included in the police officer's tally.

"A minimum of two bombs were dropped," the aid worker, who asked that his name not be used because he is not authorized to speak to the media, told the AP by telephone. "Between four and six people are in the rubble."

Clan elder Ahmed Nur Dalab said a senior Islamic official, Hassan Turki, was in town Sunday to mediate between his fighters and a militia loyal to the government. Turki's forces took over Dobley last week.

In early 2007, Somali troops and their Ethiopian allies drove out a radical Islamic group to which Turki is allied that had taken over much of southern Somalia. The Islamic forces have fought to regain power.

Somalia has been mired in chaos since 1991, when warlords overthrew dictator Mohamed Siad Barre and then turned on each other.

I bet the Pentagon is anxious to find out if they got a big time score or if they missed and he ran away to blow up some more civilian targets another day!

But who was the target???

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saleh_Ali_Saleh_Nabhan

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Saleh Ali Saleh NabhanSaleh Ali Saleh Nabhan (Arabic: صالح علي صالح نبهان ‎) (born April 4, 1979 in Mombasa, Kenya) became wanted in 2006, by the United States Department of Justice's FBI, "for questioning in connection with the 2002 attacks in Mombasa, Kenya, against a hotel and an airliner." That Kenyan hotel bombing followed the airliner shoot down attempt, in a near-simultaneous dual attack against the two Israeli targets. Nabhan is also wanted in Kenya[1] for those crimes and also for some alleged involvement in the 1998 United States embassy bombings. The main suspects in all three cases are al Qaeda, which claimed responsibility. For his role in the plot Nabhan became listed on the FBI's third major "wanted" list, the FBI Seeking Information - War on Terrorism list.[2]

On November 28, 2002, an unsuccessful attempt was made to shoot down an Arkia Israel Airlines Boeing 757 chartered tourist plane taking off from Moi International Airport in Mombasa using surface-to-air missiles; nobody was hurt on the plane, which landed safely in Tel Aviv. About 20 minutes later, in Mombasa, Kenya, three suicide bombers detonated an SUV in the lobby of the Israeli-owned beachfront Paradise Hotel, killing three Israelis and ten Kenyans, and injuring 80.

US and Israeli officials suspected a Somali group linked to al-Qaeda was responsible for the bombing and speculated that the suspects had smuggled the missiles into Kenya from Somalia. 12 people were arrested in connection with the hotel bombing, including six Pakistanis and four Somalis, as well as an American and her Spanish husband, both of whom were later released.

Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for this attack on the Jehad.net website, which was later taken down.

On February 24, 2006, the FBI added Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan among three names to the Seeking Information – War on Terrorism list.[3] With these three additions, as of February 24, 2006 the total count on the outstanding Seeking Information list stood at ten.

Nabhan might have been protected in Somalia by the Islamic Courts Union prior to their ouster in late 2006.[4] An American air gunship attack near Ras Kamboni on 7 January 2007 targeted al-Qaeda suspects, who might have included Nabhan.[5] On March 2nd, 2008, a U.S. Navy vessel fired two missiles in an attack on an Al Qaeda training camp in southern Somalia. The attack reportedly targeted Nabhan.[6]

This goes to show how hard it is to get the really bad types brought to justice.

had any oil reserves. But then I aint no geologist. Maybe dubya was just putting those poor people out of their misery. This is compassionate conservatism right? Or kinder gentler maybe? Some Columbian rebels were also euthanized the other day. Those bushco boys will be boys.

US Strike Targeted Kenyan

By PAULINE JELINEK – 52 minutes ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. missile strike in Somalia on Monday targeted a Kenyan suspected in the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa, officials said Tuesday.

The Navy was going after Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan when it launched at least two Tomahawk missiles from a submarine off the coast of the East African nation, a Pentagon and FBI official said.

"Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan is on the FBI's "seeking information list" and is wanted by the FBI for questioning in connection with the 2002 attacks at the Paradise Hotel and the unsuccessful surface to air missile attack against an Israeli airliner in Kenya," said FBI spokesman Richard Kolko.

The list consists of subjects the FBI would like to talk to, while the Most Wanted Terrorist list is suspects who have been indicted.

"He is also thought to be an associate of al-Qaida member Harun Fazul, who was indicted for the 1998 embassy bombings," Kolko said. He referred to the August 1998 simultaneous bombings of the embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in which more than 200 people were killed.

Kolko said he could not confirm if Nabhan was hit in the strike and referred questions to the Defense Department. The Pentagon official said he did not know if the attack succeeded. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the record.

more

US fails a fourth time to hit al-Qa'ida suspect in Somalia

By Steve Bloomfield in Nairobi
Sunday, 9 March 2008

A US missile strike in Somalia, aimed at a man described by the Pentagon as a "known al-Qa'ida terrorist", succeeded only in hurting six civilians and killing three cows and a calf, the IoS has learned.

At least one Tomahawk missile was believed to have been fired from a US submarine off the Somali coast on Monday. It hit a shack in the small town of Dobley, four miles from the Kenyan border. Dobley is one of several towns and villages in southern Somalia that are now under the administration of Islamists connected to the former Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which briefly controlled most of southern and central Somalia in 2006.

The attack was the fourth known strike by the US inside Somalia since it backed Ethiopia's invasion of the country in December 2006. All have been aimed at men Washington believes to be responsible for terrorist attacks in East Africa. None has been successful.

Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, the target of Monday's attack, is wanted in connection with the 1998 US embassy bombings in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, which killed at least 224 people.

He is also believed to be connected to the suicide bombing of a Mombasa hotel in 2002, which killed 13 people, and a failed attack on an Israeli airliner.

America's emphasis on the conflict in Somalia as a third front in the "war on terror" has perturbed aid workers, diplomats and analysts. The US backed an invasion by Ethiopia to oust the UIC and is resisting efforts by Somalia's new Prime Minister, Nur Adde, to make overtures to opposition groups that Washington insists are "terrorists".

The US is planning to designate al Shabbab, the main insurgent movement in Somalia, a terrorist group. Diplomats and analysts agree that the group has links with al-Qa'ida, but say the move would derail any hope of a negotiated solution.

is about 1.5 million dollars.