At The Point of a Bayonet

[kandrathe]

Yep. And a new operating base for Al Qaeda, now that Afghanistan is a bit rough for comfort.

Occhi

New? I believe the stories that al Qaeda sent in groups to organize and kill the NATO forces in Somalia.

Pro-al Qaeda Islamists, the same week, dislodged CIA-funded warlords who held sway for 15 years and took over Mogadishu, capital of a failed nation-state devoid even of rudimentary government since 1992. U.S. Special Forces and covert agents had been assisting anti-al Qaeda warlords from a U.S. base in Djibouti at the tip of the Horn of Africa. It was the second victory for Islamist anarchists in Somalia. Even Osama Bin Laden himself has been quoted as saying that America's failed 1993 mission in Somalia was an important example of how al Qaeda could defeat the United States. In an Oct. 21, 2001, statement broadcast by the Arabic-language Al Jazeera network and shown on CNN, bin Laden said three weeks before the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, "Our brothers with Somali mujahideen and God's power fought the Americans. God granted them victory. America exited dragging its tail in failure, defeat and ruin." President Clinton, badly shaken by "Blackhawk Down" in 1993, ordered total withdrawal.
There was no question in bin Laden's mind (circulated in a fatwa) of the effect street battles in the Somali capital had on his global war of terrorism. Speaking about America, his fatwa said, "But your most disgraceful performance was in Somalia where -- after vigorous propaganda about the power of the U.S.A. and its post-Cold War leadership of the New World Order -- you moved tens of thousands of an international force, including 28,000 American soldiers, into Somalia. (U.S. force consisted of 19 aircraft, 12 vehicles and 160 men; 18 were killed, two U.S. gunships were shot down, three damaged.) However, when tens of your soldiers were killed in minor battles and one American pilot was dragged in the streets of Mogadishu, you left the area carrying disappointment, humiliation, defeat and your dead with you. Clinton appeared in front of the whole world threatening and promising revenge, but these threats were merely a cover for withdrawal. ... The extent of your impotence and weaknesses became very clear. It was a pleasure for the 'heart' of every Muslim and a remedy to the 'chests' of believing nations to see you defeated [in Mogadishu and Beirut]."
Radical Islam is in the ascendancy all over Muslim Africa. It's a safe assumption bin Laden sees the recent street battles in Mogadishu and the victory of Islamist forces as far more important than the death of Zarqawi who had embarrassed him with the video decapitations of hostages. Zarqawi now continues to serve as a powerful martyr symbol and recruitment poster a la Che Guevara. Reconnecting al Qaeda dots... Washington Times