Africa Center for Strategic Studies

Media Review for October 26, 2012

Please note: The following news items are presented here for informational purposes. The views expressed within them are those of the authors and/or individuals quoted, not those of the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, the National Defense University, or the Department of Defense.

Today’s News

New EU military chief: European bloc could move fast to help Mali once political orders come
A top EU military chief says Europe could mobilize “very quickly” to help Mali’s government and its West African allies recapture north Mali from al Qaida-linked rebels. The possible timetable, composition and mission of any European Union support for Mali will be discussed Nov. 19 by EU foreign ministers. The Washington Post

France gives Burkina Faso planes to tackle Mali Islamist threat
France has provided Burkina Faso with three light aircraft to help it monitor its northern border with Islamist-occupied northern Mali, said the head of the West African nation’s army. Islamist fighters, some with links to al Qaeda, seized the northern two-thirds of Mali earlier this year, raising fears that militant groups could spread their influence beyond the country’s porous desert borders. DefenceWeb

Mujahideen flock to Mali
As Mali braces for military intervention, growing popular discontent over Islamist governance is expanding well beyond the embattled country’s borders. Foreign fighters have begun arriving in Mali, but these are not the long-awaited African military forces come to liberate the country from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the MUJAO and Ansar al-Din. Magharebia

Sahel states confront Mali terror threat
Algeria, Mauritania and other Sahel states are bracing for possible “revenge” attacks by terrorists and armed Islamist groups from Mali. “Ansar al-Din has actually hinted that it would carry out retaliatory operations, and may even carry out operations similar to al-Qaeda, including kidnappings of European nationals, especially in Mauritania, Niger and Algeria. There is no doubt that they are considering this.” Sahara Media reporter Bashir Ould Bbana said. Magharebia

Official Silence in Israel Over Sudan’s Accusations of Air Attack
Israel maintained its official silence on Thursday over Sudan’s accusation that the Israel military was behind an air attack that destroyed a weapons factory in Khartoum, the Sudanese capital, early Wednesday. But senior Israeli officials spoke openly about what they described as Sudan’s destabilizing role in the region, accusing it of serving as a transit point in a weapons supply route from Iran via the Sinai Desert to Palestinian militant groups in Gaza and other places like Lebanon. The New York Time

Sudan arms factory blast: Khartoum to report Israel to UN
Sudan has said it intends to complain to the UN over an explosion at an arms factory that it claims was caused by an Israeli air strike. Sudan’s UN envoy Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman said Israel had violated Sudanese air space three times in recent years. The Sudanese have not revealed any evidence to support their claim, and Israel has not commented. BBC

Egypt’s Sinai has become lawless territory, Israeli official says
Israel’s vice premier voiced rare public criticism of Egypt on Thursday, saying it isn’t doing enough to curb Islamist militants operating in Egypt’s Sinai desert. The timing of Moshe Yaalon’s comments also appeared unusual, given that Egypt spent the previous day brokering an end to the latest round of fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Hamas-run Gaza Strip after several days of rocket fire from Gaza and Israeli airstrikes. Al Arabiya

A CIA veteran transforms U.S. counterterrorism policy
In his windowless White House office, presidential counterterrorism adviser John O. Brennan is compiling the rules for a war the Obama administration believes will far outlast its own time in office, whether that is just a few more months or four more years. [...] In late August, Brennan said he saw no need “to go forward with some kind of kinetic action in places like Mali,” where al-Qaida allies have seized control of a broad swath of territory. Since then, Brennan and other officials have begun to compare the situation in Mali to Somalia, where drone and other air attacks have supplemented a U.S.-backed African military force. Wapo on Bangor Daily

U.S. knew too little to deploy troops to Benghazi: Pentagon
The Pentagon defended its decision not to deploy forces to Benghazi, Libya, as soon as the U.S. mission came under attack on September 11th, saying it would have been irresponsible to put forces in harm’s way without better information. Reuters

Doubts surface over e-mail on claim of responsibility for Benghazi attack
The often fiercely political debate over who knew what – and when – about the September 11 assault on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi has taken another turn with the disclosure of a series of e-mails sent from the State Department on the night of the attack. But the most explosive of the e-mails – which were released late Tuesday – may have been inaccurate, a “spot report” on a rapidly evolving and highly confusing situation. CNN

Libyan Government Claims Bani Walid
The Libyan government said Thursday that it now controls the desert city of Bani Walid after weeks of battling with fighters loyal to former strongman Moammar Gadhafi. Bani Walid, located around 100 miles southeast of Tripoli, has been controlled by pro-Gadhafi loyalists since the end of the civil war last year. The Epoch Times

Is the Ivory Coast’s ousted president plotting revenge?
Former president of Cote d’Ivoire Laurent Gbagbo is awaiting trial before the International Criminal Court, but his supporters appear to be quite active. UN-appointed experts have compiled substantial material on their machinations . Prominent Gbagbo supporters have rejected as “malicious lies” any assertions that they are linking up with extremists forces in Mali. Foreign Policy

Zimbabwe: Food as political weapon
According to starving villagers in southern Zimbabwe, officials of President Robert Mugabe’s ZANU PF party are denying them food, because they didn’t vote for the right party in previous elections. Radio Netherlands

Africa: Africa Can Feed Itelf, Says World Bank
Sub Saharan Africa can avert hunger by removing restrictions to trade within the continent, a new report says. The region’s demand for food is expected to double by 2020. Supporting small farmers to produce more and importing less can help Africa feed itself. The World Bank

‘Al Capone’ strategy to defeat piracy
Thomas Kelly, the US State Department official in charge of counter-piracy policy, told The Daily Telegraph a small group of very wealthy men were instrumental in the growth and spread of Somalian piracy. Mr Kelly’s campaign to prosecute the men under corruption and money laundering laws could be the coup de grace against pirates that at one point represented the gravest threat to world trade in decades. The Telegraph

In A Tanzanian Village, Elephant Poachers Thrive
An insatiable demand for ivory in Asia is fueling a massive slaughter of elephants across Africa. As NPR’s John Burnett reports, one of the worst poaching hot spots is Tanzania. In this story, he visits an ivory poacher’s town that sits next to a major game reserve. NPR

Uganda may buy more Su-30MK2s
Uganda is in talks with Russia to buy another six Su-30MK2 multirole fighter aircraft, after receiving the last two of an initial six earlier this year. “Now, we are talking about an option, the Ugandans expressed interest in buying another six aircraft of this type,” said Rosoboronexport Deputy Director Alexander Mikheyev. Mikheyev said that Rosoboronexport was ready and willing to sell fighter jets to other African countries, such as Angola and Ethiopia. DefenceWeb

Nigeria: ‘Oil-gas sector mismanagement costs billions’
A leaked report into Nigeria’s oil and gas industry has revealed the extent of mismanagement and corruption that is costing billions of dollars each year. The report, seen by the BBC, was commissioned by the oil minister in the wake of this year’s fuel protests to probe the financial side of the sector. It says $29bn (£18bn) was lost in the last decade in an apparent price-fixing scam involving the sale of natural gas. It also calculated the treasury loses $6bn a year because of oil theft. BBC

Angola’s New $5 Billion Oil Fund
[...]“The Angolan government is not known for the transparent management of the country’s resources. In fact, it is widely considered to be one of the most corrupt governments in the world. President dos Santos and his family are regularly accused of having misappropriated billions of dollars in oil revenues for their private enrichment and that of a small ruling elite. The appointment of the president’s son to the new sovereign funds’ management team will definitely further substantiate the view that the dos Santos family has every intention to continue controlling Angola’s wealth.” Africa Center for Strategic Studies

Tooro Kingdom: Where Gaddafi still rules
[...] in the western Ugandan Kingdom of Tooro, Col Gaddaffi remains a treasured and respected statesman, an African leader who, even in death, is considered “a defender of the Kingdom”. And it is easy to see why; the kingdom is ruled by a young monarch — King Oyo Nyimba Iguru Kabamba Rukidi IV — who grew up under Gaddafi’s patronage. Inside the imposing Tooro palace atop Kabarole Hill, American journalist Andrew Green, who has been granted access, says a portrait of Gaddafi still dominates the reception. Hung opposite the throne, it is an image of the Libyan leader in a triumphant pose, his fist raised to proclaim his power. Daily Nation

Anglo American boss Cynthia Carroll to step down
Cynthia Carroll is to step down as chief executive of mining giant Anglo American after six years in the job. Earlier this year a group of shareholders, unhappy with a sharp drop in profits, asked the chairman to look for a new chief executive. [...] She has come under increasing pressure from investors over the company’s share price and the deteriorating industrial relations at its platinum operations in South Africa. BBC