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Warning on sending African troops to Somalia

Xan Rice

A U.S.-BACKED proposal to send African troops into Somalia to support the government there raises the risk of triggering an all-out war with the Islamic courts that could destabilise the entire region, a leading think-tank said on Monday.

The International Crisis Group warned that approval of the draft U.S. resolution, to be presented to the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday, would be viewed by the Supreme Islamic Council of Somalia (SICS) as tantamount to a declaration of war. Ethiopia and Eritrea, which have backed the government and courts respectively with both troops and weapons, would be further sucked into the conflict, the group said.

Backed by the African members of the Security Council, the draft resolution calls for the deployment of a regional military force to support the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), which has no army of its own and is vying for power with the heavily armed court militias.

Countries that contribute troops, including Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia, would be exempted from the U.N. arms embargo on Somalia.

Most Somalis, including a significant chunk of the government, are deeply opposed to any foreign intervention. SICS has repeatedly said it will wage "jihad" on any outside troops.

The U.S.' support for the resolution has caused consternation among Western diplomats dealing with Somalia, most of whom share the think-tank's prognosis if regional troops are to deployed. Previous U.S. foreign policy decisions in the Horn of Africa have not helped engender trust. — © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

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