Somalian President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed has criticized the cross-border intervention by Kenyan troops last week in pursuit of Al-Shabab forces accused of kidnapping foreigners and taking them back to Somalia.
He would have been wiser to say nothing on the matter. His government may be internationally recognized but it is a government largely in name only. It has next to no control over what happens outside the capital Mogadishu, certainly not in the south of the country. His criticism, therefore, does little to impress. It conveys the unfortunate impression that he has a limited grasp of politics, let alone reality.
What does he expect the Kenyans to do? Sit by and watch Al-Shabab militants continue to kidnap foreigners and, in doing so, devastate Kenya’s vital tourist industry? To say that they should look after their borders better is cheap and dishonest. It is a very porous border, impossible to police — and the problem is in Somalia, not Kenya.
Ahmed’s comments would have been supported if Somalia were a stable state with a government fully in control of the country. It is not. In the circumstance, what the Kenyans did cannot be faulted. They have a responsibility to defend their country. In this case that means going after the criminals across the border.
Kenyan is not the only country faced with the thorny issues of cross-border intervention and national sovereignty. Turkey has once again felt obliged to attack Kurdish PKK militants hiding in northern Iraq. It has just been engaged in its biggest cross-border operation in decades following the PKK’s attack last week in which 25 Turkish troops were killed. Like the Kenyans, it cannot sit back and do nothing. The PKK crosses the border because there is no effective government on Iraq’s side to stop it. Turkey has to do the same to defend itself. No country does this willingly or happily. Kenya and Turkey are as jealous as any other country about their sovereignty and are normally totally supportive of the concept. But sovereignty is not absolute. It depends on the ability of a state to maintain and defend that sovereignty. If, for example, Mexico sent troops across the Rio Grande to attack and arrest terrorist drug barons operating out of Texas, the US would rightly see that as an assault on its sovereignty and an act of war. But it would be a different matter if all government collapsed in the US and terrorists there were able to operate against Mexico with impunity.
Such circumstances are, fortunately, so unlikely as to be impossible. But that does not make the theory an abstract one.
What happens, for example, if Yemen slides down the route of Somalia and becomes a base for hit-and-run operations by Al-Qaeda against its neighbors? The country is already a fractured state. In such circumstances affected states would have to take appropriate action to defend themselves and their citizens.
For sovereignty to exist there has to be an authority in place that can exercise it. It does not exist in Somalia, or in the border region of northern Iraq. The way things are going in Yemen, we fear it may soon not be there either.
What does he expect the Kenyans to do? Sit by and watch Al-Shabab militants continue to kidnap foreigners and, in doing so, devastate Kenya’s vital tourist industry? To say that they should look after their borders better is cheap and dishonest. It is a very porous border, impossible to police — and the problem is in Somalia, not Kenya.
Ahmed’s comments would have been supported if Somalia were a stable state with a government fully in control of the country. It is not. In the circumstance, what the Kenyans did cannot be faulted. They have a responsibility to defend their country. In this case that means going after the criminals across the border.
Kenyan is not the only country faced with the thorny issues of cross-border intervention and national sovereignty. Turkey has once again felt obliged to attack Kurdish PKK militants hiding in northern Iraq. It has just been engaged in its biggest cross-border operation in decades following the PKK’s attack last week in which 25 Turkish troops were killed. Like the Kenyans, it cannot sit back and do nothing. The PKK crosses the border because there is no effective government on Iraq’s side to stop it. Turkey has to do the same to defend itself. No country does this willingly or happily. Kenya and Turkey are as jealous as any other country about their sovereignty and are normally totally supportive of the concept. But sovereignty is not absolute. It depends on the ability of a state to maintain and defend that sovereignty. If, for example, Mexico sent troops across the Rio Grande to attack and arrest terrorist drug barons operating out of Texas, the US would rightly see that as an assault on its sovereignty and an act of war. But it would be a different matter if all government collapsed in the US and terrorists there were able to operate against Mexico with impunity.
Such circumstances are, fortunately, so unlikely as to be impossible. But that does not make the theory an abstract one.
What happens, for example, if Yemen slides down the route of Somalia and becomes a base for hit-and-run operations by Al-Qaeda against its neighbors? The country is already a fractured state. In such circumstances affected states would have to take appropriate action to defend themselves and their citizens.
For sovereignty to exist there has to be an authority in place that can exercise it. It does not exist in Somalia, or in the border region of northern Iraq. The way things are going in Yemen, we fear it may soon not be there either.
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Oct 27, 2011 10:30
Report abuse Invasion by foreign enemy is not accepted to any Somali, Ethiopia and kenya both control somali land for Kenya whole north is belongs to Somalia, Ethiopia control eastern part or Ogaden. Somalis hate soo much about Ethiopian especially amharic and tigri, Oromo and other people we don't hate them. So when Kenya trying steal our coast and signing western companies for exploration we as somalis stop those kenyan military. I dislike Al-Shabaab I wish they disappear, but this 2 countries did not help just opposite.
Oct 27, 2011 10:31
Report abuse Who are trying to fool? this is a load of rubish from a person who has no knowledge in the region. Kenyan invasion is not abouot fighting alshabab its about oil simple as that. Learn the history, I haven't seen an Arabic paper encouraging an invasion in another sisterly country. We expect Saudi Arabia paper to be more balanced. No matter how bad our situation is we do not welcome invaders no matter their color or religion or race. We were the first country in Africa to be bombed in 1950, we were the first country that humilitated the world power, we taught lessons all agressors, this one will go same way. Every human being deserve dignity.
Oct 28, 2011 21:59
Report abuse I think someone has to have the knowledge of the region before jumping to
conclusions first. The point here is Al-shabab have bases in Kenya and
the Kenyan government is doing nothing about it but instead they invade Somalia to set up another breakaway region which they can easily control and steal its resources. Somalia have been in turmoil for the last 20 years and nothing has happened to Kenya, this cases of kidnappings have been used as a pretext to invade, conquire and divide somalia into small regions which are easily controlled and manipulated. The President of Somalia and the Somali people know about this we will never be fouled. The root problem of Somalia is Ethiopia and Kenya and some Corrupt Somali leaders.
conclusions first. The point here is Al-shabab have bases in Kenya and
the Kenyan government is doing nothing about it but instead they invade Somalia to set up another breakaway region which they can easily control and steal its resources. Somalia have been in turmoil for the last 20 years and nothing has happened to Kenya, this cases of kidnappings have been used as a pretext to invade, conquire and divide somalia into small regions which are easily controlled and manipulated. The President of Somalia and the Somali people know about this we will never be fouled. The root problem of Somalia is Ethiopia and Kenya and some Corrupt Somali leaders.
Oct 29, 2011 02:04
Report abuse A Clear Case of Aggression by Somalia - not by Kenya
With reference to the letter from Ahmed Ibn Somal on Friday 28th October, he is absolutely right about one thing: Every human being deserves dignity. This also applies to the four women who were kidnapped in Kenyan territory by Al Shabab. First there was Judith Tebutt who was taken in the middle of the night from a beach resort at Kiwayu, near the Somali border. Her husband was shot in the process, and her whereabouts are now unknown. Then there was Marie Dedieu, a paralysed woman dying from cancer, who was seized in the middle of the night from her home near Lamu, and dragged from her bed to a waiting boat. This boat was followed all the way to Kismayu by light aircraft and the Kenya navy, three of whom lost their lives in the chase. She has since died in captivity, and her last days do not bear thinking about. Next, there were the two Spanish women aid workers who were kidnapped from the Dabaab refugee camp, 80 kms from the Somali border. Thanks to Kenyan hospitality, more than 450,000 Somali refugees escaping famine are being given sanctuary here. The thanks from Al-Shabaab: to infiltrate the camp and kidnap the two Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) aid workers.
By this time, the Kenyan authorities, and the Kenyan people, were thoroughly fed up with these aggressive moves by Somalis. This knock-on effect is disastrous: the resort at Kiwayu has had to close, leaving the owners bankrupt and hundreds of their employees out of work. Thousands of tourists have cancelled their holidays to Kenya, meaning that hundreds of Kenyan tourist establishments throughout the country will be affected:thousands of staff will be sent away on unpaid leave until the crisis blows over, and some of the hotels and camps may also go bankrupt. And meanwhile, the women still in captivity, and their families, are going through hell.
Kenya has every right to defend those who visit the country, and to defend an industry that is one of the most important in being an earner of foreign currency, and most importantly, an industry that provides employment for thousands of Kenyans. Kenya is a peace loving nation, and if Ahmed Ibn Somal had done his homework properly, he would know this. They have never invaded another country before this. They are certainly not after Somalia's oil (if it has any). They are simply defending their nation against some ruthless, lawless people who don't care whatsoever how they treat people. Ibn Somal should also know that Somalia is not an Arab country: it is 100% an African country.
Elizabeth Frost
London
With reference to the letter from Ahmed Ibn Somal on Friday 28th October, he is absolutely right about one thing: Every human being deserves dignity. This also applies to the four women who were kidnapped in Kenyan territory by Al Shabab. First there was Judith Tebutt who was taken in the middle of the night from a beach resort at Kiwayu, near the Somali border. Her husband was shot in the process, and her whereabouts are now unknown. Then there was Marie Dedieu, a paralysed woman dying from cancer, who was seized in the middle of the night from her home near Lamu, and dragged from her bed to a waiting boat. This boat was followed all the way to Kismayu by light aircraft and the Kenya navy, three of whom lost their lives in the chase. She has since died in captivity, and her last days do not bear thinking about. Next, there were the two Spanish women aid workers who were kidnapped from the Dabaab refugee camp, 80 kms from the Somali border. Thanks to Kenyan hospitality, more than 450,000 Somali refugees escaping famine are being given sanctuary here. The thanks from Al-Shabaab: to infiltrate the camp and kidnap the two Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) aid workers.
By this time, the Kenyan authorities, and the Kenyan people, were thoroughly fed up with these aggressive moves by Somalis. This knock-on effect is disastrous: the resort at Kiwayu has had to close, leaving the owners bankrupt and hundreds of their employees out of work. Thousands of tourists have cancelled their holidays to Kenya, meaning that hundreds of Kenyan tourist establishments throughout the country will be affected:thousands of staff will be sent away on unpaid leave until the crisis blows over, and some of the hotels and camps may also go bankrupt. And meanwhile, the women still in captivity, and their families, are going through hell.
Kenya has every right to defend those who visit the country, and to defend an industry that is one of the most important in being an earner of foreign currency, and most importantly, an industry that provides employment for thousands of Kenyans. Kenya is a peace loving nation, and if Ahmed Ibn Somal had done his homework properly, he would know this. They have never invaded another country before this. They are certainly not after Somalia's oil (if it has any). They are simply defending their nation against some ruthless, lawless people who don't care whatsoever how they treat people. Ibn Somal should also know that Somalia is not an Arab country: it is 100% an African country.
Elizabeth Frost
London
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