You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Africa: West
Liberians Beg For U.S. Intervention
2003-07-22
Mortar barrages and the some of the bloodiest fighting to date tore apart Liberia’s capital, as Marines at a U.S. Embassy compound evacuated foreign aid workers and journalists in helicopters. As pressure grew on Washington to send U.S. peacekeepers, Liberia’s Defense Minister Daniel Chea claimed over 600 people had died in recent days, but there was no way to independently confirm the figure.
"Liberian Defense Minister": A looter that stole the best looking uniform and impressed Chuck Taylor.
In a phone interview on Monday, embattled Liberian President Charles Taylor repeated his call for a promised west African peacekeeping force to arrive quickly to “bring some sanity” to the nation founded by freed American slaves.
Chuckie doesn’t want to be caught by the LURD rebels, because he remembers what happened to Samuel Doe, the enlisted man in the Liberian army that shot his way into rule about 20 years ago. Doe was captured by Taylor’s thugs and slowly carved to death with knives--all proudly videotaped for posterity. Whatsamatta, Chuckie?
I thought it was Prince Johnson who slaughtered Doe like a goat?
But Taylor said the best way to ensure stability was through U.S. troops on the ground, in addition to the Marines guarding the U.S. Embassy. “An American contingent would be excellent.”
Excellent because his lying murderous ass will stay and use the Americans for cover.
Meanwhile, a storm of mortars rocked residential neighborhoods along with two U.S. Embassy compounds in rebels third attempt to take Monrovia — Taylor’s last stronghold.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
American helicopters landed in the Embassy compound in a driving rain Monday, dropping off about half of a 41-member Marine security team. The troops, who were sent to beef up security at the embassy, evacuated about 23 foreign humanitarian workers and journalists.
Hopefully this is ALL we will do.
Thousands of angry Liberians stood outside the embassy asking when U.S. troops would come to protect them. Refugees hurled rocks at an NBC News crew that approached the scene, demanding to know whether reporter Michael Davie was American. Davie, who is in Monrovia on assignment for MSNBC’s “National Geographic Explorer,” is Australian.
"It’s the American’s fault that we are dying!" sheesh
"Yeah! It's America's fault we're killing each other!"
“People are dying!” a refugee yelled. “They can’t come in to rescue us?”
So WE can die in YOUR civil war???
U.S. officials announced that 4,500 more American sailors and Marines have been ordered to position themselves closer to Liberia, if needed for an evacuation of Americans, peacekeeping or some other mission. The USS Iwo Jima amphibious assault task force — with 2,000 Marines and 2,500 sailors on three ships — was ordered to leave Djibouti on Africa’s east coast and head for the Mediterranean Sea in the direction of Liberia, NBC’s Jim Miklaszewski reported. The trip is expected to take three weeks.
I'd guess it'll all be over by then, to include the worst of the looting and reprisals...
“We’re concerned about our people,” President Bush told reporters in Crawford, Texas. He indicated he had not yet decided the size of a U.S. force that might be sent to help a promised West African peacekeeping mission in Liberia. The State Department criticized the rebel group Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy for “reckless and indiscriminate shooting” and appealed to neighboring African countries to guard against weapons going to Liberia. Joe Wylie, a rebel delegate at peace talks in Ghana, said the government was also firing shells.
Ahhh... Good point.
The rebels were “not responsible for shooting mortars into the embassy,” Wylie said. “We have our backs to the U.S. Embassy. ... They (government forces) were shooting at us.” Nevertheless, U.S. officials told NBC’s Miklaszewski that there was no evidence that the U.S. Embassy in Monrovia was attacked on purpose. During 2Âœ hours of sustained mortar fire, a shell slammed into a U.S. Embassy residential compound where some 10,000 terrified Liberians had taken refuge, killing 25 people, aid workers said. Many more were wounded, including two Liberian embassy guards.
Musta been packed in there like sardines...
After the blasts, enraged Liberians dragged bodies from the residential compound and lined them up in front of the embassy, next to a wall emblazoned with the American seal. The group demanded to know why Washington has not sent troops to end more than a decade of strife in the West African nation. “We’re dying here,” screamed some in the crowd, as two American servicemen in camouflage watched from behind bulletproof glass.
That's your right as a citizen of a free and sovreign nation...
One man held up a hastily scrawled sign: “Today G. Bush kill Liberia people.”
Nope. He's in Texas, eating barbeque with Berlusconi. Liberia's chock full of Liberians, killing Liberian people. Send tribute, accept a governor general, and then you're got a bitch when things go wrong...
More than 360 people were injured — some hauled to the hospital in wheelbarrows, others screaming in pain. Monday appeared to be the bloodiest in two months of fighting by rebels attempting to seize the capital. Among the injured, Tom Masland, an American who is Newsweek’s African regional editor, was hit in the arm by shrapnel.
10,000 packed in the embassy compound, 60 bumped off by a single mortar, and Tom's flesh wound makes the news...
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan once again urged Washington and West African states to commit troops. “I think we can really salvage the situation if troops were to be deployed urgently and promptly,” he said. A senior Defense Department official told NBC News that the West African forces would most likely be joined later by a small number of U.S. personnel who would provide command and control, communications and logistical support for a short time.
Ahh. Finally, a sensible remark.
Taylor has pledged to resign and accept an offer of asylum in Nigeria — but only after peacekeepers arrive to ensure an orderly transition. But in his interview with the AP, he also hinted he might make other demands of Bush before agreeing to step down.
Chuckie, we’re on to your scam.
“I have written him a letter outlining to him certain things that are necessary for me to step down and certain things that are necessary for me to leave the country,” said Taylor, without elaborating. Bush has said any deployment of U.S. troops is conditional on the departure of Taylor, a former warlord indicted for war crimes in Sierra Leone, where he supported a brutal rebel movement.Taylor launched Liberia’s last civil war in 1989, emerging in 1996 as the strongest warlord. He was elected president the following year, and now faces rebels who include former rivals from the earlier war.
Just another Sub-Saharan Africa basket case. Next.
Posted by:TJ

#8  Chuckie Cheese....LOL!!!! good one Paul.
Posted by: Rafael   2003-7-22 9:55:57 PM  

#7  Where are the human shields who wanted to protest US intervention? I'll buy them a plane ticket to Liberia.
Posted by: Dexter M. Duck   2003-7-22 8:04:14 PM  

#6  No War For Chocolate! Or those weird Silver Dollar thingys we see on TV, either.

Honestly, there isn't even a way to do an altruistic good turn in Liberia. We have armed teenagers shooting the crap out of the country, and if the US intervenes we'll be "killing babies." What a load of steaming turds. Same thing goes for the US somehow having a "responsibility" for Liberia.
Not only was Liberia NOT founded by freed slaves, it WAS founded by a group of American citizens who felt that free black people had no business in the New World. The US didn't have formal relations with Liberia until after the war. So what part of this makes it our problem?
Posted by: therien   2003-7-22 6:27:17 PM  

#5   I like the way Bush is handling the whole situation. Chuckie Cheese isn't gonna play Bush for a sucker.

Let's face it. They want us to end their civil war, rebuild their infrastructure (ahhh the American dollar) get them on their feet, tell us to leave when they have everything they want and then repeat the whole damn cycle of violence again because they're idiots consumed by greed and corruption (not to mention tribalism). Then they'll blame us for everything all over again. The problem with countries like this is that they believe they are entitled to a free lunch at America's expense. Well Joe Liberia, don't believe the hype.

As for the casualties JOE, they're caused by Liberians in Liberia. Why don't you give ole Coffee Ann Ann a call. I'm sure the rest of the world is in no hurry to help you either. (Remember Rwanda?) Then again that was the America's fault as well, wasn't it?

By the way, where are the dynamic duds? (Al and Jesse) What, are their capes still at the dry cleaners?
Posted by: Paul   2003-7-22 2:28:57 PM  

#4  We committed major resources to Bosnia and Kosovo. We did Haiti and Somalia. It's somebody else's turn.
Posted by: Zhang Fei   2003-7-22 2:26:32 PM  

#3  In the words of the BBC anchorwoman just minutes ago:"The US stands accused of squandering its chance to intervene."(Emphasis mine -EI)Catch-22,anyone?
Posted by: El Id   2003-7-22 2:12:56 PM  

#2  The Liberians blaming the US for the carnage does not give me a warm and fuzzy about intervention. It turns me against intervention because if they're blaming us now there will be no end to the blame later. I wonder if that's there intent.
Posted by: Yank   2003-7-22 1:50:01 PM  

#1  Read in the Chicago Trib this morning statements by Susan Rice, Clinton's DOState Africa honcho, and Salih Booker, head of Africa Action, bitching and moaning about Bush not taking action and "allowing" the situation to deteriorate. Whatever. This same type of B&M technique was the one that got Bush I to send troops to Somalia in '92. You know, "The US only cares about countries that have oil!" type of argument. Look how that turned out, although there WAS food sent in, and there WAS a large international contingent there before the Blackhawk Down incident. IIRC, the fact was that we had overstayed our welcome because civilians got killed in the crossfire between UN forces and warlords, plus there was friction in the C&C structure between various militaries (paks, Moroccans, Canadians, etc.)
So, here goes. If our 4,500 guys go in and some civilians get killed, or 15-year old fighters from ANY group get killed, Susan and Salih and their ilk will shut up, please. No micromanaging from think tanks in DC. Otherwise, providing C&C, communications and logistical support in support of ECOWAS is good enough for me. Let's not put our guys on the ground and then have them have to interview people with AK's and RPG's just to see on whose side they are. Ridiculous. And I don't care we've got some kind of special relationship with Liberia. It was never a colony. Plus this war has been going on for more than a decade, so now it's Bush's fault?
I wonder if Susan or Salih would mind a JDAM being delivered on Taylor's doorstep. That might start to solve the problem a bit.
Posted by: Michael   2003-7-22 11:18:12 AM  

00:00