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| Africa: North | |
| US Confirms Military Activity in South Algeria | |
| 2004-03-07 | |
The United States confirmed yesterday that it was militarily active in southern Algeria, but denied reports that it had a permanent base there. âThe United States is battling terrorist activities in Algeria and the Sahelâ, the US Embassy in Algiers said, adding, the countryâs ânoteworthy cooperationâ with the US will be âextended to other sectorsâ, including training Algerian armed forces. Last year, Washington allegedly provided Algeria with $700,000 in funds for military equipment needed to fight terrorism. US forces reportedly helped smash a troop of Muslim underground fighters, who had bought weapons in Mali with funds extorted from Germany, according to Algerian media reports. Germany allegedly paid millions for the release of tourists kidnapped in the Sahara.
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| Posted by:Fred |
| #9 (Eaton, a naval midshipman, and 7 marines) Violated the rule of efficent use of force. Overkill. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-3-7 6:51:55 PM |
| #8 Mike: Yep; aside from highlights of the naval effort, where we get stories of Decatur, the burning of the Philadelphia (Ruben James made his mark there, namesake of the destroyer of history and folk songs)), etc, the story about Tripoli needs to be told in detail: it isn't a story about a detachment of marines storming ashore and taking Tripoli. The actual truth is incredible: there were only a handful of Americans (Eaton, a naval midshipman, and 7 marines) that marched *500 miles* overland from Egypt with hundreds of recruited local mercenaries (locals who were, shall we say, less than dedicated to the object at hand, particularly the Arabs). That small force took Derna, and beat back several attempts by Tripoli to retake it. It is a magnificent story. Here is a good overview of the Wars. One thing to keep in mind vis-a-vis our current War on Terror: there was no neat end to the "Barbary problem". The problem went away when circumstances changed. It was only really solved when France invaded and annexed Algeria in the 1830's / 40's. (Not that that's my answer to our current problem.) |
| Posted by: Carl in NH 2004-3-7 6:20:16 PM |
| #7 Man, talk about timely. I told that to my husband today, and threw in that's where the "shores of Tripoli" line comes in from the Marine Anthem. |
| Posted by: Anonymous2U 2004-3-7 6:17:28 PM |
| #6 Carl- Excellent point. I'm finishing up a novel about the raid on Derna, Tripoli (the 'shores of Tripoli' the Marines rightly sing about) and it is amazing that even 199 years downrange how familiar it looks - a Congress more interested in avoiding expense and insult than doing right, a few people trying to do the right thing, and in the end the entire effort coming down to a handful of our best trying to do the impossible. Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2004-3-7 5:09:20 PM |
| #5 Actually, Decatur was one of the heroes to come out of the Barbary Wars, but the saying is attributed to someone else, and the tale around it is unfortunately somewhat murkier than a stirring repudiation of the demands of Islamic tyrants. FWIW, the whole story of the Barbary Wars (not just the highlights) serves in my opinion as a good guide for our current War on Terror. |
| Posted by: Carl in NH 2004-3-7 3:48:20 PM |
| #4 Raptor - Lieutenant Stephen Decatur of Barbary pirates fame. |
| Posted by: Doc8404 2004-3-7 12:04:50 PM |
| #3 It's called tribute,B.The Germans and French screwed the pooch big time.Expect to see more demands for tribute. Can't remember who said"Millions for defense,not one red cent for tribue." |
| Posted by: Raptor 2004-3-7 11:24:03 AM |
| #2 These kidnappings make a nice front for France (train bombings) and Germany to give taxpayers money to terrorists, don't they? |
| Posted by: B 2004-3-7 10:37:18 AM |
| #1 interesting, what with all the talk about 'overstretch' of the military and yet theres enough forces for this too. Good to see |
| Posted by: Jon Shep U.K 2004-3-7 4:01:17 AM |