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| Africa Horn | |
| U.S. airlift support to bolster African hunt for Kony | |
| 2014-03-27 | |
The U.S. military is deploying four tilt-rotor transport planes to Uganda in response to African Union requests for airlift support in the hunt for the elusive leader of the violent Lordâs Resistance Army extremist group, the Pentagon said on Monday.
âAirlift has been one of the consistent requirements and requests of the African Union. We are in a position now to provide that airlift for a while and weâre going to do it,â Kirby said. âThis is very much in keeping with the mission goals at large.â A 5,000-strong African Union Regional Task Force, supported by 100 U.S. Special Operations troops, has been hunting LRA warlord Joseph Kony and his fighters, most of whom are thought to be hiding in jungles straddling the borders of the Central African Republic, South Sudan and Democratic Republic of Congo. The Osprey will be used to help African Union troops respond more quickly to tips on the whereabouts of Kony, whose forces are known for their extreme violence, including chopping off limbs as a form of punishment and abducting young girls for use as sex slaves. The CV-22 Osprey is a Special Operations variant of the aircraft, which was developed for the Marine Corps. The plane can carry about 24 troops and their gear. The Ospreys and four refueling tankers â two C-130s and two KC-135 â will join the 100 U.S. Special Operations troops who have been in Uganda for a year advising and assisting AU forces involved in the search for Kony. Kirby said the Ospreys would remain in Uganda only a short time before returning to their base in Djibouti but would likely return periodically to Uganda to help with the effort against Kony. âI think itâs safe to say that these aircraft and these crews will probably redeploy back over time,â Kirby told a Pentagon news conference. âThey probably wonât be on the ground for very long, but theyâll be back.â He said the additional 150 personnel consisted of air crew and maintenance personnel and would travel back and forth between Djibouti and Uganda with the planes. Djibouti is the site of Camp Lemonnier, the only U.S. military base in Africa, which is home to some 2,500 troops who work building military ties with countries in the region. It has been used as a base for Special Operations forces advising AU troops fighting Islamist extremists in neighboring Somalia. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #2 Pay-back for Uganda's AU-work. And yes, both the logic and timing are questionable. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2014-03-27 10:00 |
| #1 Afri solutions for Afri problems. Nobody reads anything of sub-Saharan African history over the past [lets keep it simple] 100 years ? This is yet another costly entanglement without end. For God's sake, get out NOW! It's not worth a single U.S. life. Speaking of which....casualty figures? Oh no, these are "Special Operations" [phone & pen arrangements between tribal leaders]. We keep the press away and don't report that stuff. It's a Benghazi thing, you know the deal. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2014-03-27 04:04 |