TRUMP AGENDA - Expanded War on Terror

IMHO:  Those who think military power will end all terrorism are, sadly, mistaken.  They are failing to recognize that terrorists operate in small groups or are loners.  And the most dangerous are terrorists from their own country, not outsiders.

Military action can only defeat armies.  In the case of al-Shabab, they have never attacked the U.S.

"Is there a human toll of giving the military more latitude to strike terror targets?" PBS NewsHour 3/31/2017

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  On the campaign stump, Donald Trump promised to give the U.S. military more freedom to strike terrorist targets around the world.  Now the President has approved the Pentagon's plan to intensify its targeting of al-Shabab strongholds in Somalia.  Hari Sreenivasan speaks with former State Department official Sarah Sewall about the new changes for military operations.

HARI SREENIVASAN (NewsHour):  Among the countries where the U.S. is fighting terrorism are Iraq, Yemen and Somalia.  Now the President has approved the Pentagon's plan to beef up its targeting of Al-Shabaab in Somalia, giving the military greater latitude to decide when and where to strike.

For more on all of this, we turn to Sarah Sewall.  She served as undersecretary of state for civilian security, democracy and human rights during the Obama administration.  She's written extensively about military operations and civilian casualties.  She's now at Johns Hopkins University.

Ms. Sewall, I want to first ask — just walk us through what the changes are that the Pentagon just announced.

SARAH SEWALL, Former State Department Official:  Well, essentially, President Obama had created two categories for thinking about the use of force in the context of the war on terror.

One was more like targeted killing with more restricted types of targets that you could both choose and were forced to identify, and it controlled the effects of those uses of force more closely.  The other is more like what Americans would understand as war, general hostilities.

And what has happened is, the President — the current President has now moved, according to reports, moved the Somalia engagement of U.S. forces from the category of more targeted uses of force to that of general hostilities.

HARASSMENT - Combating Islamophobia

"Teaching ‘different is OK' to combat Islamophobia in U.S. schools" PBS NewsHour 5/17/2016

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  According to a new study, some 50 percent of all Muslim students in the U.S. have been bullied by their peers.  In mostly-white St. Cloud, Minnesota — where thousands of east African refugees have relocated — the problem got so bad that Muslim students walked out of the city's high school en massè.  John Tulenko of Education Week takes a look at the intersection of education and Islamophobia.

JOHN TULENKO, Education Week:  Hafsa Abdi, who's 18-years-old, remembers well the day four years ago when she was first bullied for being Muslim.

HAFSA ABDI, Student, St. Cloud Technical High School:  The last day of by eighth grade year, I was just going home, and then this boy — I think he was a year younger than me — he pulled off my hijab.  And at the time, I was wearing a longer one, so it was more easy to kind of like pull off from the back.

And then I also had like a pin underneath to hold it in place.  And then that kind of came loose.  So, like, at the time I was just trying to think of like five different things at one time, like trying to get the pin to not stab me in the neck, and then turn around to see who this kid is.

JOHN TULENKO:  In high school, the bullying continued, especially when she and other Muslim students would gather to pray.

HAFSA ABDI:  Mostly, the upperclassmen, they would come into the bathroom sometimes and start fighting with the Somali girls that were trying to wash for prayer, and then when it gets reported, nothing would happen.

JOHN TULENKO:  What would they say?

HAFSA ABDI:  So they'd be like, oh, well, why are you making the bathroom dirty, you stinky Somalian or you terrorist or stuff like that, or go back to where you came from.

JOHN TULENKO:  Where Hafsa comes from is Minnesota.  She was born here, after her parents fled Somalia to escape civil war.  Thousands of other East African refugees have also come to St. Cloud, changing the face of this mostly white, mostly Catholic small city.

WILLIE JETT, Superintendent, St. Cloud Area School District 742:  My job is to make sure that all children, whether it's their children, whether it's somebody brand-new to the country, that they have the best tools available to be successful here in America, here within our community.

JOHN TULENKO:  For superintendent Willie Jett, educating the new arrivals required changes across the board.

WILLIE JETT:  What we have had to do is start from ground zero.  You're trying to make sure that, (A) All the different languages within school are welcomed.

You're trying to make sure that you have interpreters.  You're making sure that you're revamping teaching staff and support staff and the way that you hold conferences, the way that you send messages home.  It's not what it was 20, 30, 40 years ago, even 10 years ago.

INSIDE KENYA - Al-Shabab

"Al-Shabab exploits Kenya's divisions to wage war" PBS NewsHour 4/8/2016

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Kenya is the U.S.'s primary ally in the fight against east Africa's deadliest terror group.  Its long war against al-Shabaab has taken a heavy toll and there are fears that reprisals from Kenyan security forces against ethnic Somalis are only breeding more enemies.  Special correspondent Nick Schifrin and producer Zach Fannin report in a collaboration with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  But, first, tonight we begin a series, "Inside Kenya."

The East African nation is the United States' primary ally in the region, and in the fight against the deadly terror group Al-Shabaab, based in Somalia.  Al-Shabaab attacks government and military institutions in Somalia, but it has also launched major attacks in neighboring Kenya.

Special correspondent Nick Schifrin and producer Zach Fannin traveled extensively throughout Northeastern Kenya, along the Somali border.

Tonight, with the help of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, we start our series with a look at how Al-Shabaab is targeting Kenya, and how Kenya is fighting back.

And a warning:  The story contains images some viewers may find disturbing.

NICK SCHIFRIN (NewsHour):  On Kenya's front line against Al-Shabaab, police on patrol are armed like soldiers.  They search traditional straw houses, checking I.D.s at the barrel of a gun.

JULIUS KIRAGU, Kenyan Army (through interpreter):  The main threat here is the Al-Shabaab.  That is terrorism, because they are associated with al-Qaida, and you know what al-Qaidas are.

NICK SCHIFRIN:  Officer Julius Kiragu heads Kenya's administrative police in Wajir, only 70 miles from the Somali border.  Every night, they search for smuggled weapons and hiding fighters.

JULIUS KIRAGU:  They pretend they are selling milk and all these things, but they are waiting for the appropriate time to strike.

NICK SCHIFRIN:  Most of his officers are ethnic Somali, like the majority of the local population.  Some officers wear civilian clothing and ride around in unmarked cars.  They work with local tribal chiefs, like Zein Abdulla.

What kinds of weapons have you found here?

ZEIN ABDULLA, Tribal Chief:  There were guns.  There were grenades.  There were ammunitions and such things.

NICK SCHIFRIN:  So, Shabaab has supporters even here?

ZEIN ABDULLA:  So, they have representatives at least in every district.

NICK SCHIFRIN:  Al-Shabaab has waged a decade-long war in Somalia.  In 2011, Kenya invaded Somalia, in a campaign called Protect the Country.

Emmanuel Chirchir was the face of the campaign in Somalia, and on Twitter.

"How Al-Shabab is recruiting young men from Kenya" PBS NewsHour 4/10/2016

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Al-Shabab, an Al Qaeda-linked militant group based in Somalia responsible for a shopping mall attack in Kenya that killed 67 in 2013, is enlisting more recruits from Kenya than any other country.  In the second part of the NewsHour series “Inside Kenya,” young men talk about why they joined.

KENYA - Faces al-Shabab Islamic Militants

REMINDER:  Al-Shabab does NOT represent main-stream Islam.  They are an extremist group who actually defames Islam.

"Kenyan Government Claims It Has 'Control' in Deadly Standoff With al-Shabab" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 9/23/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Three days after al-Shabab militants stormed a Nairobi shopping mall, officials say 62 people have died and more than 170 have been injured.  Kenyan troops believe all hostages have now been released, but the outcome of the battle is still in doubt.  Gwen Ifill reports.

"Can Kenya Handle the Threat of a 'Much More Lethal' al-Shabab?" (Part-2) PBS Newshour 9/23/2013

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Al-Shabab, once a disparate coalition, has evolved into a regional affiliate of al-Qaida, able to pull off attacks of greater sophistication and attract foreign fighters.  Ray Suarez talks to J. Peter Pham of the Atlantic Council about the group's effort to make an impression and how prepared Kenya is to deal with the threat.

AMERICA - The 93-day Ordeal, Jessica Buchanan

"The Rescue of Jessica Buchanan" CBS 60 Minutes 5/12/2013 (15:46 video)

An American aid worker's first interview about being kidnapped and held for ransom by Somali pirates in a 93-day ordeal.  Scott Pelley reports.

Rescue by SEAL Team Six 1/24/2012.

SOMALIA - Replay.... Pirate Hostages Freed

"U.S. Navy SEALs Free 2 Western Hostages From Somali Captors" (Part-1) PBS Newshour 1/25/2012

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour): An American woman and a Danish man were free today after U.S. commandos whisked them away from their pirate captors in Somalia. The operation unfolded in secret, even as President Obama made ready to address the nation.

The first hint of action came in the president's cryptic greeting to Defense Secretary Leon Panetta just before delivering the State of the Union address last night.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Good job tonight. Good job tonight.

JEFFREY BROWN: The president said nothing else during his speech, but confirmation came several hours later.

U.S. Navy SEALs had raided a site near Adado in central Somalia. They freed two aid workers who'd been kidnapped from another town, Galkayo, three months ago. At the time, American Jessica Buchanan and her Danish colleague, Poul Thisted, had been part of a project to clear land mines.

Today, they were being reunited with their families. Emerging accounts said the SEALs parachuted in, and took the sleeping pirates by surprise, killing nine. There were no American casualties.

Vice President Biden praised the operation this morning on ABC.

VICE PRESIDENT JOSEPH BIDEN: It just takes your breath away, their capacity and their bravery and their incredible timing.

JEFFREY BROWN: The raiders were from SEAL Team 6, the same unit that killed Osama bin Laden at his compound in Pakistan last May.

The president approved the Somalia mission on Monday. In his own statement today, he said, "This is yet another message to the world that the United States of America will stand strongly against any threats to our people."

There have been other raids against Somali pirates in recent years to combat their hijackings of ships at sea. The piracy problem is part of the larger lawlessness that has gripped Somalia for decades and left it a broken state.

"Who Was Behind Kidnapping, Rescue in Somalia?" (Part-2)
PBS Newshour 1/25/2012

SOMALIA - Truck Bomb Attack

"Al-Shabab Truck Bomb Attack Kills at Least 70 in Somalia" (Part-1) PBS Newshour Transcript 10/4/2011

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour): And we turn to Somalia, where at least 70 people died in a suicide bombing today in Mogadishu.

Ray Suarez has the story.

RAY SUAREZ (Newshour): Residents of Mogadishu ran through the blast scene bewildered as small fires burned around them minutes after the attack. The truck bomb rammed a checkpoint near the Education Ministry just as students and parents were crowding in to learn about scholarships. It was the deadliest and first attack by al-Shabaab since August, when the al Qaeda-linked militants withdrew as African Union forces launched an offensive against them.

MAN (through translator): The reason we got rid of al-Shabaab is because they opposed aid for those who are affected by the famine of our country. So now aid can be distributed easily to those who are affected. And we are here to protect famine-stricken families.

RAY SUAREZ: Famine is only the latest agony the East African nation has endured in two decades of anarchy. A weak U.N.-backed government loosely controls part of Mogadishu, but in the north, Somaliland and Puntland both consider themselves autonomous states.

U.N. aid officials now estimate more than 12 million Somalis face starvation, largely due to drought. They warn that some 750,000 could die in the next four months alone.

MAN (through translator): I used to be a farmer, but I lost all my crops. And I used to be a pastoral farmer at times, but I lost all my livestock due to the drought. So I came here because we had no food.

RAY SUAREZ: In Washington today, a spokeswoman at the State Department said bombings will not deter the aid effort.

VICTORIA NULAND, State Department spokeswoman: This is designed to strike fear in the hearts of Somalis and also to intimidate the international community. We will obviously continue our relief efforts, but the world needs to know that it is al-Shabaab who bears responsibility for the fact that we cannot get to all the people in need.

RAY SUAREZ: And amid the fighting and famine, piracy continues to plague the sea lanes off the coast of Somalia. Hundreds of merchant ships and pleasure craft have been attacked in recent years.

"Somalis 'Shocked' at Scale of Deadly al-Shabab Attack in Mogadishu" (Part-2)
PBS Newshour 10/4/2011

SOMALIA - So, You Want to be a Pirate?

"Journalist Offers Insider's Look at the Lives of Somali Pirates"
PBS Newshour 8/17/2011

AFRICA - Famine, 11 Million at Risk

Excerpt from Part-1 transcript

JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour): And to the growing desperation in the Horn of Africa.

More than 11 million people are at risk from hunger in Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti. Somalia is the worst-hit by famine, drought and a civil war with Islamic militants. Nearly half-a-million refugees have left Somalia to go to Kenya. Most are headed to the Dadaab camp just inside the border.

Part-1
"Horn of Africa Famine Puts 11 Million People at Risk"
PBS Newshour 7/29/2011


Part-2
"Famine, Strife in Somalia an 'Unfolding Tragedy'"
PBS Newshour 7/29/2011


Excerpt from Part-2 transcript

JEFFREY BROWN (Newshour): Now, how does something like this happen? We keep talking about a drought, and that's been a long time in coming.

JOSETTE SHEERAN, World Food Program: Right.

JEFFREY BROWN: Every time there is something like this, there is a man-made element to this, I suppose, right? We knew it was coming and there it is.

You have watched events like this. How does it happen?

JOSETTE SHEERAN: Well, droughts may not be avoidable, but famines are.

And so what we are seeing again is, in this place where this epic drought has hit, there's no water, there's no vegetation anywhere. I have flown over most of the region. This can be prevented with not only pre-action, but then emergency action when it really gets terrible. This happens. We have seen epic flooding in other places in the world, earthquakes. This is a natural disaster.

It's when you can't get access to people that you see it turn into a famine. A famine is about the state of individuals, not of the weather. And so the famine means that you have severely malnourished populations. Anything over 15 percent malnutrition rate is an emergency, and we have seen areas in Somalia now with over 45 percent. That's almost half the children in critical shape like this video that you have just shown.