Granted CENTCOM will retain mssion control for Somalia but this is an oppostunity for Africa Commad to better explain its role, especially when the same NGOs who are complaining about a militarization of assistance to Africa are complaining about Western failures in Somalia.

Frankly on the heels of the 15th anniversary of the Blackhawk down episode, I am more than cynical enough to say that while the West may have a secondary role in what has happened in Somalia in those 15 years (and the decades before them) the Somalis are the main architects.

Tom


West has failed Somalia, say aid agencies

The West has "completely failed" the people of Somalia and must refocus efforts to give humanitarian workers safer access to desperate civilians, 52 aid agencies said in a statement.More than 3.2 million people, almost half of the country's population, need immediate help, a 77 per cent rise since the beginning of the year, they said.

But there has never been a more dangerous time for international aid staff to try to deliver assistance as violence has soared, including the assassination or kidnapping of aid workers.

"The international community has completely failed Somali civilians," said the agencies' statement, signed by Oxfam, Merlin, Save The Children and 49 others.