War in the Horn

In the last week a new Middle Eastern war front seems to have opened: Somalia, in a region known as the Horn of Africa. Look at a map and you'll see why it is called that.

You may recall Somalia as the setting for the movie Black Hawk Down, the place where in 1993 US peacekeeping forces suffered a humiliating defeat. Since then the country has been ruled by an assortment of local militias and warlords. In 2004 an “official” government was formed, supported by the U.S. and some neighboring countries, like Ethiopia. This government never managed to take control of much territory, however.

In 2006 an Islamic group took control of the capital city, Mogadishu, and eliminated most of the warlords. Last week, Ethiopian forces attacked in an attempt to remove the Islamic forces and install the Western-backed government. At this point events are moving quickly: Yahoo News has full war coverage here.

Somalia is in a particularly critical location on the Gulf of Aden, through which ships (like oil tankers) wishing to enter the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal must pass. It is also conveniently close to reinforcements from other radical Islamic countries. Ethiopia is the only majority-Christian nation in the region, so it’s no stretch to portray this conflict as a clash of Christianity vs Islam. The Islamic rulers of Mogadishu bear a striking resemblance to the Taliban in their attempt to impose strict Sharia law on the population. Osama bin Ladin himself has urged jihadis to go to Somalia and fight the U.S.-backed infidels.

If the U.S. weren’t so tied down in Iraq I suspect the Bush Administration would be deploying forces to Somalia right now. It may happen anyway. My prediction: more Black Hawks will go down before it’s all over.