Prometheus 6

Stories about African nations can be written by a macro nowadays. 

A Western official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of diplomatic considerations predicted that even if there were compelling evidence of war crimes, the case would probably never get to court.

Another Western official, speaking anonymously for similar reasons, said, "At the end of the day, no one is going to want to further undermine the transitional government."

So to hell with the human beings, right?

The transitional government never stood up. There's nothing there to undermine. 

Diplomats and analysts from Somali and international organizations predicted yesterday that the US government would resist the European effort because Ethiopia is a close American ally, valued as bulwark against Islamic militants in the Horn of Africa.

Diplomats to probe troops' acts in Somalia
Allegations made of war crimes
By Jeffrey Gettleman, New York Times News Service  |  April 6, 2007

NAIROBI, Kenya -- European diplomats said yesterday they were investigating whether Ethiopian and Somali government forces committed war crimes last week during heavy fighting in Somalia's capital that killed more than 300 civilians.

The fighting, some of the bloodiest in Somalia in the past 15 years, pitted Ethiopian and Somali forces against bands of insurgents and reduced blocks of buildings in Mogadishu, the capital, to smoldering rubble. Many Mogadishu residents have complained to human rights groups, saying that the government used excessive force and indiscriminately shelled their neighborhoods.

Eric Van der Linden, chief of the European Commission's delegation to Kenya, said he had appointed a team to look into several war crime allegations stemming from the civilian casualties.

"These are hefty accusations," Van der Linden said. "We are examining them very prudently."

In an e-mail to Van der Linden marked "urgent," a security adviser to the commission wrote that there are "strong grounds" to believe that Ethiopian and Somali troops had intentionally attacked civilian areas and that Ugandan peacekeepers, who arrived in the country last month, were complicit for standing by. The e-mail was provided by someone who thought that the issue should become public and its authenticity was confirmed by commission officials.

Ethiopian, Somali, and Ugandan officials denied yesterday that their soldiers had done anything wrong.

A war crimes case could further weaken Somalia's transitional government. Since it took control of Mogadishu in late December, the transitional government has struggled to pacify the city and win popular support.

Many Western diplomats had expressed hope that this transitional government, Somalia's 14th, would end the seemingly interminable chaos that has enveloped the country since the central government collapsed in 1991.

So far, however, the government has failed to deliver the same level of stability that an Islamist administration brought during its brief reign last year. It was overthrown by Ethiopian-led forces, with covert American help.

Mogadishu has become so dangerous again that many residents say they are now doubting whether the government will be able to hold a major reconciliation conference scheduled for mid-April.