Bharat Rakshak

shyamd wrote:The AQIM are planning to go to Mauritania (uranium), Niger (uranium), Nigeria (oil) and hence could become a power to reckon with and that whole belt could become a big pain.

Toureg tribes generally don't mix with the black African tribes of the south. The Touregs have a lot of pride as they used to be quite well off

France’s President, François Hollande, has personally asked Stephen Harper to extend Canada’s contribution of a heavy-lift cargo plane for Mali, and to offer more transport help, testing Mr. Harper’s efforts to set strict limits on Canada’s military assistance.

Jan 18, 11:16 AM EST


Desert siege: 100 of 132 foreign hostages freed

By KARIM KABIR and PAUL SCHEMM
Associated Press
ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) -- The bloody three-day hostage standoff at a Sahara natural gas plant took a dramatic turn Friday as Algeria's state news service reported that nearly 100 of the 132 foreign workers kidnapped by Islamic militants had been freed.

That number of hostages at the remote desert facility was significantly higher than any previous report, and still meant that the fate of over 30 foreign energy workers was unclear. Yet it could indicate a potential breakthrough in the confrontation that began when the militants seized the plant early Wednesday.

The militants, meanwhile, offered to trade two captive American workers for two terror figures jailed in the United States, according to a statement received by a Mauritanian news site that often reports news from North African extremists.

The Friday report from the government news agency APS, citing a security official, did not mention any casualties in the battles between Algerian forces and the militants. But earlier it had said that 18 militants had been killed, along with six hostages.

It was not clear whether the remaining foreigners were still captive or had died during the Algerian military offensive to free them that began Thursday.

The desert siege erupted Wednesday when the militants attempted to hijack two buses at the plant, were repulsed, and then seized the sprawling refinery.

Since then, Algeria's government has kept a tight grip on information. It wasn't clear how the government arrived at the latest tally of hostages, which was far higher than the 41 foreigners the militants had claimed as hostages.

The militants had seized hundreds of workers from 10 nations at Algeria's remote Ain Amenas natural gas plant. The overwhelming majority were Algerian and were freed almost immediately.

Algerian forces retaliated Thursday by storming the plant in an attempted rescue operation that left leaders around the world expressing strong concerns about the hostages' safety.

Militants claimed 35 hostages died on Thursday when Algerian military helicopters opened fire as the Islamists transported the hostages around the gas plant.

On Friday, trapped in the main refinery area, the militants offered to trade two American hostages for two prominent terror figures jailed in the United States. Those the militants sought included Omar Abdel Rahman, the blind sheikh who was convicted of plotting to blow up New York City landmarks and considered the spiritual leader of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani scientist convicted of shooting at two U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan.

But U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said there would be "no place to hide" for anyone who looks to attack the United States.

"Terrorists should be on notice that they will find no sanctuary, no refuge, not in Algeria, not in North Africa, not anywhere," Panetta said Friday.

Workers kidnapped by the militants came from around the world - Americans, Britons, French, Norwegians, Romanians, Malaysians, Japanese, Algerians.

World leaders have expressed strong concerns in the past few days about how Algeria was handing the situation and its apparent reluctance to communicate.

Terrorized hostages from Ireland and Norway trickled out of the Ain Amenas plant, 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) south of Algiers, the capital. BP, which jointly operates the plant, said it had begun to evacuate employees from Algeria.

"This is a large and complex site and they are still pursuing terrorists and possibly some of the hostages," British Prime Minister David Cameron said Friday in London.

He told British lawmakers the situation remained fluid and dangerous, saying "part of the threat has been eliminated in one part of the site, a threat still remains in another part."

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Schemm reported from Rabat, Morocco. Associated Press writers Lolita Baldor in Washington, Lori Hinnant in Paris, and Cassandra Vinograd in London contributed to this report.

Algeria: The state news agency reported earlier during this Watch that the military operation to free hostages at a desert gas plant is over. The agency reported Algerian forces rescued 600 Algerians and an unknown number of foreigners. News services reported up to 34 dead hostages, but no outlet has reported who killed them.

Comment: The Algerians executed the operation without outside coordination, which has generated considerable back pressure. As yet the government has provided no details of its execution or accounted for the dead and wounded. News service accounts are inconsistent, when they are not contradictory.

To recap the key points of a Feedback note from a Brilliant and extremely well-informed Reader, this was a very odd attack. The location is outside the normal operating areas of al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). The target also was unusual. Most of the time the terrorists attack gendarmerie barracks and outposts along the coast east of Algiers.

Finally, the group is jihadist, but it splintered from AQIM. Its leader, Belmokhtar, fought in Afghanistan, but is known locally as a smuggler, of cigarettes. His group has never been reported to harbor suicidal tendencies. His men are not suicide bombers.

No news service has reported destruction of the plant, interruption of its production or an attempt by the attackers to flee with some hostages so as to negotiate ransoms. Initial reports indicated there were 20 attackers. The state news agency reported variously 11 or 14 of them were killed, making this a high cost operation, even for terrorist.

The information in the public domain suggests this operation and its tactics hold no precedent of victory for others to follow. Moreover, the information raises suspicions that Belmokhtar tried to exploit the crisis in Mali for his own purposes, not necessarily as an act of solidarity with the terrorists in Mali.

Algeria's swift and harsh reaction is consistent with Algerian tactics used when they defeated the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) rebellion between 1991 and 2002.

Mali: The fighting continues without major breakthroughs. Contrary to earlier reports, government and French forces have not captured Diabaly. Residents reported the Islamists have mingled among the population, taking over homes and using the occupants in effect as human shields.

Troop contingents from Nigeria and Togo began to arrive along with more French forces.

The most ominous development on 17 January was the sighting of Islamists near the town of Banamba, which has no garrison and is located about 90 miles from Bamako. The Islamists did not enter the town. The government later sent a contingent of 100 Malian soldiers to defend Banamba, or act as a trip wire for an attack.



Comment: The Islamists might have been performing reconnaissance. They also probably were searching for fuel and supplies.

Banamba is the closest they have come to Bamako. The map suggests they might be in a position to flank pro-government forces in a wide arc to the west in order to attack the capital.

Almost a week into the French intervention, the Islamists seem to know the terrain well and retain the initiative on the ground.

Two key questions are how much petrol and other supplies have the terrorists captured and how much is left in areas beyond government control?

Do we want to move this to the Strat Forum as there seems to be a lot of political overtones and less on arms and tactics?

Victor wrote:Looks like they are bringing the Caesar howitzer. This would be deadly when used with air-burst rounds which can shred jihadi columns from 30kms away.

rohitvats wrote:The developments in Mali should wake up people and help them understand that tackling Islamic militancy is a long term issue - the use of military means is only one aspect of it.Under no circumstance should an organization like Ansar Dine be allowed to take hold of countries - no matter how decrepit they be.
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To me, such Islamic societies represent the biggest danger to mankind and progression of human race - these are like undead in Hollywood movies who will simply keep on coming at you...they will give no quarter and so should we. We need to be ready to put boots on the ground and brace of body bags. Technology and stuff is all right...but these are no substitutes for men who can hunt these vermin down like they should be. If western world does not do this, sooner than later 9/11 will become just another day.

anand_sankar wrote:...Have you seen he TV series Homeland? The terrorist Abu Nazir in it says they are prepared for a century or more of violence.

For a brief little while after 9/11, I thought America would use its might to stamp this out. Then Iraq happened and Afghanistan unravelled. Both countries will be basket cases, even Iraq with all its oil will always be unstable. Syria will join them soon.

The real danger now is losing northern Africa too. It creates a huge swathe of the world which can be a breeding ground to spread terror in both directions -- east and west.

Aditya G wrote:

anand_sankar wrote:...BTW, in case you havent realized India has been fighting this terrorism right from 1947 ... in my own view we have never been stronger since the 60+ years of fighting.

rohitvats wrote:The developments in Mali should wake up people and help them understand that tackling Islamic militancy is a long term issue - the use of military means is only one aspect of it.Under no circumstance should an organization like Ansar Dine be allowed to take hold of countries - no matter how decrepit they be.

It is people who are the real cannon fodder in this game... benign Islamic societies were Wahhabi elements have not taken root need to be guarded - even if these benign Islamic societies have not love lost for the Kafir. Over a period of time, societies and countries taken over by these Wahhabi yahoos will morph into 'bastions of Islam' and spread like cancer into their surroundings.

To me, such Islamic societies represent the biggest danger to mankind and progression of human race - these are like undead in Hollywood movies who will simply keep on coming at you...they will give no quarter and so should we. We need to be ready to put boots on the ground and brace of body bags. Technology and stuff is all right...but these are no substitutes for men who can hunt these vermin down like they should be. If western world does not do this, sooner than later 9/11 will become just another day.