Meddling in Mogadishu

The situation in Somalia, as described by a U.S. intelligence official, is a "Hobbesian" and "enemy-of-my-enemy" situation. Very nice adjectives are peppered throughout this must-read by Emily Wax and Karen DeYoung.

The headline is "U.S. Secretly Backing Warlords in Somalia." Kind of weird because it's not such a secret anymore. And this is entirely predictable. Al Qaeda thrives on chaotic places where they can do their thing without pesky things like laws and governments in their way. So here's the basic story:

More than a decade after U.S. troops withdrew from Somalia following a disastrous military intervention, officials of Somalia's interim government and some U.S. analysts of Africa policy say the United States has returned to the African country, secretly supporting secular warlords who have been waging fierce battles against Islamic groups for control of the capital, Mogadishu.

This has some people worried, for several reasons. There's an interrim "government" that in an ideal world Washington would get behind, prop up, help out, etc. But short-termism is the order of the day in Africa policy. And, while we can do more than one thing at a time, it's easy to see why we've chosen just to suck it up an support some nasty warlords who are better than even nastier warlords. We did it in Afghanistan. As always, the regional experts are probably right even if the political reality means something else has to be done (note to self: keep growing cynicism in check).

Africa researchers said they were concerned that while the Bush administration was focused on the potential terrorist threat, little was being done to support economic development initiatives that could provide alternative livelihoods to picking up a gun or following extremist ideologies in Somalia. Somalia watchers and Somalis themselves said there has not been enough substantial backing for building a new government after 15 years of collapsed statehood.