Hired guns of private army target pirates

[Jacaylbaro]

A PRIVATE army of 2,000 *soldiers is being trained in *the desert wastelands and mountains of Somalia to take on the country’s notorious pirates.


The force is being funded by an unnamed Muslim country, thought to be Saudi Arabia.


Publicly, Saudi is distancing itself from the operation, for fear of a fundamentalist backlash, but the concern is that, whoever controls a well-trained, *well-equipped and stable *military force is in a strong position to make a bid for filling the *power vacuum in Somalia.


The fractured Somali government cannot fight the pirates alone and their actions are threatening investment and oil exploration. Many pirates have links to insurgent groups, including the biggest, Al Shabab, which is in turn linked to Al Qaeda.

“We don’t know if this unknown entity is operating in the interests of Somalis or their own self-interest,” said EJ Hogendoorn, a Nairobi-based analyst with the International Crisis Group.


“If it’s a company, there has to be a quid pro quo in terms of oil and gas concessions.



“If it’s a government, they are interested in changing the *balance of power.”


The Ugandan-based security firm Saracen International has been given £7.5million by an anonymous donor to train the force in the remote northern *region of Puntland.



Also involved is Pierre Prosper, former ambassador-at-large for war crimes under former President George W. Bush.



Read more: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/218241/Hired-guns-of-private-army-target-piratesHired-guns-of-private-army-target-pirates#ixzz18jjb25FQ

[Mr. Somalia]

Hayeeeeeey! Indinka la idiin soo socdaa!