Jabou,
      That was a wonderful observation you have just made but again if you take a close look at the aricle you will see to it that one major concern for the US in this very crucial time of the war against Terrorism is The West African Region in particular where a lot of Diamond, arms and drug trafficking is taking place. 
In the article we can see WALD SAY "They (The Terrorist) definitely have an interest in the sahel," He said. And in West Africa, arms and drug smuggling help supply weapons and cash. Al qaeda has been interested in that as a funding source-- no doubt about it; so is Hezbollah, in a huge way."
If you read between the lines here, we all know that Dictators like Jammeh and  Former President Taylor were involve in not only arms and drug deals, but  the Blood Diamond deals. We all know about Baba jobe and soon on
There are also a number of Gambians who  are on the  US Intelligence watch list and we know some of them and others are yet to come. Let us just 
wait and see
US intelligence is fully aware of our mad man and i think that is very good for Gambians. OPTV have repeatedly written articles about this. This is going to expose Jammeh and his coronies and it is inevitable that any dictator involve in such illegal activities will stay any longer. Please do not rule out an ongoing investigation on those illegal activities in West Africa. Why do you think they mentioned West Africa in particular? They fully know whats going on and we should just continue our fight and certainly Jammeh will go.
                                           Binneh s Minteh

----- Original Message -----
From: Jabou Joh <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Wednesday, March 10, 2004 8:28 pm
Subject: Re: Trained African Armies Key to Terror Fight in Africa, Says US European Co...

> Well, Binneh Minteh, this article raises some issues of major 
> concern. For 
> example, training African armies for more secure borders and the 
> prevention of 
> arms smuggling and oth
er illegal activities is fine, but what about 
> in cases 
> where the powers that be in particular African countries are infact 
> part and 
> parcel of this arms smuggling activity and we all know that in 
> those instances, 
> the government of the day are dictatorships or tyrants who control 
> what orders 
> these armies carry out? Would that not only give them better 
> opportunity to 
> carry on with the smuggling activity while getting the bonus of a 
> better trained 
> army whose services they will use to further terrorize their own 
> people? 
> I think that to control arms smuggling and to prevent cooperation 
> between 
> terrorist groups and tyrant governments in Africa who understand 
> only the need to 
> get money from whoever and whatever will give it to them, the issue 
> is to 
> work with Africans so that they can have legitimate democratic 
> governments who 
> will work to curb the flow of illegal arms that not only feed a 
> terrorist 
> network, but a
lso continue to be a major danger to the everyday 
> lives of civilians 
> in these African countries.
> 
> I think since the U.S recognizes that poverty and marginalization 
> of Africas' 
> youth may make them vulnerable to recruitment by terrorist 
> elements, the 
> answer is not just to provide military training in these African 
> countries, but 
> also economic assistance that can translate into educational and 
> job 
> opportunities as well as oppotunities for small business startups 
> because most of these 
> youth who feel disenfranchised will not end up in any army.
> What do you think?
> 
> Jabou Joh
> 
> In a message dated 3/10/04 4:39:08 PM Central Standard Time, 
> [log in to unmask] 
> writes:
> 
> 
> > Trained African Armies Key to Terror Fight in Africa, Says US 
> European> Command Deputy
> >    allAfrica.com http://allafrica.com/stories/200403090576.html
> > 
> > Trained African Armies Key to Terror Fight in Africa, Says US 
> European> Command Deputy
> > 
>
 > March 8, 2004
> > Posted to the web March 9, 2004
> > 
> > Charles Cobb Jr.
> > Washington, DC
> > 
> > The United States is stepping up its efforts to partner with 
> Africa in the
> > war on terror, says the deputy commander of the US European Command
> > (USEUCOM) General Charles F. Wald. Although he wouldn't compare 
> it to
> > Afghanistan or Pakistan, he said Al Qaeda is definitely present 
> in Africa,
> > and the United States "can't wait for the problem to get larger."
> > 
> > General Wald, who briefed a small group of Africa-focused 
> journalists> Monday, has just returned from a seven-day, 11-nation 
> tour of Africa that
> > included stops in Luanda, Lagos, Pretoria, Cape Town, Accra, 
> Tunis, Niamey
> > and Algiers.
> > 
> > 
> > Over the past month, there have been two other visits to Africa 
> by senior
> > U.S. military figures - General James L. Jones, who is the 
> Supreme Allied
> > Commander, Europe (SACEUR) as well as the USEUCOM Commander, and 
> A
ir Force
> > Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Kohler, USEUCOM's key planner in force 
> reconfiguration,> who visited Mauritania, Mali and Niger.
> > 
> > Forty eight African nations fall within the area of operation of 
> USEUCOM,> which is headquartered near Stuttgart, Germany. Egypt, 
> Sudan, Ethiopia,
> > Eritrea, Somalia and Kenya fall within the province of the U.S. 
> Central> Command (USCENTCOM), headquartered in Tampa, Florida.
> > 
> > "I am concerned about the large ungoverned areas of Africa that are
> > possibly melting pots for the disenfranchised of the world, so to 
> speak,> the terrorist breeding grounds," General Jones told 
> congressional leaders
> > last June. "I believe that we're going to have to engage more in 
> that> theater."
> > 
> > USEUCOM is concerned that poverty and alienation from government,
> > especially among youth, make Africa a fertile recruiting ground 
> for Al
> > Qaeda and other organizations. There is further concern that the oil
> > resources 
south of the Sahel - now supplying the U.S. with 15 
> percent of
> > its oil needs - could be at risk.
> > 
> > The African nations he visited agree that Al Qaeda and other 
> terrorist> organizations may have found some sanctuary and perhaps 
> even established
> > new bases on the continent, said Wald. They "definitely have an 
> interest in
> > the Sahel," he said. And in West Africa, arms and drug smuggling 
> help> supply weapons and cash. "We still know that in Sierra Leone, 
> diamonds are
> > going out illegally. Al Qaeda has been interested in that as a 
> funding> source -- no doubt about it; so is Hezbolla, in a huge way."
> > 
> > U.S. intelligence believes terrorist groups have set up camps and 
> opened up
> > supply lines through northern Mali’s largely ungoverned desert 
> wastelands> along the Algerian border, Stars and Stripes newspaper 
> reported in their
> > June 17, 2003 European edition. "They have established lines of
> > communication that support op
erations in and out of the region," 
> the paper
> > said, quoting a "top level military official." This "no-man’s 
> land is far
> > enough off the beaten path they can also conduct training camps 
> there."> 
> > Everywhere he goes in Africa, Wald said, there is "resonance and 
> agreement"> that the need to fight extremism and terrorism "is 
> something we (the United
> > States and Africa) have in common."
> > 
> > The small and often poorly equipped and trained armies throughout 
> Africa> need U.S. assistance, Wald said. Currently, U.S. special 
> operations forces
> > are training armies in Mali, Niger, Mauritania and Chad as part 
> of a State
> > Department-funded program called The Pan Sahel Initiative (PSI). 
> According> to USEUCOM, the program, which trains selected units "on 
> mobility,> communications, land navigation, and small unit 
> tactics," is "designed to
> > enhance border capabilities throughout the region against arms 
> smuggling,> drug trafficking,
 and the movement of trans-national 
> terrorists." Expanding
> > the initiative to include Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria is under
> > consideration.
> > 
> > This is a first step for USEUCOM in a regional approach to combating
> > terrorism in which African nations take the lead. "I can see the 
> South> Africans and the Angolans cooperating in the future on 
> regional security",
> > said Wald. USEUCOM wants to reach agreement with governments 
> across Africa
> > on the use of airports for fuel stops - "Forward Operating 
> Stations...that> we can stop in, refuel in...I look at any place in 
> Africa that has a runway
> > or port that wants to be friends with the United States or we 
> have a
> > relationship with as a potential forward-operating location that 
> we could
> > temporarily use."
> > 
> > Relevant Links
> > 
> > United States, Canada and Africa
> > Arms and Military Affairs
> > International Terrorism
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > In addition, USEUCOM has in mind establi
shment of a half dozen 
> "low-
> > maintenance" bases at airports or remote camps, each one manned 
> by up to
> > 200 U.S. troops.
> > 
> > Wald expressed concern that Africa's major health and 
> humanitarian crisis,
> > the HIV/Aids pandemic, was becoming a "strategic" issue affecting 
> security.> Referring especially to South Africa, Wald said that HIV 
> "limits the number
> > of troops they can deploy at any one time." South Africa's 
> military has
> > received US$2.2mil from USEUCOM for "study, identification, 
> education,> prevention and treatment and follow-up," on HIV/Aids. 
> "It may be the first
> > wholistic approach in the world," he said.
> > 
> > Binneh s minteh
> > New York university
> 
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