Africa News Digest
Israeli Mercenaries Involved in Côte D'Ivoire Attack
"Israeli mercenaries assisting the Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) army operated unmanned aircraft that aided aerial bombings of a French base in the country," claimed French television station TF1, according to the Israeli daily Ha'aretz Nov. 17. On the same day, Le Monde reported that a group of 46 Israelis has been operating an intelligence center for the Côte d'Ivoire military.
An Israeli source told Israel Radio that the French had confiscated the aircraft at the Abidjan Airport and asked Israel to clarify the circumstances of their presence in the West African state. The source said Israel has promised to stop selling military equipment to Côte d'Ivoire, which it will have to do in any case, since there is now an UN arms embargo in place.
This source said the aircraft were sold legally. In fact, the company that sold them to Côte d'Ivoire, Aeronautics Defense Systems, proudly mentions the fact on its web site. The web site also states that the company's advisers include Jacob Perry, the former director of the Shin Beth.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry issued a statement claiming "Israel is unaware of the matter."
U.S. Fundies Told Ivorian President To Resume War
An Ivorian local official aligned with President Laurent Gbagbo told EIR Nov. 12 that, "it is the men of God who told us that we had to make war against war, that this is the only way to establish peace and unity in our country." He confirmed that he was referring to the Pentecostal churches that have been growing up like mushrooms in the country.
Gbagbo's wife is a member of the Foursquare Gospel Church, a Pentecostal sect based in the U.S. During the 2002-2003 war with the insurrectionary northern forces, U.S.-based Pentecostal churches sent clothing and other supplies to Côte d'Ivoire to "support the troops."
When reminded that the Gbagbo government was allied with the U.S. neocons and Israel, the worst possible partners, the local official claimed that they had allied with these "powerful financial forces" to "develop the country"! He blamed the French for blocking its development.
U.S. State Department Keeps Low Profile on Côte D'Ivoire
The U.S. State Department issued a press release Nov. 4 condemning Côte d'Ivoire President Gbagbo's bombardment of the northern forces, but also the failure of "all sides" to put the welfare of the people above "narrow political interests." State Department spokesman Richard Boucher, at a press briefing Nov. 12, said the U.S. supports the African Union (AU)-mandated mission of South African President Thabo Mbeki, to seek conciliation on the basis of the Linas-Marcoussis accords (shaped by France) and the Accra III accords. The U.S. also supports other AU efforts respecting Côte d'Ivoire, he said.
When France responded to the bombardment of the North (killing nine French soldiers involved in DMZ operations), by destroying most of the Ivorian Air Force on Nov. 6, Gen. Charles Wald, Deputy Commander of the U.S. European Command, strongly backed the French. Wald said Nov. 9, that Gbagbo had "made an exceptionally ignorant and stupid judgmental mistake by actually having these guys bomb people.... We strongly believe that the French took the exact right action," New York Times reported Nov. 10.
Marcoussis Accords Must Be Implemented in Côte D'Ivoire
French Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie, speaking of Côte D'Ivoire, said the Marcoussis Accords of 2003 are the only issue, and must be implemented, in an interview with Le Monde Nov. 15. The accords call for the formation of a government that includes opposing political forcesforces whose ethnic and religious hatred of each other have been built up since the implementation of IMF conditionalities in the early 1990s.
French President Jacques Chirac said Nov. 14 that France would not let "a system develop that could lead to anarchy or to a fascist regime." Alassane Ouattara, the leading opponent of Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo, and himself a synarchist in democrat's clothing, echoed Chirac in an interview on Radio France Internationale (RFI) Nov. 17, saying, "It is necessary to halt the drift into fascism." Opposition newspapers have been shut down since Nov. 4. The gangs attacking Europeans and Ivorian northerners are controlled by Gbagbo, who also operates hit squads.
South African President Thabo Mbeki, charged by the African Union with seeking peace and reconciliation in Côte d'Ivoire, told the European Parliament in Strasbourg Nov. 17 that he was confident that Ivorians would come together to establish a stable peace and elect a representative government.
All of these assertions suppose that some political algebra can be made to work without addressing the centrifugal force of fascist IMF policies, which no one mentions.
Nigeria: What Happened to the 'Mother of All Strikes'?
As of Monday morning, Nov. 15, all sectors of Nigerian society were primed for the mass strike scheduled to begin on Tuesday, a strike that would have included the stoppage of oil production. A Daily Champion headline Nov. 15, "Banks Prepare for Panic Withdrawals," is indicative. President Olusegun Obasanjo had declared a 10% reduction in the price of kerosene (used as cooking fuel) Nov. 12, but this was not seen by strike leaders as anything like a sufficient basis for stopping the strike.
On Nov. 15, Obasanjo's government announced a cut in gasoline and diesel-fuel prices from niara 52 to 49 for an eight-week "experimental" period (what's the experiment?). The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) had demanded a reduction to N 44, period. In response to the small reduction, an NLC spokesman told Associated Press, "We have decided to suspend the strike for now, to give the government a chance. It's not exactly what we want."
It may not be irrelevant that U.S. press coverage of the impending strike was almost non-existent, despite the importance of Nigerian oil for the U.S., as if it had been a "non-event" long before Nov. 15.
London Was 'Informed' of Coup Plot vs. Equatorial Guinea
In a remarkable admission, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw confirmed that London had been "informed" of the coup plot against Equatorial Guinea, the Observer reported Nov. 14. Straw said the British government received the information "in late January 2004." On March 7, British mercenary Simon Mann was arrested in Zimbabwe, en route to Equatorial Guinea, where he is accused of having helped carry out the abortive coup. In August, Mark Thatcher, son of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, was arrested in South Africa for allegedly financing the coup attempt.
Straw's admission was in response to a question put on the table in Parliament by Conservative Party Shadow Foreign Secretary Michael Ancram. Straw gave no further details in his answer.
Ancram commented, "Jack Straw's reply raises very significant questions which require answers. Who informed the government, exactly when, and what did the minister do with this information?" Ancram now has proffered a list of further questions on this case.
So. African Mercenaries To Testify vs. Sir Mark Thatcher
Three South African mercenariesLoutjie Horan, Harry Carlse, and Crause Steylhave confessed to being involved in plans to launch a coup against the Equatorial Guinea government, News 24.com reported Nov. 18. Moreover, they have agreed to testify in an upcoming trial of Sir Mark Thatcher, who is accused of have helped finance the coup.
According to documents read in the court, the coup was supposed to have taken place Feb. 17-18, but was postponed. On Feb. 19, some 60 mercenaries left for Ndola in Zambia via the South African Wonderboom Airport. Because the weapons they were to purchase were not ready, the operation was called off. It resumed in March when Simon Mann, with 60 mercenaries, flew to Zimbabwe to buy weapons en route to Equatorial Guinea, but ended up being arrested and convicted in Zimbabwe for illegally buying weapons.
Thatcher's role was to finance the purchase of helicopter gunships, and he in fact deposited $245,000 into Steyl's bank account for the purchase.
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