Madagascar Coup De Ta May be Imminent

Source: Reuters







* Rebel soldier ousts head of army
* U.S. ambassador warns of danger of civil war
* Embassies threaten aid suspension in event of coup

By Richard Lough
ANTANANARIVO, March 11 (Reuters)

- A rebel soldier named himself head of Madagascar's army on Wednesday, ousting the general who had given the island's feuding leaders a three-day ultimatum to resolve the political crisis.

General Edmond Rasolomahandry had on Tuesday asked President Marc Ravalomanana and opposition leader Andry Rajoelina to unite within 72 hours to end weeks of troubles that have killed about 135 people and devastated the economy.

"Discussions proceeded without problems between brothers. From now on, the army is behind me," Colonel Noel Ndriarijoana, leading mutinous troops, told reporters.

The troops mutinied in anger at a crackdown by the government on demonstrations against President Ravalomanana, but opposition leader Rajoelina has distanced himself from them.

Local media reported on Tuesday that U.S. Ambassador Niels Marquardt had warned the Indian Ocean island nation was on "the verge of civil war".

• Rajoelina, a 34-year-old one-time disc jockey, has galvanised widespread anger over the president's failure to alleviate poverty.
• He has repeatedly called on Ravalomanana to resign, saying he no longer controls the capital or provinces.
• The government calls him a maverick troublemaker and accuses him of whipping up public discontent with exaggerated claims.

A group of foreign missions also made clear they would suspend aid in the event of a coup d'etat.

"All non-democratic alternatives are not acceptable -- be it a coup d'etat, a military junta or the ongoing unrest," said Augustine Kasujja, the Vatican envoy, speaking on behalf of the diplomatic community.

"This will have seriously negative consequences for Madagascar's external relations with the outside world and for our capacity to support the country's development."

(Writing by Helen Nyambura-Mwaura; Editing by Matthew Tostevin

Source: Reuters Africa

Axmed Cabdi Godane may be a new name for Ahmed Abdi Godane,

Axmed Cabdi Godane may be the new " nom d' jur " for Ahmed Abdi Godane, or he may be someone closly associated with Ahmed Abdi Godane. Ahamed abdi is a leader in al Shabaab, operating in Somalia, and operates under several names

-Shimron

Qatar- based Barwa Real Estate Moves into Libya

Barwa is moving further into Africa. It will be espcially especially intersting to see if an covetures ventures with Laaico emerge. The board members on these companies have some interesting affiliations....

-Shimron

Qatar-based real estate company follows Masraf Al Rayan in move into potentially lucrative North African country which is opening up to foreign investors.

Barwa Real Estate, through its international arm, Barwa International, said that that it is in the process of entering into investments and real estate projects in Libya.

The projects will include villas, residential compounds and offices, as well as four-star hotel covering an area of 3000 square meters.

• Barwa already has interests in North Africa through Barwa Egypt Real Estate, Gulf Company for Urban Development, which it owns 100 per cent of, Gulf Construction Company in which it has an undisclosed share and Qatamiyah Residential City.
• It was set up in 2005, has over 1100 staff and was created by Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company.
• It also owns 20 per cent of the iconic Shard of Glass Tower in London, which is currently under construction,
• The Langham Building in the US,
• A tourist resort in Croatia
• Monaco Project. Ghanim Bin Saad Al Saad is the chairman, chief executive and managing director.
  

Radical Islamist - a definition

For the purposes of correcting some hasty generalization occurring about Ismalists, I want to propose a further subset of Islamist, I call

"Radical Islamists"

A Radical Islamist Is:

1. A Muslim or Muslim group who believes now is time for to support physical jihad - war - on all fronts, against any secular (apostate) Muslim governments in all countries
2. A Muslim or Muslim group who believes now is time for to support physical jihad - war - on all fronts, against any non Muslim controlled country.
3. A Muslim or Muslim group who collaborates with a Radical Muslim Group or person by means of facilitating travel for, training of, providing paying jobs for, providing refugee food to, or any other support to any Mujahadeen fighter, intelligence, operational or logistical support activity who is engaged in activities 1 or 2 listed above.
4. Can be Sunni or Shia, usually note Sufi or other sect.

A Radical Islamist is not:

1. An Islamic Aid organization or activity working in a war torn area. When this group or Muslim is informed that they are unknowingly participating in paragraph 3 above, they stop the activity, denounce it, and purge the participants from their ranks. Failure to act in this way suggests that the group is, in fact, a Radical Islamist Group.
2. A Muslim who believes that their own country should be under Sharia law, but has no interest in exporting this agenda to create a larger caliphate.
3. A Muslim who believes their own secular government should be more religious.
4. A promoter of secular Arab Culture across several countries, who has no teaching or activity supporting a pan-Arab caliphate agenda demanding that all country members must submit to Sharia.

Sharia Law May Help Stabilize Somalia

This week week, The leadership of the new legitimate Somali government has proposed moving Somalia to Sharia law. This is a stabilizing move for several reasons:

• The move seems to be splitting the al Qaeda Backed al Shabaab . al Qaeda had been trying to unite several rebel factions under the banner of moving Somalia to Sharia law. They were having some sucess, but now the Moderate government has taken away the issue to great effect.
• This will move to isolate the Radical Islamists in Somalia, who are a vast minority in Somalia.
• The Vast Majority of Somalis would likely democraticaly vote in a moderate form of Sharia for Somalia if they could. They key is to set up a moderate form of Dhimmi laws for the non-Muslims.
• This would actually demonstrate to Somalis what a governmet is supposed to do, which Somalis have not seen for a generation.

The ultimate strategy of the US needs to be the elimination of Somalia as a safe haven for al Qaeda or any other group who's ideology

-Shimron

Hawiye Branch of Shabaab Spilts with Hassan Yakub on Sharia for Somalia

Sheik Hassan Ya’kub

“We will not recognize the outcome of apostate cabinet ministers and apostate parliamentarians,” said Terrorist Sheik Hassan Ya’kub the secretary information of al-Shabab. “We want an Islamic government that does not have the support of the United Nations and Ethiopia,” he added.

MOGADISHU (Mareeg)--Al-Shabaab Islamist Terrorist group has described Wednesday the decision of the Somali talaban Cabinet to endorse the Islamic Law as something “ridiculous” and said they would not welcome.

Several armed groups have said they will stop fighting the government if sharia was implemented, but al-Shabab rejected the plan.

“We will not recognize the outcome of apostate cabinet ministers and apostate parliamentarians,” said Terrorist Sheik Hassan Ya’kub the secretary information of al-Shabab. “We want an Islamic government that does not have the support of the United Nations and Ethiopia,” he added.

He said that they will not accept a government that Burundian and Ugandan troops are keeping guard,

but the spokesman of Hizbul Islam (Islamic party) aka.. hawiye.-(Habar-gidir ) wing of shabaab, an alliance of four groups that control parts of the capital and have influence in the port town of Kismayo Terrorist Muse Abdi Aralle said they will wait from the government to fulfill its commitment.

“We were fighting for the sharia to be implemented, so we are waiting from them to carry out their promise,” said Muse Aralle.

........Al Shabab, the Islamist militant group active in Somalia, is tied closely to al Qaeda through its senior leaders, many of whom trained with and carried out operations in the name of al Qaeda prime. Its leaders’ training and experience lend al Shabab strength.....

The Rest @ the Terror Free Somalia Foundation

al Shabaab to Join Al Qaeda

-Its only logical that those funding al shabaab, al Qaeda, should join- this appears to be happening.

al Shabaab already rule Southern Somalia. If things go as they plan, then Somalia itself will be reuled by al Qaeda. They are already running Mujahadeen (terrorist) training camps for ehtnic Somalis from the US and the UK.

-Shimron

WASHINGTON (Mareeg) — A top military intelligence official says the Somali extremist group al-Shabaab is poised to formally merge with al-Qaida, expanding the terrorist franchise in East Africa.

Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Michael Maples told the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday that the propaganda released by both groups recently highlights their ideological similarities, suggesting a merger is forthcoming.

The Rest @ Mareeg.com