** Forum Nasional Indonesia PPI India Mailing List ** ** Untuk bergabung dg Milis Nasional kunjungi: ** Situs Milis: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia/ ** ** Beasiswa dalam negeri dan luar negeri S1 S2 S3 dan post-doctoral scholarship, kunjungi http://informasi-beasiswa.blogspot.com **http://www.timesofoman.com/newsdetails.asp?newsid=33321 Sunday, July 23, 2006 Somalia slides towards war NAIROBI -- Neglected by the world for years, Somalia appears on the verge of a war that could escalate into a major regional conflict and play into the hands of hardline militia. Six weeks after taking Mogadishu and other southern towns, the militia are engaged in an increasingly bellicose standoff with a fragile, Ethiopian-backed interim government based in the provincial town of Baidoa. With militia moving their closest yet to Baidoa this week, and witnesses saying Ethiopian soldiers have poured over the border to defend the government, the prospect of yet another major conflict in Somalia has risen sharply. "The risk of full-scale war increases by the day," said John Prendergast, of the International Crisis Group, citing the government's "foolish" boycott of peace talks in Sudan and what he called provocative militia movements. While Ethiopia is apparently spoiling for a fight, warning it will crush the militia if they attack Baidoa, another regional player -- Eritrea -- is playing a lesser-known but also influential role on the other side, analysts and diplomats say. Already criticised by the United Nations for funnelling arms to the militia during their rise to power in Mogadishu earlier this year, the Eritreans are continuing to supply weapons, funds and personnel, the experts believe. "The Eritrean support is the backbone of the militia military structure," said one analyst, who has close contacts with all sides in the Somali crisis but asked not to be named. "In Mogadishu, the Eritrean presence is everywhere. Believe me, I've seen them." Ethiopia's motives are obvious: it wishes to remain the dominant power in the Horn of Africa; it has traditionally sought to influence Somalia and contain radical Islam there; and it fears Islamist aspirations in its Ogaden ethnic Somali region. Eritrea's thinking is less clear -- beyond hatred of Ethiopia. Asmara became independent in 1991 after a 30-year uprising and later fought a border conflict with Ethiopia. "It is purely to obstruct Ethiopia that the Eritreans are getting involved in Somalia, they don't have big past links or interests," said an African diplomat who tracks the Horn. Both Addis Ababa and Asmara deny any presence in Somalia, but their statements are taken with a pinch of salt by many. -- Reuters [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] *************************************************************************** Berdikusi dg Santun & Elegan, dg Semangat Persahabatan. Menuju Indonesia yg Lebih Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia *************************************************************************** __________________________________________________________________________ Mohon Perhatian: 1. Harap tdk. memposting/reply yg menyinggung SARA (kecuali sbg otokritik) 2. Pesan yg akan direply harap dihapus, kecuali yg akan dikomentari. 3. Reading only, http://dear.to/ppi 4. Satu email perhari: ppiindia-digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 5. No-email/web only: ppiindia-nomail@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 6. kembali menerima email: ppiindia-normal@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: ppiindia-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ ** Forum Nasional Indonesia PPI India Mailing List ** ** Untuk bergabung dg Milis Nasional kunjungi: ** Situs Milis: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia/ ** ** Beasiswa dalam negeri dan luar negeri S1 S2 S3 dan post-doctoral scholarship, kunjungi http://informasi-beasiswa.blogspot.com **