US special forces 'capture' Anas al-Liby who was captured in 2002 --US commando raids target Islamist leaders in Africa 06 Oct 2013 US special forces have carried out two separate raids in Africa targeting senior Islamist militants, American officials say. In Libya, US commandos captured an al-Qaeda [al-CIAduh] leader accused of the 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Anas al-Liby was seized in the capital Tripoli. [Negative. Anas al-Liby was captured in 2002. Am I the *only one* who doesn't fall for these phony 'al-Qaeda' raids that seem to only transpire when the US government needs a weapon of mass distraction? Anas al-Liby was one of the FBI's list of most-wanted.He was captured in eastern Afghanistan in January 2002. --LRP]
The US government's foreign policy appears to be most effective when it is shut down. First, we learned that the CIA has accelerated its training and weapons supply of Syria's Al-Qaeda insurgents only after the funding for the non-critical government functions was halted. Then, overnight, John Kerry showed that while he gives to Al-Qaeda with one hand he takes from it with two following two U.S. raids in Libya and Somalia that captured an Islamist wanted for bombing its Nairobi embassy 15 years ago. These actions "show Washington's determination to hunt down al Qaeda leaders around the globe" Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday. So in 15 years the then secretary of state will be proud to announce that Al-Qaeda leaders operating in and around Syria, armed with US weapons, have also been captured. And so the wheel will keep on turning.
Libyan Nazih al-Ragye, better known by the cover name Abu Anas al-Liby, was seized by U.S. forces in Tripoli on Saturday, the Pentagon said. A seaborne raid on the Somali port of Barawe, a stronghold of the al Shabaab movement behind last month's attack on a Kenyan mall, failed to take or kill its target.
"We hope this makes clear that the United States of America will never stop in its effort to hold those accountable who conduct acts of terror," Kerry said during a visit to Bali.
"Those members of al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations literally can run but they can't hide," Kerry said. "We will continue to try to bring people to justice."
The twin raids, two years after a U.S. Navy SEAL team killed al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden in Pakistan, demonstrated American reach at a time when Islamist militants have been expanding their presence in Africa - not least in Libya following the Western-backed overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi. Libya's government, wary of an Islamist backlash, demanded an explanation for the "kidnapping" of one of its citizens.
Don't hold your breath: the person responsible for providing explanations for US actions abroad is currently on furlough.
What is the important of Liby?
Liby, who the FBI says is 49, has been under U.S. indictment since 2000 for his alleged role in bombing the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998, which killed 224 people. Of more pressing concern for Washington, however, may have been that al Qaeda appears to be establishing itself in Libya today.
With President Barack Obama wrestling with the legal and political difficulties posed by trying al Qaeda suspects held at the U.S. base at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, Liby may be more likely to face trial in New York, where the indictment was filed.
Liby, who had once been granted political asylum from Gaddafi in Britain, was charged with 20 other people including bin Laden and current al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri. The U.S. government offered a $5 million reward for helping capture Liby.
Charges relating to him personally accuse him of discussing the bombing of the Nairobi embassy in retaliation for the U.S. intervention in the Somali civil war in 1992-93 and of helping reconnoiter and plan the attack in the years before 1998.
As for Somalia, where fighting erupted at about 3 am on Saturday morning, things did not go quite as planned.
The target of the Somali operation was unclear but a U.S. official was quoted as saying it was planned in response to the Nairobi mall attack two weeks ago in which at least 67 were killed. That highlighted the risk of Somalia's rumbling civil conflict destabilizing a resource-rich continent where Islamists have been on the rise from west to east in recent years.
Launched in the early hours of Saturday, the Somali raid appears to have featured a beach landing in hostile territory that was followed by an extended firefight. U.S. officials said SEALs conducted the raid and had killed al Qaeda-allied al Shabaab fighters while taking no casualties themselves. Somali police said seven people were killed during the operation.
Somalia's Western-backed government, still trying to establish its authority after two decades of civil war, holds little sway in Barawe, 110 miles south of Mogadishu.
Asked of his involvement in the U.S. operation, Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon said: "We have collaboration with the world and with neighboring countries in the battle against al Shabaab."
...
The Pentagon confirmed U.S. military personnel had been involved in an operation against what it called "a known al Shabaab terrorist," in Somalia, but gave no more details.
Local people in Barawe and Somali security officials said troops came ashore from the Indian Ocean to attack a house near the shore used by al Shabaab fighters.
U.S. officials said troops, to avoid civilian casualties, disengaged after inflicting casualties on al Shabaab. They said no U.S. personnel were wounded or killed in the operation, which one U.S. source said was carried out by a Navy SEAL team.
A Somali intelligence official said the target of the raid at Barawe, about 110 miles south of Mogadishu, was a Chechen commander, who had been wounded and his guard killed.
One U.S. official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the al Shabaab leader targeted in the operation was neither captured nor killed.
Some of the more cynical persuasion prompted pointed out that the US government now needs a distraction (Al-Qaeda raids), from a distraction (the shutdown government), from a distraction (the botched Syrian "liberation" campaign and providing of weapons to Al-Qaeda), from a distraction (the NSA wholesale spying campaign that has Nixon spinning in his grave), from the ultimately reality: the ongoing collapse of the US economy.
Which only means that piecemeal foreign operations must and will continue to remind Americans of the constant "threat" it lives under, until such time as a false flag provocation finally allows the escalation into an all out war somewhere in the world, and with it leads to the much sought after, deficit-boosting military intervention.
US forces launched raids in Libya and Somalia on Saturday, capturing a top al-Qaida figure wanted for the 1998 US embassy bombings in Kenyaand Tanzania, but failing to secure the target in Somalia, US officials said.
Senior al-Qaida figure Anas al-Liby was seized in the raid in Libya, but no militant was captured in the raid on the Somali town of Barawe, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Pentagon confirmed US military personnel had been involved in an operation against what it called "a known al-Shabaab terrorist" in Somalia, but gave no more details.
One US official, speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity, said the al-Shabaab leader targeted in the operation was neither captured nor killed.
US officials did not identify the target. They said US forces, trying to avoid civilian casualties, disengaged after inflicting some al-Shabaab casualties. They said no US personnel were wounded or killed in the operation, which one US source said was carried out by a Navy SEAL team.
The New York Times quoted a US security official as saying that the target was believed to have been killed, but later accounts called that into question.
The raid hit a two-storey house close to the beach in the town of Barawe, an al-Shabaab stronghold, in the lower Shabelle region, some 150 miles south of Mogadishu. US navy commandos killed a senior al-Qaida member in the same town four years ago.
They attacked before dawn, approaching the beachfront property in small boats, reportedly supported by a helicopter and naval gunfire.
The New York Times quoted an unnamed US security official saying the raid was planned a week and a half ago and prompted by the attack on Nairobi's upmarket Westgate shopping mall two weeks ago in which at least 67 people were killed.
The newspaper quoted witnesses as saying that the firefight lasted more than an hour, with helicopters called in for air support.
Ahmed Godane, the leader of al-Shabaab, said he was responsible for the four-day assault on the mall. Photograph: -/AFP/Getty Images
The paper also reported that a senior Somali government official said: "The attack was carried out by the American forces and the Somali government was pre-informed about the attack."
Claims by an al-Shabaab spokesman that the raid involved British and Turkish special forces and that a British commando had been killed were denied by a UK official.
Other reports spoke of two boats landing on a nearby beach and the soldiers using silenced weapons. Nato, the French military and the EU's anti-piracy force denied launching the raid. Somali officials, speaking anonymously, said that the target of the raid was a high-profile foreign leader in al-Shabaab, with one source identifying him as a Chechen.
Radio Shabelle in Mogadishu reported that one al-Shabaab fighter had been killed and others were injured. Somali security officials gave partly conflicting accounts.
"We understand that French troops injured Abu Diyad, also known as Abu Ciyad, an al-Shabaab leader from Chechnya. They killed his main guard, who was also a foreigner. The main target was the al-Shabaab leader from Chechnya," an intelligence officer based in Mogadishu, who gave his name as Mohamed, told Reuters.
Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, a spokesman for al-Shabaab's military operations, told Reuters: "Westerners in boats attacked our base at Barawe beach and one was martyred from our side. No planes or helicopters took part in the fight. The attackers left weapons, medicine and stains of blood. We chased them."
There was immediate speculation that the target was the leader of al-Shabaab, Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr, also known as Ahmed Godane, who claimed responsibility for the four-day assault on the Westgate shopping mall. Godane said the Nairobi attack was in retaliation for Kenya's military deployment inside Somalia.
A CCTV image of one of the Westgate mall attackers. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
Also on Saturday Kenya's military confirmed the names of four al-Shabaab fighters implicated in the Westgate mall attack. Major Emmanuel Chirchir said the men were Abu Baara al-Sudani, Omar Nabhan, Khattab al-Kene and Umayr – names that were first broadcast by a local Kenyan television station. "I confirm those are the names of the terrorists," he said in a tweet to Associated Press.
Publication of the identities supports CCTV footage from the Nairobi mall published by a private TV station that shows no more than four attackers, contradicting earlier government statements that 10-15 attackers were involved.
They are seen calmly walking through a storeroom inside the complex, holding machine guns. One of the men's legs appears to be stained with blood, although he is not limping, and it is unclear if the blood is his.
Members of al-Shabaab, which was reportedly targeted in a foreign military raid on the Somali coast. Photograph: Feisal Omar/Reuters
Foreign military forces appear to have carried out a pre-dawn raid on a southern Somalian coastal town, apparently in pursuit of "a high-profile target" linked to the militant al-Shabaab group that was behind last month's Kenyan mall shootings.
The pre-dawn raid – which initial but unconfirmed reports suggested may have involved US troops – took place in Barawe, in the lower Shabelle region 240km south of Mogadishu. It is the same town where US navy commandos killed a senior al-Qaida member four years ago.
The raid comes as Kenya's military confirmed the names of four al-Shabaab fighters implicated in the Westgate attack. Major Emmanuel Chirchir said the men were Abu Baara al-Sudani, Omar Nabhan, Khattab al-Kene and Umayr – names that were first broadcast by a local Kenyan television station.
"I confirm those are the names of the terrorist," he said, in a tweet sent to the Associated Press.
The publication of the identities supports CCTV footage from the Nairobi mall published by a private TV station that shows no more than four attackers, contradicting earlier government statements that between 10 to 15 attackers were involved.
They are seen calmly walking through a storeroom inside the complex, holding machine guns. One of the men's legs appears to be stained with blood, though he is not limping, and it is unclear if the blood is his.
The focus of Saturday's raid in Somalia appears to have been a two-storey beachside house that residents say was used as a headquarters by al-Shabaab. with some troops reportedly landing by helicopter.
Radio Shabelle, in Mogadishu, reported that one al-Shabaab fighter had been killed and others were injured. Although the details were sketchy, agencies reported residents describing being awoken before early morning prayers by heavy gunfire. Other Mogadishu news sources appeared to confirm the details of the raid.
An al-Shabaab source, who spoke to Reuters, said a group of westerners had landed on a beach near Barawe and been repelled.
Somali security officials gave partly conflicting accounts. "We understand that French troops injured Abu Diyad also known as Abu Ciyad, an al-Shabaab leader from Chechnya. They killed his main guard who was also a foreigner. The main target was the al-Shabaab leader from Chechnya," an intelligence officer based in Mogadishu, who gave his name as Mohamed, told Reuters.
The French army said earlier it was not involved in the raid.
A second Somali intelligence officer said the Barawe attack had been carried out by US forces. He confirmed the target was a foreign national, and said another foreigner was wounded.
Colonel Abdikadir Mohamed, a senior police officer in Mogadishu, said he believed the attacking troops were American and their target was a senior foreign al-Shabaab official.
Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, a spokesman for al-Shabaab's military operations, told Reuters: "Westerners in boats attacked our base at Barawe beach and one was martyred from our side. No planes or helicopters took part in the fight. The attackers left weapons, medicine and stains of blood. We chased them."
Following the raid al-Shabaab trucks mounted with anti-aircraft guns were reported to be patrolling in the town.
There was immediate speculation that the target was the leader of al-Shabaab, Mukhtar Abu Zubeyr, also known as Ahmed Godane, who claimed responsibility for the four-day assault on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi two weeks ago. He said the attack, which left at least 67 people dead, was in retaliation for Kenya's military deployment inside Somalia.
"We were awoken by heavy gunfire last night, we thought an al-Shabaab base at the beach was captured," Sumira Nur told Reuters from Barawe. "We also heard sounds of shells but we do not know where they landed."
An al-Shabaab member, who gave his name as Abu Mohamed, said fighters rushed to the scene to try to capture a foreign soldier but they were not successful.
Unidentified foreign forces have launched a night-time raid on a militant base in the south Somali town of Barawe from the sea, reports say.
A spokesman for the al-Shabab Islamist group told Reuters news agency that a fighter had been killed in the raid.
Reports speak of residents in the militant-controlled town being woken by heavy gunfire before dawn prayers.
Al-Shabab claimed responsibility last month for a deadly attack on a Kenyan shopping mall.
At least 67 people were killed after militants stormed the Westgate mall in the capital, Nairobi, on 21 September.
'Helicopters'
There was no immediate comment on Saturday's alleged attack in Barawe from the Western-backed authorities in Somalia.
According to the Somali news website Midnimo, two helicopters were also involved in the raid.
"Westerners in boats attacked our base at Barawe beach and one was martyred from our side," Sheikh Abdiasis Abu Musab, described as al-Shabab's spokesman for military operations, told Reuters by telephone.
Another al-Shabab member, named as Abu Mohamed, told the Associated Press that "foreign" soldiers had attacked a house in Barawe.
Militants rushed to the scene to capture a foreign soldier but were unsuccessful, he added.
Western navies tasked with fighting piracy patrol the seas off Somalia, which has been beset by conflict for more than two decades.
The US military has used drones in Somalia to support the government and African Union forces in their battle against al-Shabab.
France has also intervened militarily on occasion, carrying out an unsuccessful commando raid to free a French intelligence agent in January. Two French commandos were killed and al-Shabab later reported that it had killed the agent.
Civilians escape an area at the Westgate Shopping Centre in Nairobi September 21, 2013. Gunmen stormed the shopping mall in Nairobi on Saturday killing at least 59 people. PHOTO | NATION MEDIA GROUP
In Summary
Seth Jones, associate director of international security and defence policy at a US think tank, said that in the aftermath of the Westgate Mall attack the US should implement a "light footprint strategy" in Somalia.
A security analyst told the US Congress on Friday, hours prior to an apparent Western attack in Somalia, that "clandestine Special Operations Forces" should be sent into action against al-Shabaab.
Seth Jones, associate director of international security and defence policy at a US think tank, said that in the aftermath of the Westgate Mall attack the US should implement a "light footprint strategy" in Somalia.
Such a response to al-Shabaab's capabilities should focus, Mr Jones suggested, on intelligence gathering and law enforcement as well as actions by Special Forces, but should not include deployment of US conventional forces in Somalia.
In remarks to the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, he also recommended "diplomatic efforts to support the Somali government and its neighboring allies – especially Kenya and Ethiopia – in their efforts to counter al-Shabaab and its financial and logistical support networks."
Dan Borelli, a former FBI special agent with responsibility for anti-terrorism matters in Africa, added on Friday that "military" resources should be used in the US fight against Shabaab.
A note of caution regarding US military operations inside Somalia was sounded by Richard Downie, deputy director of the Africa Programme at a Washington policy research centre.
"US airstrikes against al-Shabaab leaders have been hugely controversial in the past and carry high potential for popular backlash, collateral damage, or unintended longer-term consequences," Mr Downie told the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Other analysts suggest that concerns about such possible outcomes could lead the United States to carry out military strikes in Somalia without claiming responsibility -- or even acknowledging that such attacks took place.
That scenario might apply in the case of the reported assault on Saturday of a reported attack by foreign forces on a Shabaab base in Barawe south of Mogadishu. The United States has not commented on those reports.
The United States has previously carried out drone attacks and commando raids on Shabaab targets in Somalia but has said little or nothing about those operations.
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/06/2013 10:47 -0400
Ahmed Godane, the leader of al-Shabaab, said he was responsible for the four-day assault on the mall. Photograph: -/AFP/Getty Images
A CCTV image of one of the Westgate mall attackers. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
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