8A
WORLD
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 21, 2007
UNITED NATIONS
African Union forces to aid in stabilization of Somalia
BY EDITH M. LEDERER ASSOCIATED PRESS
A doctor treats a Somali man who was injured in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Tuesday. Mortar rounds and rockets hit Somalia's capital early Tuesday in a series of attacks that killed 12 people, including a 4-year-old boy, and wounded more than 40 others, doctors, witnesses and said the violence, which erupted after mortar attacks on three Ethiopian and Somali government barricades, was among the worst since Somalia's government moved into the capital last year.
Mohamed Sheikh Nor/ Associated Press
UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously Tuesday to authorize an African Union force to help stabilize Somalia over the next six months, setting the stage for U.N. peacekeepers to take over the long-term job of bringing peace to the Horn of Africa nation.
The resolution adopted by the council urges the 53 African nations to contribute troops to the 8,000-strong force and urges other U.N. member states to provide financial support and any needed personnel, equipment and services.
Somalia has not had a functioning government since clan-based warlords toppled dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 and then turned on each other, sinking the poverty-stricken nation of seven million people into chaos.
The rout in December of the Islamic fundamentalist movement that controlled most of Somalia by Somali government troops and Ethiopian soldiers allowed the country's weak U.N.-backed transitional government to enter the capital, Mogadishu, for the first time since it was established in 2004. But escalating violence threats to plunge Somalia back into the years of anarchy and chaos.
The latest fighting has also raised questions about the deployment of the AU force, whose first troops — a small Burundian advance team — were scheduled to be on the ground as early as Friday.
Nigeria, however, reiterated its commitment to establishing stability in Somalia, saying Tuesday that its 850-troop contribution to the peace-keeping force should arrive in the Horn of Africa nation by mid-April.
The resolution adopted Tuesday noted the Aug. 19 communique of the African Union Peace and Security Council stating that the AU will deploy a mission to Somalia for
the long-term stabilization and post conflict restoration of Somalia."
It asks Secretary-General Ban Ki
moon to send a technical assessment mission to AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and to
Somalia as soon as possible to report on the political and security situation "and the possibility of a U.N.
peacekeeping operation following the AU's deployment." It asked Ban for a report in 60 days.
IRAO TIMETABLE
Blair withdrawing troops
ASSOCIATED PRESS
officials who weren't further identified.
Blair will also tell the House of Commons during his regular weekly appearance that a total of about 3,000 British soldiers will have left southern Iraq by the end of 2007. if the security there is sufficient, the British Broadcasting Corp. said, quoting government
LONDON — Prime Minister Tony Blair will announce on Wednesday a new timetable for the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq, with 1,500 to return home in several weeks, the BBC reported.
The announcement comes even as President Bush implements a surge of 21,000 more troops for Iraq. But Blair said Sunday that Washington had not put pressure on London to maintain its troop numbers. The BBC said Blair was not expected to say when the rest of Britain's forces would leave Iraq. Britain currently has about 7,100 soldiers there.
Blair said last month that he would report to lawmakers on his future strategy in Iraq following the
completion of Operation Sinbad, a joint British and Iraq mission targeting police corruption and militia influence in the southern city of Basra.
Treasury chief Gordon Brown, who is likely to succeed Blair by September, has said he hoped several thousand British soldiers would be withdrawn by December.
Blair, who has said he will step down as prime minister by September after a decade in power, has seen his foreign-policy record overshadowed by his role as Bush's leading ally in the unpopular war.
Dole Institute of Politics
ON KU'S WEST CAMPUS 785.864.4900
Presidential Lecture Series:"The 2008 Campaign"
"America's Foremost Political Prognosticator"
Charlie Cook
NBC News political analyst and publisher of The Cook Political Report
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
7:30 p.m.
at the Institute
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Nasser Ishtaveh/Associated Press
"The New York Times has called Cook, "...one of the best political handicappers
REPORT
Americans, from left to right, Gillian Rose, 26, Janet Miller, 26, and Susan, 27, who would not give her last name, are seen following release by the Palestinian militants in the West Bank city of Nablus on Feb. 20. The three American women were briefly kidnapped Tuesday in the West Bank city of Nablus and were released later in the evening. Palestinian security officials said. There was no claim of responsibility by an armed Palestinian group.
Presidential Lecture Series: "The 2008 Campaign" concludes
and noted that The Cook Political Report is “...a newsletter that both parties regard as authoritative.”
Wednesday, Feb. 28 ~ 7:30 p.m. at the Institute
Panelists: David Yepsen, Des Moines Register political columnist; Tom Rath, national Republican political strategist; Jonathan Epstein, national Democratic political strategist.
"Winning the Nomination"
ROBERT J. DOLE
INSTITUTE OF POLITICS
The University of Kansas
www.doleinstitute.org
DOLE INSTITUTE 2350 PETEFISH DR. LAWRENCE,KS 60045
》 PALESTINE
Kidnapped U.S. women unharmed
3Y ALI DARAGHMEH
ASSOCIATED PRESS
NABLUS, West Bank — Three American women were briefly kidnapped Tuesday in the West Bank city of Nabius and were released later in the evening, Palestinian security officials said.
The security officials said the three women were last seen taking pictures on the outskirts of the Balata refuge camp near Nablus before they were kidnapped. They were held briefly before being released, security officials said.
There was no claim of responsibility that appeared to be authentic. At one point, a man calling himself Hadi Saud contacted The Associated Press in Nablus and said he was the kidnapper. He demanded to be given a job in the Palestinian security forces and medication for a shooting injury sustained last year, in exchange for releasing the hostages. He provided no proof that he was holding the women.
The women arrived unharmed at the office of the governor of Nabus. Two identified themselves as Janet Miller, 26, and Gillian Rose, 26. The third would give only her first name and age — Susan, 27. They would
not say where they lived in the U.S., but Palestinian colleagues said they came from the Washington, D.C. area.
They said they worked with the Palestine Hydrology Group, based in Ramallah, an organization that works to solve water problems in the West Bank and Gaza.
After meeting the governor, the three left by car for their homes in
Micaela Schweitzer-Bluhm, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem, said U.S. officials were informed of the kidnappings.
In the past, scores of foreigners were kidnapped by Palestinian militant groups, but usually released unharmed after a few hours.
Ramallah.
ECUMENICAL ASH WEDNESDAY SERVICE
8:30 am 12:30 pm 4:30 pm
Danforth Chapel
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
IMPOSITION OF ASHES WILL BE OFFERED.
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Sponsored by Ecumenical Christian Ministries (United Church of Christ, Presbyterian (USA), Church of Brethren, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), Peace Mennonite Church University Christian Fellowship
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