Somalia: Potential Home for the al Qaeda Terror Network

摘要

Since their dislodgement from Afghanistan, the remaining members of al Qaeda will need a new safe haven. Somalia is a likely potential refuge for the transnational terrorist organization. During Operation Enduring Freedom the United States and its coalition partners aggressively pursued the al Qaeda terrorism network, resulting in the killing or capture of many of the group's members. The rest were dispersed and dislodged from their strongholds in the Afghanistan mountain ranges. Though the United States and its allies eroded much of al Qaeda's capabilities, the group still has the ability to function and project its influence as a worldwide transnational umbrella organization. Operating as a shell of its former self, the group has been put on the run and will need a new place of refuge. Where will the organization seek asylum. One plausible answer is Somalia. It is largely ungoverned with characteristics that make it quite attractive to al Qaeda. Somalia is conducive for the group to easily settle, support, and rebuild itself. Additionally, Somalia is quite familiar to al Qaeda, considering the organization has preexisting relationships within the country dating back to the early 1990s. Somalia appears to be a likely refuge for the group. It seems to have all the trappings that al Qaeda leaders and operatives need as a safe haven. Staying a step ahead of the organization is vitally important in preventing the organization from reconstituting there. The focus must engage the three primary divisions of society: the government, the military, and the populace. This must occur across all social barriers in Somalia and any country the group may seek to infiltrate.