Hearts-and-minds outreach part of U.S. strategy to counter terrorism
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
November 15
Quoted: Robert Rotberg
Topic: Counter terrorism in Djibouti and Somalia

… Military options are not off the table, though. In mid-September, U.S. Special Forces flew into Somalia and killed an al-Qaida leader and several Al Shabab members.

With so few U.S. troops here, most support hearts-and-minds outreach — the “tail rather than the head of the mission,” according to Robert Rotberg, editor of “Battling Terrorism in the Horn of Africa” and a Harvard University professor.

Even so, Rotberg says this joint task force is essential.

“It is certainly important to have a U.S. post in the region, so the U.S. can understand … what is happening in the Horn of Africa as well as Yemen, and keep an eye on potential threats of terror, and help the nations, which are pretty poor,” he says.

“So the more learning we have, the better off we are.”

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_653154.html

Tags: Africa, al Qaeda, Al Shabab, counterterrorism, Djibouti, Somalia, Terrorism

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