U.S. assembling secret drone bases in Africa, Arabian Peninsula, officials say
33 replies, posted
[b]Source:[/b] [url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-building-secret-drone-bases-in-africa-arabian-peninsula-officials-say/2011/09/20/gIQAJ8rOjK_story.html]Linkage[/url]
[quote]The Obama administration is assembling a constellation of secret drone bases for counterterrorism operations in the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula as part of a newly aggressive campaign to attack al-Qaeda affiliates in Somalia and Yemen, U.S. officials said.
One of the installations is being established in Ethi*o*pia, a U.S. ally in the fight against al-Shabab, the Somali militant group that controls much of that country. Another base is in the Seychelles, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean, where a small fleet of “hunter-killer” drones resumed operations this month after an experimental mission demonstrated that the unmanned aircraft could effectively patrol Somalia from there.
The Washington Post's Anqoinette Crosby talks with reporter Greg Miller about the Central Intelligence Agency's increasing role in counter-terrorism efforts.
The U.S. military also has flown drones over Somalia and Yemen from bases in Djibouti, a tiny African nation at the junction of the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. In addition, the CIA is building a secret airstrip in the Arabian Peninsula so it can deploy armed drones over Yemen.
The rapid expansion of the undeclared drone wars is a reflection of the growing alarm with which U.S. officials view the activities of al-Qaeda affiliates in Yemen and Somalia, even as al-Qaeda’s core leadership in Pakistan has been weakened by U.S. counterterrorism operations.
The U.S. government is known to have used drones to carry out lethal attacks in at least six countries: Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen. The negotiations that preceded the establishment of the base in the Republic of Seychelles illustrate the efforts the United States is making to broaden the range of its drone weapons.
The island nation of 85,000 people has hosted a small fleet of MQ-9 Reaper drones operated by the U.S. Navy and Air Force since September 2009. U.S. and Seychellois officials have previously acknowledged the drones’ presence but have said that their primary mission was to track pirates in regional waters. But classified U.S. diplomatic cables show that the unmanned aircraft have also conducted counterterrorism missions over Somalia, about 800 miles to the northwest.
The cables, obtained by the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks, reveal that U.S. officials asked leaders in the Seychelles to keep the counterterrorism missions secret. The Reapers are described by the military as “hunter-killer” drones because they can be equipped with Hellfire missiles and satellite-guided bombs.
To allay concerns among islanders, U.S. officials said they had no plans to arm the Reapers when the mission was announced two years ago. The cables show, however, that U.S. officials were thinking about weaponizing the drones.
During a meeting with Seychelles President James Michel on Sept. 18, 2009, American diplomats said the U.S. government “would seek discrete [sic], specific discussions . . . to gain approval” to arm the Reapers “should the desire to do so ever arise,” according to a cable summarizing the meeting. Michel concurred, but asked U.S. officials to approach him exclusively for permission “and not anyone else” in his government, the cable reported.
[/quote]
Andddddd more pointless shit we don't need that we waste money on.
Andddddd more pointless shit we need that we waste money on.
[QUOTE=Singo;32408688]Andddddd more pointless shit we need that we waste money on.[/QUOTE]its to fight against terrerrists ok?
[QUOTE=Singo;32408688]Andddddd more pointless shit we need that we waste money on.[/QUOTE]
[release]One of the installations is being established in Ethi*o*pia, a U.S. ally in the fight against al-Shabab, the Somali militant group that controls much of that country.[/release]
Pointless is the wrong word. Arrogant, borderline imperialistic are possible words but it's hardly pointless.
"Ethi*o*pia"
Anyone care to explain the unusual punctuation?
Drones are cool.
Good thing to know that the US is building secret military installations around the world. Looks a mistranslated newspaper title some time back was pretty accurate: "Obama states US is ready for world domination".
[QUOTE=ElectricSquid;32408734]"Ethi*o*pia"
Anyone care to explain the unusual punctuation?[/QUOTE]
It's indicative of avoiding a filter but I don't see why it would be necessary.
Seems like a bad move.
Well not so secret anymore now are they.
"Secret drone base" seems like an awfully scary term to assign to what is almost certainly a dirt/grass patch with wooden overhang nearby.
If the CIA is truly the one building them, then it isn't going to be an airbase. It is going to be a little nothing that is maintained by a local with a lawnmower when it isn't in use.
EDIT: Nope, take it back, predators, reapers, and probably global hawks all need hard surface runways.
Not that it is all that different. Few people outside of pilots recognize exactly how many runways are near them. I took four years of aerospace in highschool and was required to have the book that provides the approach patterns for every airport in the state. There are so many fucking runways it is unbelievable.
I would be less scared about how there is another runway near me and more scared about how they launch remote controlled death machines from there.
[QUOTE=GunFox;32409327]
Not that it is all that different. Few people outside of pilots recognize exactly how many runways are near them. I took four years of aerospace in highschool and was required to have the book that provides the approach patterns for every airport in the state. There are so many fucking runways it is unbelievable.[/QUOTE]
This reminds me of the effect that reading TVtropes or learning 3D modeling has on one's perception; after reading TVtropes extensively you start to recognize all the little instances of tropes and literary devices in the stuff you read/watch, and with 3D stuff (at least with me) you start to see things in terms of polygons and efficient topology.
Drones over Africa? Dude, that has the potential to be the most awesome safari ever! Imagine hitting an elephant with a Hellfire missile.
this is basically so we can whack the next Osama in Africa with no fuss.
Drones are incredibly effective at killing terrorist leaders.
though they do have the problem of collateral damage.
Pretty sure this was how Hitler started WW2. Except with humans instead of bases.
Hahaha, imagine the clusterfuck of panic if China started setting up drone bases in Canada, Mexico, and Cuba. I wonder how citizens of the Middle East feel about knowing that America will never be more than an hour or two away from being able to murder them by remote control.
[QUOTE=GunFox;32409327]Few people outside of pilots recognize exactly how many runways are near them. I took four years of aerospace in highschool and was required to have the book that provides the approach patterns for every airport in the state. There are so many fucking runways it is unbelievable.[/QUOTE]
Enlighten me.
[QUOTE=bluesky;32410308]Enlighten me.[/QUOTE]
[url]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Baltimore-Washington_TAC_82.png[/url]
Here is a map designed to show you the Baltimore-Washington area. It isn't actually covering a very large area at all, and yet look at how many runways you can count.
Here are a bunch more (Have to download them though):
[url]http://aeronav.faa.gov/index.asp?xml=aeronav/applications/VFR/chartlist_tac[/url]
I wanted to find one with a larger scale, as I had one of all of NC in my book, but functionally the map wasn't very useful and it doesn't seem to have its own name, so finding one on the internet has proven difficult. The TAC's should be sufficient though.
Keep up the Bush, Obama.
You guys should at least focus on making your country more economically sound and pay off some of your debt before you start doing stuff like this.
"Money for Education? Pfft, I'd rather bomb Arabs" - Uncle Sam
[editline]21st September 2011[/editline]
By the way, I don't remember al-Shabab ever doing anything to the United States?
I guess we're just saying the hell with dumb reasons to go to war now and just straight out attacking for shits and giggles?
[QUOTE=joost1120;32410218]Pretty sure this was how Hitler started WW2. Except with humans instead of bases.[/QUOTE]
Secret human bases?
[QUOTE=duno;32419499]Secret human bases?[/QUOTE]
Obviously opposed to Hitler's secret robot bases :v:
[QUOTE=duno;32419499]Secret human bases?[/QUOTE]
Bases made entirely of human beings?
That's so crazy it just might work.
I'm usually the liberal anti-war type in these sorts of threads, but I think you guys are really exaggerating what's going on here.
You have to realize that the U.S. military already has forces in these areas, and more than likely that includes manned attack aircraft. Having drones constantly on the patrol for pirates on the horn of Africa could save millions of dollars in ransoms, and probably lives of sailors and pilots (Blackhawk pilots being dragged through the streets anyone?). I'm sure we all remember the lengths that the Navy SEALS had to go to rescue the last high-profile hostages.
Besides, I would have thought that most people would support taking steps against al-shabab, who just the other day had a fucking radio contest giving out explosives and weapons to CHILDREN. I don't think the government is going to sit idly by while the next major anti-American terror group is allowed free reign over a lawless country and cargo ships are picked off at will.
I would also venture that this a reallocation of drones that are already in service, or the military budget is factored into the cost of allocating more.
[QUOTE=BurningPlayd0h;32420019]I'm usually the liberal anti-war type in these sorts of threads, but I think you guys are really exaggerating what's going on here.
You have to realize that the U.S. military already has forces in these areas, and more than likely that includes manned attack aircraft. Having drones constantly on the patrol for pirates on the horn of Africa could save millions of dollars in ransoms, and probably lives of sailors and pilots (Blackhawk pilots being dragged through the streets anyone?). I'm sure we all remember the lengths that the Navy SEALS had to go to rescue the last high-profile hostages.
Besides, I would have thought that most people would support taking steps against al-shabab, who just the other day had a fucking radio contest giving out explosives and weapons to CHILDREN. I don't think the government is going to sit idly by while the next major anti-American terror group is allowed free reign over a lawless country and cargo ships are picked off at will.
I would also venture that this a reallocation of drones that are already in service, or the military budget is factored into the cost of allocating more.[/QUOTE]
It's specifically said it'll be used against al-Shabab, not pirates. It may be used for that on occasion most likely, but it's not it's purpose.
al-Shabab looks like a real nasty group but seriously, the United States is not and should not act as if it's the "world police" to take on anyone and everyone - especially when it has an ongoing war in Afghanistan and a domestic economic crisis.
And over all, the United States shouldn't have military bases of [I]any kind[/I] in any sovereign nation even if it is requested. It'll only drag us into more and more conflicts.
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;32420151]It's specifically said it'll be used against al-Shabab, not pirates. It may be used for that on occasion most likely, but it's not it's purpose.
al-Shabab looks like a real nasty group but seriously, the United States is not and should not act as if it's the "world police" to take on anyone and everyone - especially when it has an ongoing war in Afghanistan and a domestic economic crisis. [b]Tell that to the fear mongerers (republicans)[/b]
And over all, the United States shouldn't have military bases of [I]any kind[/I] in any sovereign nation even if it is requested. It'll only drag us into more and more conflicts. [b]As much as rosy eyed me would like to see this happen as well, I just don't think it will in probably even my lifetime. The fact is that the government, military, and many people of the U.S. think that this is the only way we can be safe in our own borders. Pretty much the inverse of the popular attitude before the first world war. [/b]
[/QUOTE]
To be honest really, if someone doesn't do something about Somalia, it really will turn into a shitstorm. And don't say the African Union.
[QUOTE=BurningPlayd0h;32420322][B]Tell that to the fear mongerers (republicans)[/B][/QUOTE]
Care to note that the article says "Obama administration..."
[QUOTE=BurningPlayd0h;32420322][B]As much as rosy eyed me would like to see this happen as well, I just don't think it will in probably even my lifetime. The fact is that the government, military, and many people of the U.S. think that this is the only way we can be safe in our own borders. Pretty much the inverse of the popular attitude before the first world war.[/B][/QUOTE]
"I can't help it so I'm going to go along with it" is a terrible attitude.
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;32420394]Care to note that the article says "Obama administration..."
"I can't help it so I'm going to go along with it" is a terrible attitude.[/QUOTE]
Care to take note of the distribution of power. The White House is the "head" of the "body" of the government, and if you haven't noticed a lot of news comes from there. That doesn't mean that Obama (who has been trying to make compromises lately) and his top aides personally laid out the plans all by themselves.
And although I expect that the U.S.'s global policy is not likely to change a great deal very quickly (or slowly even), that doesn't mean I'm resigned to the fact, or that I completely disagree with the policies. In a perfect world we wouldn't have to kill any al-shabab members, and there would never be any collateral damage, but that's not the case.
Al-shabab has been cutting off international aid since the beginning of the famine, and obviously someone has made a choice to take action. Only time will tell if it was the right path to take.
You know, honestly, I'm not sure what you were trying to say in that post besides assuming my attitude and actions relating to the nation's politics.
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.