Somalia is a potential home to, and has links with, terrorist groups but evidence of their actual presence is still insufficient to warrant imminent military strikes, a senior US official indicated in the Kenyan capital yesterday. Somalia "can be, or could be a place where terror cells could find some kind of comfortable environment, so it's worrisome," the US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Mr Walter Kansteiner, told reporters at Nairobi international airport.
Asked if widespread media speculation about Somalia topping a US post-Afghanistan hit list was justified, the US envoy said: "Top of the list implies immediate action, and I don't think that is fair. "The tone in Washington specifically on Somalia is 'we've gotta get smarter. We've got to learn more, know more, find out more'," he said.
"We do have a naval presence" in the area. "There are coalition ships in the area."
Does Washington believe Osama bin Laden might try to flee to Somalia?
"We are concerned about terror cells moving everywhere, relocating and re-establishing and trying to find safe harbour and all that.
"They might come out of Afghanistan, wherever they happen to be right now, and go to Somalia, yes that is of concern," Mr Kansteiner replied.
Asked about a report that ships off the coast of Somalia were being searched, he said: "Not to my knowledge. I think 'monitoring' would be a better term."
Since the September 11th attacks on New York and Washington, the US has taken several steps against Somali individuals and organisations.
An Islamic fundamentalist organisation based in Somalia, Al-Ittihad, is on a US list of organisations with links to international terrorism.
"We believe they are an organisation that have links to known terrorist groups including al-Qaeda. We have research and data that would definitely point to a connection," he said.
Washington has also accused Barakaat, a financial network run by Somalis and used principally by the Somali diaspora in the US to send money to relatives at home, of funding al-Qaeda, and ordered its assets frozen. Barakaat has since ceased its operations.
Commenting on reports that many Somalis were now cut off financially from their relatives abroad, Mr Kansteiner said there were several other companies in the same line of business.
"The reports we are getting out is that shifting is occurring and the repatriated moneys to Somalia are now flowing through these other alternate financial groups . . . that apparently do not have that linkage with the terror cells that Barakaat have." Somalia currently has only the semblance of a national government, an interim regime introduced last year, almost 10 years after the fall of Mohammed Siad Barre's regime and the collapse of the state.
Some people in this regime "are very good capable folks that want to pull together a viable government that can effectively govern Somalia," said Mr Kansteiner.
Mr Kansteiner's current brief tour has taken in Kenya and Ethiopia and will include Zimbabwe and South Africa.