Tag: West Africa

Death Of A Green Beret

I recently wrote a couple of posts about the death of a Green Beret at the hands of two SEALs in Mali…..(read them both before you continue)

https://lobotero.com/2017/10/31/usafricom-wtf/

https://lobotero.com/2017/11/13/death-in-mali/

I have been monitoring the situation and have not had much info on the investigation….but the Army has released a bit more information on the death…..

A jarring story emerged last month about US special operations forces: Two Navy SEALs are under investigation in the death of an Army Green Beret in the African nation of Mali. Details on a potential motive have been scant, but the Daily Beast has talked to five special-ops sources to lay out a narrative. Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar, the 34-year-old victim, discovered that the Navy SEALs were keeping some of the money that was supposed to go to informants, according to the story. When Melgar found the cash, the SEALs reportedly offered him a share of the take, but he turned them down. This eventually led to a confrontation in the early morning hours of June 4, during which Melgar lost consciousness and stopped breathing, per the Daily Beast.

The SEALs and another Green Beret drove Melgar to a clinic, but he was dead upon arrival, US Africa Command officials tell the Daily Beast. At that point, the SEALs’ official account of what happened began to unravel. They reported that Logan had been drunk that night, but no alcohol was found in his system during an autopsy, and it’s believed that Logan didn’t drink, period. Perhaps worse, he had written to his wife about the problems he was having with the SEALs, and she has given those emails to investigators. The official cause of death is “homicide by asphyxiation,” per Military.com. No charges have been filed against the unidentified members of Navy SEAL Team 6, who remain on administrative leave as the investigation unfolds.

I am amazed how little concern there is for this situation….greed and Americans killing Americans because of it….

The media will go on ad nauseum with all the slap and tickle reports….I have to hear about every person that ever had their butt pinched but not a word on the death of an American at the hands of other Americans.

This is disgraceful and shameful turn of events….every American who dies fighting these senseless wars is news and as such needs to be reported.

Niger Update

Note:  This is a lot to read but please and you will get an idea of what is going on in Niger with our troops.

It has been weeks since the deaths of 4 special ops troopers in Niger……I have been calling for more info and now it looks like the Congress has jumped on that bandwagon…..

Key U.S. senators called Sunday for the White House to be more forthcoming about the country’s military involvement in Niger after four U.S. soldiers were killed in an ambush there earlier this month.

In separate interviews on NBC’s “Meet the Press” news show, Republican Lindsey Graham and Democratic Senate leader Charles Schumer said they support an effort last week by Republican Senator John McCain to find out the details of the attack as well as the scope of the U.S. campaign against Islamic State in the west African country. Both Graham and Schumer said they had been unaware of the substantial number of the U.S. troops in Niger.

“I didn’t know there was 1,000 troops in Niger,” Graham said. “This is an endless war without boundaries and no limitation on time and geography. You’ve got to tell us more.

“We don’t know exactly where we’re at in the world militarily and what we’re doing,” Graham said. “So John McCain is going to try to create a new system to make sure that we can answer the question, why were we there, we’ll know how many soldiers are there, and if somebody gets killed there, that we won’t find out about it in the paper.

“I can say this to the families,” Graham said. “They were there to defend America. They were there to help allies. They were there to prevent another platform to attack America and our allies.”

Schumer said, “We need to look at this carefully. This is a brave new world. There are no set battle plans.”

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told Graham and McCain, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, last week that the military is shifting its counter-terrorism strategy to focus more on Africa. The defense chief said military leaders want to expand their ability to use force against suspected terrorists.

U.S. officials believe the Niger attack was launched by a local Islamic State affiliate, but the Pentagon is still investigating the circumstances of how it occurred.

(voa.com)

Another report has come about he death of La David Johnson…his death is an ever changing story…the newest rendition……

Sgt. La David Johnson, one of four American soldiers killed after an ambush in Niger last month, was found with his hands tied after having apparently been executed by militants, villagers say. Tongo Tongo resident Adamou Boubacar tells the Washington Post that children found Johnson’s body two days after the ambush. He says the soldier’s hands were bound with rope and there was a gaping wound in the back of his head that could have been caused by a bullet. Boubacar, a farmer, says the body was found in a bushy area about a mile from the ambush site, which could explain why it took so long for it to be discovered, the New York Daily News reports.

Village chief Mounkaila Alassane says he contacted the Nigerien military after seeing the body, “The back of his head was a mess, as if they had hit him with something hard, like a hammer,” Alassane tells the Post. “They took his shoes. He was wearing only socks.” Military sources say they believe Johnson was kidnapped during a firefight with ISIS-linked militants. The bodies of the other three Americans killed were found in or near their team’s pickup truck, stripped of their uniforms, villagers say. The FBI has joined military investigators trying to determine how the US mission went so badly wrong. Officials in Niger say Alassane was arrested on suspicion of aiding the militants, but released due to a lack of evidence. (US officials say a morphed mission put the men in danger.)

In the past I never had much in common with Graham…..but in the last year I have found that he and I agree on a few things….especially when it comes to our troops that are fighting these wars….too many to keep track of…..

Time to come clean about the mission and the deaths of these 4 men……period.

The US is on a death march across Africa as it is……..

Tongo Tongo is in the middle of a belt that is ground zero for the illicit trade that defines the Sahara. West of Tongo Tongo is Gao (Mali) and to its east is Agadez (Niger). These are the main ports for South American cocaine, flown in on various kinds of aircraft (Air Cocaine, as they are called) and then driven across the Sahara Desert in trucks to be taken by small boats across the Mediterranean Sea into Europe. Evidence of the cocaine trade is everywhere – whether in Gao’s neighborhood known as Cocaine Bougou or in the nickname of one of the leading chiefs in Agadez – Cherif Ould Abidine – known as Cherif or Mr. Cocaine.

https://www.globalresearch.ca/the-american-war-machine-is-already-on-the-death-march-across-the-african-continent/5617195

Drugs……go figure…….

There is more….there is always more ioof one digs deep enough…..

A recent report published in the Washington Post claims that the only African American soldier in the group of dead troops, Sgt. La David Johnson, had been kidnapped and killed execution style. Purportedly, people living in the area where Johnson’s body was discovered indicated that his hands were bound behind his back with a gaping wound in the rear of his head. (Nov. 10)

Other reports say that the Nigerien troops, who were ostensibly on a patrol mission with the AFRICOM forces, fled while the Green Berets stood and fought the alleged assailants. Who these “hostile elements” were has still not been clearly defined. What has been mentioned is that they are somehow affiliated with ISIS. (Guardian, Nov. 4)

https://www.globalresearch.ca/pentagon-explanations-for-niger-operations-cannot-conceal-strategic-interests/5618159

Niger is becoming as clouded as our Syrian mission or our Yemen mission….

Death In Mali

I recently wrote a post about eh death of a Green Beret at the hands of 2 SEALs in Mali.  Sadly to say there was not much outrage by my readers over this death….that worries me and shows just how little these wars mean to the average American….to them none of this means anything at all.  and that is truly sad….

I have been watching this development of the investigation into the death of an American at the hands of two other Americans….how sad…..

Logan Melgar hadn’t had a drink on June 4.

The Green Beret sergeant’s dry day became a key to unraveling the narrative spun by the elite Navy commandos whom military investigators now suspect killed him, officials familiar with the case said.

Melgar, a staff sergeant in the Army’s 3rd Special Forces Group, was specifically selected for an intelligence operation in the West African nation of Mali. He was well respected by the American Embassy staff and the partner forces there, a former U.S. Africa Command official said. But shortly before he died, Melgar told his wife that he had a bad feeling about two of his partners in that effort, both of whom were members of SEAL Team Six.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/green-beret-discovered-seals-illicit-cash-then-he-was-killed

Americans killing Americans……not cool at all.

More News From Niger

There have been many questions about he death a US Special Ops trooper in Niger that was not with the bodies of the others killed and now…… the rest of the story……(sort of)

Speaking to ABC News, the unnamed official added their belief that the men’s ‘light convoy’ had been being surveilled by their killers for at least a day before they were hit.

Questions remain over why top command sent the unit – which consisted of just six to eight vehicles and only 42 troops – into the dangerous area to gather intelligence on a target.

The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said had the men been called back after the original reconnaissance mission then they would still all be alive.

‘ They should have been up and back in a day. They were hit because they were up there so f****** long on a mission that morphed, they were spotted, surveilled and ultimately hit.’

He the story is accurate then this Trooper died a hero….thinking of nothing but his comrades and their need.
IST salutes an American hero!

NIGER! WTF?

+So much has been going on in the West African country of Niger lately that it is almost mind numbing.  4 US soldiers died fighting an insurgent force and as of yet there is No definitive reason why.

AS a combat veteran I want to know why they died and if they were at all prepared for the task ahead.

The story changes almost daily leading me to believe that someone up the change of command f*cked the pouch and 4 good soldiers died.  Why?

The newest tidbit on this continuing saga……

New details have emerged regarding the attack that left four US soldiers dead in Niger, labeled by some as a “massive intelligence failure.” Per the New York Times, which interviewed military officers, Pentagon officials, and lawmakers, Staff Sgt. Bryan Black, Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson, Staff Sgt. Dustin Wright, and Sgt. La David Johnson somehow became separated from their unit during the Oct. 4 militant attack, which also left five Nigeriens dead and whose “shifting narrative” is now being scrutinized. Specifically, answers are being sought on why these four US troops were left behind initially when French helicopters flew onto the scene two hours after the ambush began and rescued seven other Americans, and why it took two extra days to find and retrieve Johnson’s body from a wooded area near the attack location.

The Times says the four soldiers were at first deemed MIA by the Pentagon, indicating they were believed alive when the French choppers left; US officials contend American, French, and Nigerien forces were still on the ground. The Pentagon also said Thursday this unit had been backup for a second one on the hunt for an Islamic operative, though that second unit’s raid had been called off, per CBS News; the ambushed unit was told to stay behind and gather evidence. Meanwhile, a Nigerien soldier who arrived on the scene as the attack wound down tells CNN he saw troops “ready to fight until the end” and that he’d run into the unit the day before—nowhere near ready for combat, dressed in “T-shirts and baseball caps” with just one heavy machine gun among them and no body armor. US officials say it wasn’t anticipated the troops would come into contact with hostile entities during their mission. A more in-depth look at the Times and CNN.

There are too many people turning this into a game of political football……and each one of them should be shot for doing so.  And so far all we know is that they are dead.

These men deserve better than this bullshit theater that Trump, his ilk and the media are turning into.

Every man, woman and child should be demand the truth behind these deaths…..screw protocol.

Did these men die unnecessarily?

The time for platitudes and campaign speeches is over.

Do not let this be another Yemen!

NIGER! More News–More Questions

This is a story that was filed by VOA…..I know I have been a bit out of it in the Hospital but I do not recall much this been reported…….

“They must have spent the night in the northwest of Tongo-Tongo,” Mayor Hassane said in a phone interview with the VOA French-to-Africa service.

“These Nigerien soldiers are part of a security and intelligence battalion that has been trained by the U.S. forces during several U.S.-led training exercises known as Flintlock,” said Moussa Aksar, director of the newspaper l’Évènement in Niamey, and a terrorism specialist in the Sahel.

The soldiers were trying to track down an accomplice of Abu Adnan al-Sahraoui, a former member of the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), who joined the Islamic State terror group in the Sahara Desert.

The soldiers questioned the villagers, who dragged on the discussions longer than anticipated.

“It turns out that this village was a little contaminated by hostile forces,” said Aksar. “The unit stayed a little longer than expected because apparently people were aware that something was going on.”

For his part, Mayor Hassane said, “The attackers, the bandits, the terrorists have never lacked accomplices among local populations.”

A fake terror attack attracted the soldiers to a trap outside the village, where about 50 assailants in vehicles and motorcycles armed with Kalashnikovs and heavy weapons opened fire on them. Four Nigerien soldiers and three Americans were killed on the spot. The body of the fourth American soldier was found 48 hours later, about a mile away from the initial site, CNN reported.

“We are not talking about civilians wounded or killed because these soldiers were ambushed outside the village,” Aksar said.

The attack has raised questions, especially since the U.S. Army operates drone bases in Niger and has significant intelligence resources there.

“That’s what really shocked us: how, at their level, with all the resources they have, they could not have strong intelligence to avoid what happened there,” said Hassane.

Since the attack, Tongo-Tongo village chief Mounkaila Alassane has been arrested, and there is no information on his whereabouts.

No group has officially taken responsibility for the attack. According to sources in the region, however, it is the work of Abu Adnan al-Saharaoui, who calls himself the Islamic Emir of the Great Sahara, affiliated with the Islamic State group.

According to a Tuareg from the region, al-Saharaoui is reported to be involved in arms and fuel trafficking. He is a former member of the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), which occupied and imposed sharia law in northern Mali in 2012 before being dislodged by French forces.

Al-Saharaoui, a former acquaintance of Algerian extremist and trafficker Mokhtar Bel Mokhtar, had led the kidnapping of the nine-person staff of the Algerian consulate in Gao in 2012. Originally from Western Sahara, he wants to control the band on the common border of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.

“He wants to take control of all these communities facing poverty and governance issues so that they can join his cause,” said Aksar.

The group is the latest of several jihadist organizations in the Sahel region, including the Defenders of Islam group linked to militant Iyad Ag Ghali in northern Mali. The movement for the Liberation of Macina, led by Hamadoun Koufa, remained very active in central Mali.

Ansarul Islam, on the other side of the border, is increasing its attacks in northern Burkina Faso, while Boko Haram continues to launch attacks in the countries in Africa’s Lake Chad Basin.

The al-Mourabitoun group, which is led by Moktar Belmokhtar — declared dead several times — has perpetrated several terror actions in the vast Sahel region, including the 2013 attack on the In Amenas gas plant in Algeria that left 67 people dead.

Like I said I was otherwise distracted…..but was this side of the story told and I missed it?

There is so much more to this story and we are getting crap out of the MSM…..

AS a combat vet I am concerned that these guys story will NOT told……I am watching and writing.

NIGER!  WTF?

Lays Out Timeline Of Niger Attack

I have not the life of me been able to put my head around the eventual that lead to this attack on US us in NIger.

There have been so many different version that none will make any sense……below is the timeline that has been laid out bu some general and we know they would not feed us crap, right?

Source: Timeline: Top U.S. general lays out timeline of deadly Niger attack

I am still not satisfied at the answers we are getting for our military……how about you?

What Are U.S. Forces Doing in Niger Anyway?

 

I gots to know!  WTF?

While I was in the hospital the bad news came out that we lost 4 good soldiers to an ambush in Niger in West Africa….NIGER?

I knew we had troops all over the world fighting and advising but sub-Saharan Niger….why?

Is the a good reason for this ?  I know AQ ans ISIS love these types of areas because of remoteness and weal government….but Niger?

On October 4, four U.S. troops and five Nigerians were killed in ambush by heavily armed ISIS-affiliated fighters near the restive Mali border in Niger. While the press has been obsessed with how Pres

Source: What Are U.S. Forces Doing in Niger Anyway? | The American Conservative

Germany Sued For ‘Forgotten Genocide’ In Namibia

Yes Irene it is a Friday and what better time than a little history…..(is that heavy sighs?)

Very few people realize the Germany in 19th and early 20th centuries was a colonial power…..they were in control of what was called in those days German Southwest Africa….during their empire days they were brutal to the indigenous people….and now one of this situations has come back to bite them in the ass….

But first a little background……

Conflicts between the indigenous population and the Europeans, mainly over control of land, led to outbreaks of violence in the 1890s, which worsened in the 1900s. In 1903 the Nama began a revolt, joined by the Herero in 1904. The Germans pursued an uncompromising military campaign that by 1908 had resulted in the death of about 54,000 Herero (out of a total Herero population of about 70,000), many of whom were driven into the Kalahari Desert, where they perished; 30,000 others also died in the revolt. In 1908 diamonds were discovered near Lüderitz, and a large influx of Europeans began.

During World War I the country was occupied (1915) by South African forces, and after the war South Africa began (1920) to administer it as a C-type mandate under the League of Nations. In 1921–22 the Bondelzwarts, a small Nama group, revolted against South African rule, but they were crushed by South African forces employing airpower. After the founding of the United Nations in 1945, South Africa, unlike the other League of Nations mandatories, refused to surrender its mandate and place South West Africa under the UN trusteeship system.

Descendants of the Herero and Nama people brought lawsuit for for what they called a campaign of genocide by German colonial troops in the early 1900s….

Germany has been sued for damages in the United States by descendants of the Herero and Nama people of Namibia, for what they called a campaign of genocide by German colonial troops in the early 1900s that led to more than 100,000 deaths.

According to a complaint filed on Thursday with the US district court in Manhattan, Germany has excluded the plaintiffs from talks with Namibia regarding what occurred, and has publicly said any settlement will not include reparations to victims, even if compensation is awarded to Namibia itself.

Source: Germany sued for damages of ‘forgotten genocide’ in Namibia | World news | The Guardian

It will be interesting to see how this lawsuit plays out….could be a harbinger of things to come….

Keep in mind the US refuses to recognize the Armenian genocide by the Turks and they try very hard to sweep the Native American treatment under the rug…..like is said…interesting.

Class Dismissed!

Boko Haram on the Back Foot?

Over a year ago the world was shocked by a group known as Boko Haram when it kidnapped over 250 school girls on a raid on their school.  Social media was frantic blogs were written and the news was dire on the fate of these girls.

In case it has slipped from your memory maybe I can help a wee bit……

About 8 months ago the world was shocked and outraged that 276 young women had been kidnapped by a terror group known as Boko Haram…….six months later no body outside Nigeria could care…

Source: Bring Back Our Girls – In Saner Thought

Today, when was the last time you heard #BeingOurGirlsBack?  My guess is about a year or so….funny how something that meant so much to the world can be crapped on by events elsewhere.

Let me help…..several countries including the Us has sent resources to Nigeria to aid the government in their on-going battle with Boko Haram….no one is saying for sure what those “resources” are….but we helped…and that is what is important, right?

Anyway….there have been stories that the leader of BH has been killed by the Nigerian army and some girls have been rescued….but what about the rest of the girls and what about the terrorist group today?

In case you are interested….and you should be……there has been a report on this situation by the International Crisis Group…….

Boko Haram is losing ground, resources and fighters. But defeating the group and preventing a future insurgency needs more than military success. The 14 May summit in Abuja is an opportunity for Nigeria and its Lake Chad basin neighbours to prepare and implement what’s been long overdue: a holistic response to the extremist group.

Source: Boko Haram on the Back Foot? – International Crisis Group

Just in case you can tear yourself away from the massive silliness of an election……and in case you actually care about what has happened and not just wanting to be part of some trendy crap!