Germany has dispatched six of its Navy’s warships and hundreds of elite German Marines to the Horn of Africa, to assist the United States in action against terror.
The warships, two frigates and four support ships, sailed quietly out of the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported. The ships are also carrying 750 combat-ready German Marines, and an additional five smaller ships will leave for the area during the coming week. The German force is expected to reach the shores off Somalia and Yemen in three weeks.
Officially, the German Navy’s mission will be to protect shipping and cut off any routes used by terror groups. While it is still unclear in which port the German ships will be based, they are patrolling an area close to Yemen, Sudan and Somalia - three countries which the U.S. has accused of housing large al-Qaida networks.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, mindful of the American threats to invade these countries in order to deal with al-Qaeda, has urged caution in seeking new targets in the campaign to destroy international terror groups. But in his New Year's address he reminded Germans of the need to combat terrorism ``in every place.''
The commander of the German naval force, Vice-Admiral Lutz Feldt, indicated that he excepts his men may actively engage in fighting, when he told the Associated Press in Wilhelmshaven before the ships weighed anchor that “Of course, the mission carries a risk”.
It was German intervention in another American-lead “police action” that earned its soldiers the infamous nickname “Huns”, when German troops participating in an European force that crushed a rebellion in China were ordered to emulate the murderous Mongolian Huns. However, German armed forces have avoided being involved in fighting roles outside the borders of their own country since World War II, a war in which Germany invaded several neighboring countries and brought about the deaths of millions. The new naval commitment is a sign that Germany is changing this pacifist policy, and once again sending its formidable troops to fight beyond its borders. (www.albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
