Democratic Palestine : 11 (ص 22)
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- Democratic Palestine : 11 (ص 22)
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Memorandum:
Mogadishu-Tel Aviv-Pretoria Axis
Recently, the President of the Somali National
Movement, Ahmed Mohammad Selanyo, pub-
lished an extensive memorandum on the prevail-
ing political conditions in Somalia, and the political
and military accomplishments of the SNM in the
armed struggle against the regime. Below we print
one section of this memorandum which details the
recently established connections between Siad
Barre’s regime, Pretoria and Tel Aviv:
Alliance with the racist regimes of South Africa
and Israel
After failing in the face of the armed struggle waged by our
people and having lost the sympathy of most peace-loving
forces of the world, the regime proceeded to establish a despa-
rate alliance with the racist regimes of South Africa and Israel
that are hostile to all human values. Barre entered into these
notorious alliances at a time when the mass struggle led by the
ANC and SWAPO is escalating in South Africa and Namibia
against white minority rule, and international support is forth-
coming to the people of southern Africa.
Indirect contacts between Barre’s regime and Pretoria
started in 1979, through a Somalian businessman. Direct con-
tact started on February 12, 1984, when an ATAIR plane ar-
rived in Mogadishu. Onboard was a South African delegation
consisting of officials from the Foreign, Defense and Com-
merce Ministries, in addition to civil servants of the South Africa
airlines. According to reliable sources, the South African dele-
gation met with Barre’s deputy and the Defense Minister, and
discussed matters pertaining to South Africa's aircraft using
Somaii's airports and air space, in return for economic and
military assistance to Barre’s regime. These preliminary
negotiations were followed by a visit paid by the Somali
Defense Minister to Pretoria, May 16-19, 1984. The Somali
Defense Minister met with his South African counterpart, and
visited some military installations and factories which produce
military hardware.
In September 1984, a South African delegation, made up
of five officials, visited Mogadishu and met with the Somali
Defense Minister, Mohammad Ali Sametar. Contacts were
furthered when the South African Foreign Minister Pik Botha
visited Mogadishu on December 17, 1984, and met with Barre.
Later it was confirmed in Suuth Africa that the final touches
were put on the accord that permits the racist regime of South
Africa to use Somali territory and air space. It seems that there
is an economic and military treaty between the two regimes.
According to this accord, South Africa would grant loans to
Somali within two years, repayable after 12 years, in addition to
economic assistance to the regime.
In a meeting between South Africa s Foreign Minister and
Barre, the issue of selling to South Africa the oil now given to
Somalia by Saudi Arabia, was discussed. Reports indicate that
Barre granted the South African regime the right to have its air
and naval forces visit the Somali port at Casmayo.
22
South Africa provided Barre with seven counterin-
surgency experts. These mercenaries remained in Somalia for
three weeks. They visited the Somali air base located 20 miles
northwest of Mogadishu. There they met ten Rhodesian pilots
who fly eight Hooker-Hunter planes and three training aircraft
given to Barre by Abu Dhabi in 1983. The Rhodesian training
group is led by a South African citizen. Some Somali officials
have acknowledged the presence of these mercenaries in
Somali, under the cover of being experts. Reports indicate that
the leader of the mercenaries is in the process of buying eight
MIG-21 aircraft for South Africa. These planes have been
grounded at Somali airports due to lack of spare parts.
It seems that the accord between Barre and the racist
regime of South Africa includes repair of Barre's military vehi-
cles and equipment. In addition, it covers things such as
extending Casmayo’s airport runway and training military intel-
ligence officers. Reliable sources confirm that the delivery of
weaponry to Barre started in March this year. Planes packed
with weapons arrived in Mogadishu after nightfall. From there,
the cargo is transferred by truck. Other sources in Mogadishu
add that Barre’s regime has granted South African ships
anchoring rights in the port of Casmayo.
It seems that the racist regime of South Africa assumed
the role of middleman between Barre and the Zionist state.
Reports from Somali indicate that General Abdel Rahman
Hussein, chief of the militia forces and Barre’s son-in-law, sec-
retly visited Israel in February 1985.
The road between Tel Aviv and Pretoria now passes
through Mogadishu. This road is crucial since the weaponry
imported by South Africa from the US secretly tinds its way to
south Africa via Israel. It is known that the Israeli role is not
limited to providing weapons to South Africa. Israel also partici-
pates in military operations launched by the South African
regime against African national liberation forces. Also the
South African airlines transfers raw materials, as well as
finished and semi-finished products, from South Africa to
Israel. These products are then re-exported to Western Euro-
pean markets.
The unholy alliance between the dictatorship of Siad
Barre, and the fascist regimes based on apartheid and Zionist
racism, not only poses a great danger to the liberation struggle
of our people. It is also a serious threat to the peoples of the
Horn of Africa, Red Sea, Middle East and all Africa. This is par
ticularly so as it threatens the struggle of the people of South
Africa and Namibia !ed by the ANC and SWAPO. The unholy
alliance is also dangerous because it threatens the heroic
struggle waged by the Palestinian Arab people, to return to
their land and establish an independent national state, under
their united leadership !n the framework of the PLO. This mali-
cious alliance also threatens the nationalist states and the
forces of national liberation and social progress throughout the
Arab world and Africa, and all the forces struggling for freedom,
progress, and peace throughout the world. For all these
reasons, we Call upon our brothers of the Arab and world liber-
ation forces to exert ail efforts to foil this malicious conspiracy. - هو جزء من
- Democratic Palestine : 11
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- أكتوبر ١٩٨٥
- المنشئ
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