I Know How You Feel, Guys

After its initial success, the Ethiopian army may be wearing out its welcome:

MOGADISHU, Somalia, Jan. 6 -- Hundreds of angry and fed-up Somalis demanded that Ethiopian troops leave the city Saturday, smashing cars, burning tires, and hurling stones and threats as a prevailing sense of insecurity deepened in the patched-together neighborhoods of Mogadishu.

A week ago there were stories about how ecstatic Somalis were taking off their veils, opening up the dance clubs again, and so forth (although not in Mogadishu itself). I guess the honeymoon's over.

Tensions are rising over the presence of the Ethiopian troops, who are perceived here as having U.S. backing and last week pushed out an Islamic movement widely credited with bringing security to the capital. Almost immediately after taking control, the ascendant prime minister, Ali Mohamed Gedi, announced that he would begin forcibly disarming Somalia's matrix of clans, whose members are accustomed to relying on their own stashes of AK-47 assault rifles for protection in a country that has been without a central government since 1991...Following the protests, Gedi said the disarmament would be postponed indefinitely.

Get out now, Ethiopia. Even if you have to invade again in six months, it'll be better than sticking around and trying to sort out this mess.

Trust me on this one.

posted by AndrewR at 01:31 PM

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