Secret State Secures, Supports Somali Soldiers

A lot of alliteration and allegations regarding the Horn of Africa's crazypants country, eh?  1,000-Man Militia Being Trained In North Somalia.  All the ingredients for a super weird, intriguing, politically charged situation slash latest George Clooney thriller are here(Of course, this isn't the plot of Clooney's latest; but it could be!):  In the northern reaches of Somalia and the country's presidential palace, a well-equipped military force is being created, funded by a mysterious donor nation that is also paying for the services of a former CIA officer and a senior ex-U.S. diplomat.
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training for an anti-piracy force of up to 1,050 men has already begun in Puntland, a semiautonomous region in northern Somalia that is believed to hold reserves of oil and gas.

But key elements remain unknown — mainly who is providing the millions of dollars in funding and for what ultimate purpose.

Pierre Prosper, an ambassador-at-large for war crimes issues(Heh.  This guy's desk probably had two inches of dust covering it..) under former President George W. Bush, told AP he is being paid by a Muslim nation he declined to identify to be a legal adviser to the Somali government, focusing on security, transparency and anti-corruption.  (Read that again.  Then again.  Still senseless, right?)

Somalia hasn't had a fully functioning government since 1991 and is torn between clan warlords, Islamist insurgent factions, an 8,000-strong African Union peacekeeping force, government forces and allied groups. Given that mix, the appearance of an unknown donor with deep pockets is troubling, said E.J. Hogendoorn, a Nairobi-based analyst with the International Crisis Group.

"We don't know if this unknown entity is operating in the interests of Somalis or their own self-interest," he said in an interview. "If it's a company, there has to be a quid pro quo in terms of (oil and gas) concessions. If it's a government, they are interested in changing the balance of power."
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"You cannot have oil exploration if you have insecurity," Mohamed Farole said. "You have to eliminate the pirates and al-Shabab."

Energy exploration has started mainly just south of the mountains, although the amount of estimated reserves is unknown, or at least not publicly divulged.

Michael Shanklin, who was the CIA's deputy chief of station in Mogadishu 20 years ago, told AP he is employed by the unidentified donor country as a security adviser and liaison to the Somali government. Prosper said he is encouraging the Muslim donor nation, which insists on keeping its identity secret, to become more transparent.  (The only one saying this "unknown" country is "Muslim" is a former CIA deputy chief.  It might be true, but I'd like a second opinion before believing this..)
And:
In recent weeks, Shanklin and Prosper met several Nairobi-based diplomats to discuss the contract between the Puntland and Mogadishu governments and a private security company called Saracen International, Prosper said in written replies to questions from AP. Prosper said Saracen is doing the military training and is being paid by the unnamed Muslim nation. Saracen is not providing the militia with any weapons, he said.

Uganda-based Saracen International was named in a March letter written by the Somali president's former chief of staff, Abdulkareem Jama, and obtained by AP that described training for the presidential guard. And it was named in a Nov. 18 statement from Puntland's government announcing the anti-piracy training. Bill Pelser, the chief executive of Saracen International, said it is "definitely a mistake or a misrepresentation."

Pelser denied being involved in the training program in Puntland or the one for the presidential guard in Mogadishu, saying he merely made introductions for another company called Saracen Lebanon. Lebanese authorities have no record of a company called Saracen. Pelser did not respond to requests for contact information for Saracen Lebanon.

Pelser is a former South African special forces soldier. Like many of his staff, he used to work for Executive Outcomes, a South African mercenary outfit credited with helping defeat rebel forces in Sierra Leone in return for mineral concessions.(Fantastic.  Subplots within denials, misdirection and nonexistent companies with no follow up information.  Clear cut, so far..)
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Whoever controls a well-trained, well-equipped and consistently paid military force is in a strong position to make a bid for filling the power vacuum in Somalia.
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The U.N. is quietly investigating to see if the creation and outfitting of the new military force violates an arms embargo..  (Creating an army is considered violating an arms embargo?)
The embargo forbids the importation of arms, military equipment or any support to any armed group in Somalia, including to any Somali government, without authorization from the U.N.'s sanctions committee. There is an exemption for support for counter-piracy operations, provided the Security Council was notified and gave permission. In the case of the new military force, the Security Council was not notified.  (Not notified?  Another shock, I tells ya..)

Let's see..  A politically somewhat stable region of an unstable country with factional leadership and continual infighting receives support and paramilitary training from an unknown, possibly "Muslim" nation in exchange for unknown monies/ influence/ resources.  Unknown country is facilitated in their efforts by a South African former mercenary, a Ugandan "anti-piracy" training something-or-other corporation, a former CIA deputy chief, and a former Bush administration official as Liaison? 

When this becomes a movie, I certainly hope Clive Owen plays the South African mercenary.  So sexy, and I'm sure he can handle the accent..