U.S. drone base in Ethi­o­pia is operational

[The Northerner]

The Air Force has been secretly flying armed Reaper drones on counterterrorism missions from a remote civilian airport in southern Ethi­o­pia as part of a rapidly expanding U.S.-led proxy war against an al-Qaeda affiliate in East Africa, U.S. military officials said.

The Air Force has invested millions of dollars to upgrade an airfield in Arba Minch, Ethi­o­pia, where it has built a small annex to house a fleet of drones that can be equipped with Hellfire missiles and satellite-guided bombs. The Reapers began flying missions earlier this year over neighboring Somalia, where the United States and its allies in the region have been targeting al-Shabab, a militant Islamist group connected to al-Qaeda.

Mindful of the 1993 “Black Hawk Down” debacle in which two U.S. military helicopters were shot down in the Somali capital of Mogadishu and 18 Americans killed, the Obama administration has sought to avoid deploying troops to the country.

...

The Washington Post reported last month that the Obama administration is building a constellation of secret drone bases in the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa, including one site in Ethi­o­pia. The location of the Ethio­pian base and the fact that it became operational this year, however, have not been previously disclosed. Some bases in the region also have been used to carry out operations against the al-Qaeda affiliate in Yemen.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-drone-base-in-ethiopia-is-operational/2011/10/27/gIQAznKwMM_story.html

[DrDan]

1. spent a few days fishing in Arba Minch - wonderful place to catch nile perch

largest one we caught was an 80 pounder.

Brings back fond memories of a wonderful country. What a shame it is now a drone base.

[bluestate10]

2. Good. There should be more such bases. Not one american soldier

should lose his or her life to extremist assholes if that end is remotely preventable. I throw teafucks into the pot of extremism, if those idiots had enough money to leave the country, I would relish their asses getting Droned.

[soryang]

3. Thank god! I was worried about the next East Africa attack!

You know they might send some article of clothing bomber with an FBI furnished bomb that doesn't work.