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In the Somali capita of Mogadishu, the threat of terrorism has not only altered the city’s landscape in some areas, it has changed how the few Somalis still remaining in Mogadishu think and behave.   

Just a few years ago, streets in the capital were so congested at times, drivers used to have to bully their way forward - car horns blaring - through heaving crowds of people, vehicles, and animals.

As battered and crumbling as much of Mogadishu was after nearly 20 years of constant war, at least the city’s two-million inhabitants gave the capital a sense of lively and cheerful chaos.

These days, drivers no longer have to worry about hitting pedestrians or animals on busy streets.  The roads are virtually empty.  Drivers now honk their horns to alert others that an armored vehicle, belonging to African Union peacekeepers, is approaching them.  The honking prompts drivers and pedestrians to quickly move away from the rumbling vehicle to avoid becoming victims of a possible roadside bomb.

In August 2008, an improvised explosive device intended for a passing A.U. convoy, killed 21 women picking up rubbish on Maka al-Mukarama Road - a major thoroughfare that is guarded by African Union peacekeepers and considered one of the few safe zones left in the capital.

Mogadishu today stands in stark contrast to what the capital was like before the al-Shabab-led insurgency intensified against the U.N.-backed Transitional Federal Government and its international backers in 2008 and 2009.    

Maka al-Mukarama extends from the junction at Kilometer Four - so named because it is located four kilometers into the city from the international airport.  Once one of the busiest intersections in Mogadishu, Kilometer Four is now marked by rows of concrete barriers that keep people and cars far away from a group of peacekeepers based nearby.  A Soviet-era tank sits ominously at the intersection, ready to fire at a moment’s notice.    

Since 2008, thousands have been killed and nearly one-million others driven out of the city amid an escalating war between militant Islamists and the African Union peacekeeping force known as AMISOM.

A total of 5,300 peacekeepers from Uganda and Burundi are defending a small area, mostly in the southern part of the capital, trying to prevent al-Shabab from toppling the government and seizing the entire city.  Al-Shabab has been trying to demoralize AMISOM through repeated attacks, including two separate suicide attacks on its bases last year that killed and wounded nearly two dozen African Union troops.  
 
Those attacks have led to dramatic changes near AMISOM checkpoints and bases.  Barriers that used to be nothing more than tree trunks or branches stretched across the road are now made of concrete and steel.

Security checks along al-Mukarama Road are reminiscent of checks conducted in cities like Baghdad and Kabul.  AU troops, with rifles at the ready, watch behind concrete barriers and sandbags as government troops hand-search each car passing through.

In a sign that suicide bombings have become a constant threat, especially to the government, Somalia’s first metal detector has been installed in Villa Somalia.     

On December 3, a suicide bomber detonated his vest during a graduation ceremony for medical students being held at Shamo Hotel, near Kilometer Four.  Three government ministers, nine students, two journalists, and a doctor were killed in the blast.  Scores more were wounded.

Somalia has a long history of observing a moderate form of Islam, and suicide bombings were unheard of here before 2006.  
A leading civil society leader in Mogadishu, Abdullahi Mohamed Shirwa, says while militants are making progress in spreading their ideology among poor young men in Somalia, the vast majority of ordinary Somalis are deeply against a religious doctrine that strives to control people through fear, violence and intimidation.        

“People are fed up and even sometimes, they are resisting the insurgents.  But they have intelligence networks among the people.  Can you imagine your friend or your cousin or your boy has [been] recruited secretly and he is ready to explode your home?  It is a terrible thing that affect badly the public’s psychology,” said Shirwa.  “They are very scared about coming [to] meetings, seminars, workshops, especially if the event takes place in hotels.  They say, ‘No, we do not want to come together because we do not know what will happen.  Maybe my friend is an enemy.’  So, it has actually created a very bad atmosphere.  People, they are afraid to the maximum.”

Mogadishu residents have rarely feared anything before, least of all war.  But bravery means little, they say, when there is no one left to trust.

With almost all the ballots counted, Mr. Yanukovych has more than 48 percent of the vote compared to about 46 percent for his opponent, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.  

However, Ms. Tymoshenko is refusing to concede defeat and may launch a legal challenge to the election results.  Ms. Tymoshenko accused pro-Yanukovych forces of ballot-box stuffing in Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine.

For his part, Mr. Yanukovych has claimed victory in what would be an astonishing comeback for the candidate who supports closer ties with Russia.

Six years ago, official results declared Mr. Yanukovych the winner over pro-Western Viktor Yushchenko, but huge protests known as the “Orange Revolution” over reports of massive vote fraud led to a new election won by Mr. Yushchenko.

President Yushchenko took office in January 2005 with Ms. Tymoshenko as his prime minister.  Their partnership later disintegrated and both ran for president this time around.  Mr. Yushchenko finished well behind both Mr. Yanukovych and Ms. Tymoshenko in the first round of voting, and was not eligible for the runoff ballot.

The campaign for Sunday’s election had been marked by smears and insults throughout.  The two candidates accused each other of rigging the vote even before balloting began.

Mr. Yanukovych was considered the front-runner in the runoff vote, since he won the first round last month by 10 percentage points.  He is a former prime minister himself, and was in office at the time of the last presidential election, in 2004.

A year ago, Pakistani forces had declared the group of villages called Damadola free of militants following a 2008 offensive.  But officials say Taliban and al-Qaida militants recently returned to defend the strategically-located stronghold north of Khar, the main town in the Bajaur tribal agency.

Pakistan’s military says its troops and a tribal militia, backed by warplanes and helicopter gunships, killed some 60 militants in the new offensive.  The military’s account has not been independently verified because aid workers and journalists are largely barred from the region.

Damadola has been the site of several U.S. drone missile strikes in recent years targeting al-Qaida leaders.

The cache contained 54 artillery rounds, four mortar rounds and 18 fuses.

The munitions were brought to a nearby forward operating base and are pending disposal by an explosive ordnance disposal team.

A joint ANSF-ISAF patrol discovered more than 20 mortar rounds in Garm Ser district, Helmand province yesterday. An EOD team destroyed them on site.

Another ANSF-ISAF patrol discovered 11 hand grenades and an RPG round in Kajaki district, Helmand province yesterday.

The rounds were destroyed.

Counter-illicit trafficking (CIT), damage control, and systems training began soon after Freedom’s arrival at Naval Station Mayport, Fla., on Jan. 25.

“This training is extremely important for Freedom and will help us prepare for the CIT mission we expect to perform while in the 4th Fleet area of operations,” said Lt. Cmdr. Mark West of Imperial Beach, Calif., operations officer for the Gold Crew, one of Freedom’s two rotational crews. “Freedom can be an extremely formidable weapon in the war on drugs.”

Freedom’s crew is part of an innovative manning construct that reduces crew size, demanding each Sailor maintain high levels of proficiency in multiple fields, and optimizes ship operability with multiple crews. The ship is manned by two rotational crews, “Blue” and “Gold”, of 40 Sailors each. Prior to deployment, each crew member must prove his or her competency across a wide range of skills.

Sailors attended counter-illicit trafficking/airborne use of force (CIT/AUF) instruction ashore, led by Afloat Training Group (ATG) Mayport, Destroyer Squadron 14 and Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) 407. LEDET 407 will embark the ship during deployment.

Freedom welcomed the Coast Guard detachment aboard for nearly three days of CIT/AUF exercises at sea. LEDET 407 worked with Freedom’s core crew and its aviation detachment to certify the ship for CIT operations.

“The Coast Guard was extremely professional and knowledgeable, and I look forward to working with them in the future,” West said.

While Coast Guard observers evaluated the aviation detachment � Norfolk, Va.-based Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 22, Detachment 2 � in tracking go-fast boats, a Coast Guard coxswain was learning how to operate Freedom’s 11-meter rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIBs).

“The Coast Guard does not operate our 11-meter RHIB, so this was important training for them as well,” said Gold Crew navigator Lt. John Hill, a native of Auckland, New Zealand.

The LEDET soon gave way to an integrated training team from the San Diego-based Littoral Combat Ship Class Squadron, which put Freedom’s crew through its paces in a series of damage control and firefighting drills. The exercises tested the crew’s response to a variety of shipboard emergencies, from a simulated helicopter crash landing to casualty triage.

“The training provided a good refresher for us � it’s a good opportunity to keep our skills up,” said Chief Hospital Corpsman (SW/FMF) Joseph Dennis of Bridgeport, Texas, the Gold Crew’s independent duty corpsman (IDC). “As an IDC, exercises like this give me confidence in my crew’s ability to operate in any emergency.”

Freedom’s crew also engaged in combat systems testing, running through a series of live-fire and tracking tests using the ship’s Mk 110 57mm gun, as well as the 30mm guns of the ship’s tailored Surface Warfare Mission Package.

While the testing schedule has been a rigorous one, Freedom’s Sailors are confident that the ship will be ready for its upcoming journey.

“I really believe the training provided will make our senior crew ready for the challenges ahead and pay dividends while Freedom is on deployment,” said West.

Freedom is the first ship of the revolutionary Littoral Combat Ship program, a fast, agile, mission-focused ship that demonstrates the latest in naval warfighting technology. The ship is specifically designed to defeat “anti-access” threats in shallow, coastal water regions, including fast surface craft, quiet diesel submarines, and mines.

Freedom’s deployment will conclude later this year with a transit to her new homeport of San Diego.

“As of 26 January, 2010, the U.S. has destroyed a 22,322 tons of the original 31,500 tons,” said Greg Mahall, chief of Public Affairs for the U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency (CMA).

The U.S. arsenal — which used to include 31,500 tons of chemical weapons such as Sarin, VX and Mustard agents– is systematically being destroyed at an increased pace, Mahall said.

“It is a tremendous success story. Not only is the U.S doing all it can to meet its international commitments, but more importantly the Chemical Materials Agency is contributing to the national security of the United States in the process. These weapons in the wrong hands can do harm. They are safely and securely storing and destroying them while providing maximum protection to the public and environment,” said Carmen Spencer, deputy assistant Secretary of the Army (Elimination of Chemical Weapons).

The Army’s Chemical Stockpile Elimination mission, which destroyed more than 3,084 tons of chemical weapons at four facilities during 2009, has been working since the early 90’s — several years before the 1992 drafting of an international Chemical Weapons Convention arms control agreement calling for the destruction of chemical weapons stockpiles and a prohibition on their use and production.

“Production went into a moratorium based on direction from President Nixon in the late 60’s,” Mahall said.

Article I of the CWC treaty, initially signed in 1993 and now ratified by as many as 188 countries, states in part:

“Each State Party undertakes to destroy chemical weapons it owns or possesses, or that are located in any place under its jurisdiction or control, in accordance with the provisions of this convention.”

Recognizing the weapons had become obsolete, the U.S. did not wait for ratification of the CWC Treaty, Mahall said.

“We began destroying our agents at Johnston Atoll [a remote outpost in the central pacific 825 miles southwest of Hawaii] in 1990,” said Mahall. “The weapons had a limited tactical use and had been overcome in America’s arsenal by other more potent weapons in the nuclear age. The U.S. quit making them, which means stocks on hand sat in storage deteriorating.”

The Annual Status Report on the Disposal of Chemical Weapons and Materiel for Fiscal Year 2009 states that $1,548 million was appropriated during the year for chemical agents and munitions destruction.

“CMA remains committed to our storage and destruction mission and remains vigilant to safely completing that mission while protecting the workforce, the public, and the environment,” wrote CMA director Conrad F. Whyne in the report.

In addition to the weapons stored on Johnston Atoll in the Pacific, chemical weapons stockpiles were dispersed among eight locations within in the continental U.S. at Army facilities in Anniston, Ala., Pine Bluff, Ark., Tooele, Utah, Umatilla, Ore., Aberdeen, Md., Newport, Ind., Blue Grass, Ky., and Pueblo, Colo.

Destruction of the stockpiles at Blue Grass, Ky., and Pueblo, Colo., now falls under Defense Department management with Army assistance; the remaining sites are currently part of the Army’s Chemical Stockpile elimination program.

“All of the nerve agent under CMA destruction has been destroyed with the exception of a small amount of GA (Tabun) in Utah. Comparatively small amounts remain in storage awaiting destruction in Kentucky,” said Mahall.

Water and sodium hydroxide-based neutralization methods were used to destroy stockpiles at facilities in Aberdeen, Md., and Newport, Ind. –and incineration technology is employed at other Army locations including Anniston, Umatilla, Tooele, and Pine Bluff, Army officials said.

The stockpiles at Pueblo, Colo., and Blue Grass, Ky., are being destroyed under DoD auspices using water oxidation and neutralization methods; Stockpile destruction at Pueblo, Col., will be finished by 2017 and destruction at Blue Grass, Ky., is slated to be finished by 2021, Spencer said.

Chemical Weapons Incineration

Chemical weapons such as mortars, projectiles or 155mm artillery shells are disassembled and incinerated inside robustly engineered plants adjacent to the storage igloos where the chemical weapons are kept, Mahall said.

“Robotics reverse-assemble these weapons — unscrewing the nose cone, pulling out the fuse and draining the agent out of the weapon. Then you have two different destruction streams. The hard substances and the liquid agents,” said Mahall. “The liquid agents will be stored in a holding tank then sprayed into a furnace called the liquid incinerator. Basically, destruction is a matter of time and temperature. The agents have high, natural BTU quotients and burn quite well. At a temperature of 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit agent will be destroyed completely in a matter of one-to-two seconds.”

The bullet, rocket or bomb casings — the hard substances — are placed on a conveyor belt, put into a metal furnace and burned for at least 15 minutes at temperatures up to 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure total destruction of whatever agents might be left, Mahall said.

Given the nature and age of the agents involved, safety and environmental concerns are emphasized and placed at a premium. “A tremendous amount of money has gone in meeting the environmental standards and we have exceeded environmental standards. Our safety record is unparalleled,” said Spencer.

The areas where the incineration takes place are built for safety with 22-inch thick concrete walls, Mahall said.

“Plus, the plant has a cascading negative air system where air is pulled in so that if a weapon would release gas due to some of sort of structural failure, any vapors would caught up in the cascading air system and kept in the plant,” Mahall said. “Also, carbon air filters would decontaminate the plant air in the event that anything does leak out before that air is released outside engineering controls.”