European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 11, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse The Steffi amp 1942-199250 years of service vol. 51, no. 238 35c Friday december 11,1992 a d 8693 Amore marines pouring insight gunfire punctuates . Move into City Mogadishu Somalia apr Marine patrols thursday reported sporadic gunfire and French soldiers squared off with a gunman at a Road checkpoint As they consolidated their hold on this tense divided City. The isolated incidents marred an otherwise trouble free operation restore Hope As an american French Force took command in the somali capital and prepared for its main Mission protecting food shipments to starving somalis. A global air Bridge meanwhile tunnelled hundreds More marines toward Somalia. In a possible first step toward political reconciliation in this violence racked land warlord Mohamed far Ahsee related stories on pages 8 and 9 aided announced he will meet today with his Chiet rival Ali Malulia Mohamed. Smat Kitani special . Envoy was mediating Between the two factional leaders. The . Advance guard was ready to leapfrog into the famine Belt of Southern Somalia and what could be its toughest Job taking control of the strife torn Inland City of Bairoa. On saturday the marines will escort a Convoy of food trucks from Mogadishu 200 Miles Northwest to Bairoa. Relief officials reported thursday that a Large Convoy of a technic also a the armed vehicles favored by somali gunmen a was spotted headed West irom the Bairoa area toward the ethiopian Border. The emergency food Airlift to Mogadishu resumed wednesday just hours after 1,700 marines came ashore and seized the Airport and seaport the first Steps in an unprecedented .-sponsored Campaign to deliver see marines on Page 2 a . Marine gives the thumbs up sign As troops arrive at the reopened . Embassy in Mogadishu on s Friday shoot and loot Day in Somalia by Bob Klose staff writer Mombasa Kenya while . Marines were taking control of Mogadishu Somalia with a show of overwhelming firepower a Small unarmed Force of american troops and fliers delivered emergency food to starving somalis in the face of gun barrel terror. Its particularly Dicey at the end of the week according to Marine chief warrant officer 3 Hartman slate. A we Call fridays shoot and loot Day a said slate who runs the joint information Bureau for the operation provide Relief task Force. The task Force has been running food from the coast of Kenya into Somalia since August a flying up to 14 missions a Day slate said. But on fridays the task Force tries to quit Early before the somalian gunslingers a who virtually run the country a Start a Long weekend. A they Start chewing their khat a said slate referring to the Weed that grows wild in parts of Africa and the Middle East and produces a drug reaction similar to the effects of meth amphetamines. A they Start Early and by mid morning see Somalia on Page 2 commissary officials for Britain defend system for ordering food _ a a a i a a it car of Tlell it the f by Nancy l. Torner . Bureau Raf Lakenheath England the defense commissary Agency a system in the United kingdom needs help according to a recently retired commissary officer. By Agency officials in the . Disagree. A i think we re in the Fine tuning stage a said it. Col. Rick Moriyama . District commander for the Agency. A we know what we need to however former commissary officer Otis Brown Isnit convinced. Brown retired As commissary officer at Raf Alconbury England at the end of november after 44 years of air Force and civilian service with the . Government including More than 15 years in commissary work. He said that since the commissary Agency took Over last year the Alconbury commissary had to reduce its number of Semi perishable products a items with relatively Long shelf lives a from about 7,000 to 5,000. Moriyama who assumed his position in August said it took time to learn How to react to draw Downs and to know which products Are in demand. He said that the takeover by the Agency was an evolving process and that it Wasny to until june that most commissaries began ordering All of their Semi perishables from the distribution Center at Raf Lakenheath. But customers still complain that they can to always find the products they want. A the people need to know its not the commissary officers fault a Brown said. A a it a not the managers fault. Its the fault of the system. The commissary officer no longer has any control. We re just caretakers. We re not commissary until the Agency was created individual stores ordered their own items. Commissaries were United under the Agency in october 1991 and a list of about 5,000 Semi perishable items was created to ease ordering Moriyama said. Stores had to Hase out any items that were not on the is. Navy and air Force stores in England and Scotland order their Semi perishables from the distribution Center at Raf Lakenheath. Stores in Belgium Germany Norway and the Netherlands order from a Center in Sermersheim Germany. Stores in the Mediterranean also get see food on Page 2 i
