European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 11, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday december 11, 1992 Somalia the stars and stripes Page 9clans endure through turmoil tearing Somalia by Reid g. Miller the associated press Mogadishu Somalia a amid the chaos and famine being visited upon this country like a biblical plague one element of its fragmented society endures the clan. Clan rivalries helped destroy Somalia. Clan cohesiveness could help put it Back together. Ismat Kitani the . Special envoy to Somalia and Many others see clan elders the society a traditional mediators and judges As the Only remaining semblance of authority and Hope. Using the elders As a foundation Kitani Hopes to slowly rebuild the country stacking the scattered building blocks of society one atop the other until Somalia again has the edifice of a nation. Somalia is in some ways the most homogeneous of sub saharan african nations. Virtually All of its people speak the same language practice islam and snare a common ethnic background. But the people Are divided among six major clans which themselves Divide into 22 major subclass. The subclass Are further divided into innumerable sub subclass. All or these groups Trace their kinship through genealogy. Sheer survival has always been the glue holding the clans together. Seif Alaziz Milas a mozambican anthropologist and . Consultant described the makeup and values of somalian society this Way in a tract written for the world body a the values of somali society Are those of survivors of survivors in a pastoral nomadic society struggling for life in a harsh desert setting where the Cost of a mistake the Price of a weakness was often  clan feuds Over water and grazing lands were passed Down through the generations he noted. A the extended family defends its interests against other members of the sub clan while the elders of the sub clan try to negotiate any disputes because of the need for the sub clan to stand together against other subclass to defend its common interests a Milas wrote. A a subclass in turn May fight among themselves but Detroit free press David Tulloy . Marines try to disperse curious somalian children in Mogadishu Somalia on wednesday. Present a common front against other clans to defend their  Mohamed Siad Barre the dictator who ruled Somalia from 1969 until he was deposed by rebels in january 1991, managed to hang onto Power for so Long by playing the clans off against one another. Siad Barre belonged to the Mare Han sub clan of the darod clan. While keeping the other major clans and subclass occupied with real or invented rivalries he enriched his relatives by giving them virtually every major government Post. Thera was a lot to go around because his socialistic government owned All major industries and businesses. Finally in the Early 1980s, the Isaac clan which dominates the North of Somalia and had Long Felt discriminated against by Siad Barre revolted. Other clans later joined in but Seldom in unison. While they All hated Siad Barre they mistrusted one another. One of the last clans to turn on Siad Barre was the Hatiye but its United somali Congress militia drove him from Mogadishu nearly two years ago. Almost immediately two Hatiye subclass began quarrelling Over the spoils. The two arc the a gals headed by wealthy businessman Ali Mahdi Mohamed and the Habar Genirs led by one of Siad barrels former generals Mohamed Farrah aided. Their Power struggle erupted into a major Battle for control of Mogadishu the capital that lasted from november 1991 to March when it ended in a .-brokered cease fire. The fighting left More than 30,000 people mostly women and children dead or wounded and allowed the country to be carved up into a collection of clan fief Doms in the absence of a Central government. It also aggravated the Impact of a severe regional drought leading to the famine that already has killed More than 300,000 people and has put up to 2 million More at risk of  dangers Lurk behind lengthy . Fleet off somali ships currently in the . Fleet involved in operation restore Hope  Rushmore Dock Landing ship troop transport off the coast of Somalia the initial Force of 1,800 marines is ready to land. Support  Juneau amphibious transport Dock  Tripoli amphibious assault ship  Ranger aircraft Carrier  Valley forge guided missle Cruiser the Ranger with 60 combat planes and the Aegis Cruiser Valley forge approach from the persian Gulf. Supply the Lummus. The Supply vessel for the operation has rendezvoused with the transport ships. L source Jane s fighting ship suss 1st it Jack Lummus vehicle cargo ship j a we j castello by Jim Abrams the associated press Washington a roads turned to mud soldiers felled by disease and guerrillas emboldened to retrieve hidden weapons arc among the Darker images of a prolonged stay by . Forces in Somalia. Operation restore Hope got off to a flawless Start with Marine combat troops swiftly securing the Mogadishu Airport and seaport in preparation for Large scale Relief to the famine stricken nation. But Somalia is a land Little known in Washington except for its current state of chaos. A this is an area americans done to know anything about a said i Baa Osman a somalian native working for the Horn of Africa project a private human rights group in Washington. A they done to know the language they re not used to the  the potential for confrontation is real she said. A a we re dealing with an extremely dangerous situation a said Marine corps it. Gen. Martin l. Brandtner. A a there san enormous potential for any Type of event to  logistically the military faces Many of the problems of desert storm compounded by Somalia a lamentable infrastructure. Nearly All the food and water required by up to 30,000 american troops will have to be flown in. Pentagon officials pointed to other problems As Well a heavy military traffic May tear up the roads which will have to be resurfaced. A dust will get in helicopters. A Mogadishu a Small Airport will become terribly congested. A communications lines must be built from scratch. The persian Gulf War however was a Good primer on How to protect men and machines from the desert. A there was a lot of doom and gloom at the Start of desert storm a said retired army col. Harry g. Summers jr., a military analyst. A it turned out to be generally  More important May be avoiding incidents a such As the marines arrest of somalis who later turned out to be Airport employees a that could quickly Cool the warm reception the americans have had. The Media circus when the first marines arrived a was fair warning to the military that it is americans must not act single hand edly and must continuously consult with the  Baa Osman going to be under intense scrutiny liven a minor mistake is going to be magnified a Summers said. A word travels very fast among somalis said political scientist Kenneth Menkhaus who has lived in Somalia. He said the americans must balance their Security needs a with the need not to overreact and create a situation where somalis Are  a americans must not act single hand edly and must continuously consult with the somalis a Osman said. The dangers multiply As . Forces get farther from Mogadishu said William Taylor military expert with the Center for strategic and International studies. A a we re liable to find ourselves running into something Akin to insurgency warfare with rival clans and subclass mining roads at night and blowing Bridges Taylor said