US embassy cable - 04DJIBOUTI1223

UNCLAS DJIBOUTI 001223 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR AF/E AND S/CT 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, MARR, MOPS, PTER, DJ 
SUBJECT: IGAD TO HOST WORKSHOP ON COMBATTING TERRORISM: 
CJTF-HOA CHIEF INVITED 
 
 
 1. (U) During Ambassador's September 20 call on Dr. Attalla 
Hamad Bashir, Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental 
Authority on Development (IGAD), to present an invitation to 
him to attend a meeting of the Africa Partnership Forum 
(septel), Dr. Attalla indicated to her that he had extended 
to General Samuel Helland, Commander of the Combined Joint 
Task Force-Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA), an invitation to speak 
at an IGAD workshop on terrorism.  The workshop, called the 
second IGAD Regional Workshop on Prevention and Combatting 
Terrorism, is scheduled to be held at the White Sands Hotel 
in Mombassa, Kenya on 18-21 October, according to Bashir.  He 
wanted the Ambassador to encourage the General's 
participation. 
 
2. (U) According to Dr. Bashir, the workshop is intended to 
bring together high-level members of IGAD member states from 
Defense, Internal Security, and the Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs, as a way toward development of a coordinated 
regional strategy for dealing with terrorism in the region. 
He said he believed the CJTF-HOA has a perspective on this 
subject that might be useful in development of a strategy for 
achieving this.  As such, the invitation to General Helland 
was a request that he present a paper on "The Challenges of 
the Task Force in Combatting Terrorism in the Horn of 
Africa." 
 
3. (U) The draft agenda for the conference, which Bashir 
shared with Ambassador, envisioned presentations by United 
Nations, European Union, and African Union experts on 
terrorism as well as statements by member states on the 
issue.  Also planned is a presentation by consultants Peter 
Marwa and Dr. Anneli Botha on the threat of terrorism in the 
region.  The conference would conclude with the presentation, 
discussion and adoption of a draft action plan for IGAD 
states. 
 
4. (SBU) Ambassador told Bashir that she agreed that the 
conference could be a very useful mechanism for close 
consultation and coordination among IGAD states on the issue 
of terrorism.  However, she was not sure of General Helland's 
schedule in the time frame noted, but would certainly 
encourage his participation or that of another representative 
of CJTF-HOA in his behalf. 
RAGSDALE