MOHAMMED: Sir, we've just received confirmation of a Djiboutian invasion into Eritrea. Response, if any?
KAHIN: Don't rush me, general. You know well it is a difficult decision.
MOHAMMED: Apologies, sir.
KAHIN: Hmm....it is difficult. We must push into the Federal territory quickly if we are to gain victory, and Ethiopian invasion is a worry. However, we cannot let our allies collapse.
MOHAMMED: Sir, your decision? Excuse me, but our time window to make any real difference is closing quickly.
KAHIN: True. (sigh) Fine, do it.
MOHAMMED: Yes, sir.
(click)
--A transcript of a February 1, 2007 phone call between Somaliland's president Dahir Rayale Kahin and the commander-in-chief of Somaliland's armed forces Adan Mire Mohammed
Somaliland Armed Forces men fighting in the streets of Ali Sabieh in Djibouti
"It was 2:00 in the morning when they came. I was in bed with my wife: our two children, both boys, lay on the floor next to our mosquito-netted bed. I awoke to the sounds of pounding on the front door. Putting on the pair of camoflauge pants, my best, that I always kept near the bed, I hurried to the front room of my two-room house and opened the door. There was Colonel Saare Michael, my commander in the Rapid Reaction Force. He was fully dressed for duty and carrying his worn FAMAS. For a moment, I simply stood there stupidly--when he cleared his throat, however, I remembered my manners and saluted. Nodding, he spoke, 'Good morning, private Aman. We are in the midst of an emergency and I am ordered to assemble the Force. Get your gear and let's go." Still exhausted, I simply nodded and gathered the rest of my clothes, putting them on quickly, and loaded my FAMAS before returning to the door. We set off into the night like ghosts, hurrying through the streets of Tadjourah.
At the airstrip, which was lit by ancient gaslights, we met the rest of the Rapid Reaction Force, who were standing uncomforably in the humid heat, fidgeting. A small plane stood nearby. As we arrived, the colonel began shouting orders. "Form....UP! Let's...GO!" We hurried onto the plane and, after a short drive along the runway, we were up. While we were in the plane, for less than fifteen minutes, we were briefed on the situation and our mission. Just an hour ago, forces from Somaliland had crossed the border and fired upon our guards, wiping them out. Then, they had quickly advanced towards Djibouti city, though they had not reached it yet. Our job was to parachute out of the plane over southern Arta (region) in the south and strike the advancing Somalilanders, hard and fast.(1) Just enough to knock them off their feet, since we were certainly not powerful enough to defeat them ourselves. After he finished, the rest of the trip--about seven or so minutes--was quiet as we all quietly accepted our mission and realized that many of us, perhaps all of us, would not survive this battle. And then we jumped.
It was comforting, falling. The wind whipping past my face cooled me after the hot plane, and I was a little reluctant to pull my cord and lose that wind. But I digress. When I landed, I was all alone, in a cluster of rocks. I quickly pulled off my parachute. Then, peeking over the rocks, I saw several of the Somalilanders traveling in a tight group, looking this way and that as they advanced. Cocking my FAMAS, I sighted down the barrel and began firing. The FAMAS made a dull roaring in my ear as I fired into the crowd of Somalis. At least three of them fell before the group scattered and began firing wildly in all directions. I saw a few of them even shoot each other, though a bullet did scrap a rock near me. I ducked down quickly and waited for them to calm down. After a few minutes, they did. Then, I heard the dull roaring of another FAMAS nearby and risked a look over the rocks. There, just a few meters away, I saw Colonel Michael, standing and firing at the Somalilanders, who fired back with incredibly inaccuracy. I lifted my own gun and fired along with him, easily dispatching the rest of the soldiers. After they were dead, I jumped over the rocks and walked over to him. He grinned at me, a bloodthirsty grin, and said, "Let's go get ourselves some blood." I was chilled, but nodded anyway.
We passed as shades into the night, shades hunting for the blood of those who had wronged them in life."
--From
On The Other Side of Victory, a tell-all book about Djibouti's participation in the war by Abdul Aman, a former Djiboutian soldier
Rapid Reaction Force members hurrying to the frontline in southern Djibouti
AHMED: Victory was rapid in coming in our war against the Federals, so when we learned that the Kenyans were using genocide and war crimes to suppress the rebels in the North Eastern Province, we were naturally upset.
AL-QASSEM: Upset enough to invade on their behalf.
AHMED: Indeed. Though it was a risk-...
AL-QASSEM: With a powerful African nation and a significant domestic contender already at war with you, it is abundantly obvious the kind of risk it was.
AHMED: If I may continue?
AL-QASSEM: Please.
AHMED: Thank you. As I was saying, though it was a risk, it was an acceptable risk to rescue our fellow Somalis. On February 9, we invaded the North Eastern Province and had great success against the Kenyans, and succeeding in freeing several hundred Somalis unlawfully imprisoned in hard-labor camps.
AL-QASSEM: What about the Kenyans who were later found in hard-labor camps? Evidence shows they were put there by your men.
AHMED: Those were merely refugee camps to protect them while we fought...
--From a 2011 airing of the Al-Jazeera talk show
The Opposite Direction with Dr. Faisal al-Qassem, featuring an interview with Sharif Sheikh Ahmed
Dr. Faisal al-Qassem during a later part of the interview with Sharif Sheikh Ahmed
(1) The Djiboutians have one of the most badass special forces groups, the Rapid Reaction Force, in the Horn.