January 28, 2013
The New York Times

U.S. Weighs Base for Spy Drones in North Africa

by Eric Schmitt

WASHINGTON -- The United States military is preparing to establish a drone base in northwest Africa so that it can increase surveillance missions on the local affiliate of Al Qaeda and other Islamist extremist groups that American and other Western officials say pose a growing menace to the region.

For now, officials say they envision flying only unarmed surveillance drones from the base, though they have not ruled out conducting missile strikes at some point if the threat worsens.

The move is an indication of the priority Africa has become in American antiterrorism efforts. The United States military has a limited presence in Africa, with only one permanent base, in the country of Djibouti, more than 3,000 miles from Mali, . . .

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General Smedley Darlington Butler, "'War Is A Racket'," 1933

"A Clash Between Justice and Greed," The Wisdom Fund, October 26, 2004

"U.S. Investor Buys Sudan Land, Expects Breakup of Sudan, Somalia, Nigeria, Ethiopia," The Wisdom Fund, January 9, 2009

"The New Scramble For Africa: The Crown Jewels," The Wisdom Fund, October 20, 2011

"Mali: Another Imperialist "Success" Story?," The Wisdom Fund, March 25, 2012

"Into Africa: US Sends Troops, China Sends Construction Teams," The Wisdom Fund, December 24, 2012

Robert Fisk, "Algeria: The Slaughter of the Good and Bad Utterly Predictable," Independent, January 20, 2013

[A full-scale invasion of Africa is under way. The United States is deploying troops in 35 African countries, beginning with Libya, Sudan, Algeria and Niger. . . .

The invasion has almost nothing to do with "Islamism", and almost everything to do with the acquisition of resources, notably minerals, and an accelerating rivalry with China. Unlike China, the US and its allies are prepared to use a degree of violence--John Pilger, "The real invasion of Africa is not news and a licence to lie is Hollywood's gift," johnpilger.com, January 31, 2013]

Dan Glazebrook, "The African Union, Algeria and Mali: The West's War Against African Development Continues," counterpunch.org, February 15, 2013