BLACK EMERGENCY MANAGERS ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL: Map Shows All the African Countries Where the U.S. Has Active Military Operations

http://www.policymic.com/articles/89831/surprising-map-shows-all-the-african-countries-where-the-u-s-has-active-military-operations

Surprising Map Shows All the African Countries Where the U.S. Has Active Military Operations

By Zak Cheney-Rice May 23, 2014

The news: Today’s reality check comes courtesy of the Washington Post.

President Barack Obama made headlines Wednesday when he deployed 80 American troops to Chad. Their stated mission is to find the over 200 Nigerian girls kidnapped by Boko Haramlast month, a crime that’s galvanized the international community.

But this is the U.S. military, and we’d be foolish to assume anything is so simple. Anyone worried about the broader implications of their actions need look no further than this map:

Image Credit: Washington Post

Thirteen nations – stretching from the Horn of Africa to
Mali’s western border – already house U.S. troops involved
in “actual military operations.” Their presence is widely
considered part of an expanding “shadow war against
al-Qaeda affiliates and other militant groups” in the
region – and the American people know very little about it.

Like many wars throughout history, this one is
starting small. Troop numbers remain low, and intelligence
operations are housed mainly in small airbases constructed
in the past seven years.

They emphasize spy missions: Many involve aircraft
disguised as private planes, and are equipped with full-motion
sensors that track infrared heat patterns, record video
and pick up radio and cellphone signals. At least 12 such
bases have been built since 2007.

Things have been quiet thus far, but the U.S. has a troubled
history of conducting proxy wars throughout Africa.
Since 9/11 alone, American covert operations have contributed
to violence and destabilization in Mali, the Central African
Republic and Libya, among others. Without the level of
pomp and troop involvement as the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan, U.S. forces can now subtly influence Africa’s
political landscape as they see fit, while evading public scrutiny.

This should worry us. Despite their operations’ relative
tameness nowadays – if launching drone strikes and
fighting proxy wars can be considered “tame” – U.S.
military intervention on the continent has rarely been without
negative consequences. It’s grown increasingly important to
remember this when calling for intervention in African affairs:
Whatever Band-Aid effect Americans may have now, the
long-term impact will be felt almost exclusively by the people
who actually live there.

Remaining vigilant as our troops amass in growing numbers
might be one of the few ways to avoid creating more
problems we’re ill equipped to fix. The beginning of that
process is education.

To that end, here’s a brief rundown of recent U.S. military
activities and outposts in Sub-Saharan Africa:

Burkina Faso. Base established 2007 in Ouagadougou,
launches spy planes to police and patrol the Islamic Maghreb.