War on Peace: The End of Diplomacy and the Decline of American Influence

by Ronan Farrow

  216 most powerful in the region: “Ethiopia has the most powerful military in the region, trained by American advisors and funded by American aid.” Jeffrey Gettleman, “Ethiopian Warplanes Attack Somalia.” New York Times, 25 December 2006, www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/world/africa/24cnd-somalia.html.

  216 “Given the chaos”: Author interview with General Michael Hayden, in person at his offices in Washington, DC, 17 May 2017.

  216 “dismantling of the Islamic Union”: Author interview with Simiyu Werunga, conducted in Nairobi, 14 December 2013.

  216 in secret Ethiopian prisons: Mitchell, Anthony. “U.S. Agents Visit Ethiopian Secret Jails.” Washington Post, 3 April 2007, www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/03/AR2007040301042_pf.html.

  217 human rights abuses: Gettleman, Jeffrey. “Ethiopian Warplanes Attack Somalia.” New York Times, 25 December 2006, www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/world/africa/24cnd-somalia.html.

  217 “Any Ethiopian action”: Memorandum from Azouz Ennifar, Deputy Special Representative for mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea, “Meeting with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs,” 26 June 2006, released by WikiLeaks, http://wikileaks.org/wiki/US_encouraged_Ethiopian_invasion_of_Somalia:_UN_meeting_memo_with_Jenday_Frazer,_Secretary_of_State_for_African_Affairs,_2006.

  217 advisers and trainers: Jelinek, Pauline. “U.S. Special Forces in Somalia.” Associated Press, 10 January 2007, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR2007011000438.html.

  217 own aircraft: Vries, Lloyd. “U.S. Strikes in Somalia Reportedly Kill 31.” CBS/AP, 8 January 2007, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-strikes-in-somalia-reportedly-kill-31/.

  217 “and we’ll provide”: Author interview with senior defense official, 2 March 2017.

  217 “The Somalia job was fantastic”: Classified memorandum, January 7, 2007, released by WikiLeaks, http://wikileaks.org/cable/2007/01/07ABUDHABI145.html.

  217 Protests against the newly installed Ethiopian forces: Scahill, Jeremy. Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield. New York: Nation Books, 2013, p. 208. Kindle.

  218 “a legitimate jihad”: Author interview with Matthew Bryden, 11 January 2014.

  218 “invasion was quite helpful”: Author interview with Jendayi Frazer, 12 January 2014.

  218 tended to be hard-liners: Author interview with Matthew Bryden, 11 January 2014.

  218 “defile” Somalia: Remarks by Ahmed Iman Ali, available at http://www.metacafe.com/watch/7950113/al_kataib_media_lecture_by_ahmad_iman_ali_h.

  218 fortified its support: “Al Qaeda saw Somalia as an ideal front line for jihad and began increasing its support for al Shabaab.” Scahill, Jeremy. Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield. New York: Nation Books, 2013, p. 223. Kindle.

  218 Recruitment rates: “Ironically, the rise of Al-Shabaab was aided by the policy mistakes of the international community. Perhaps the best known factor was the Ethiopian occupation, which created a fertile environment for recruitment.” Hansen, Stig Jarle. Al Shabaab in Somalia: The History and Ideology of a Militant Islamist Group, 2005–2012. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013, p. 49. Kindle.

  218 “period of greatest growth”: Author interview with Matthew Bryden, 11 January 2014.

  218 terrorist organization: Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism, Designation of al-Shabaab as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, 26 February 2008, http://www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/other/des/102446.htm.

  218 global jihad: “Al Qaeda’s Morale Boost As It Formally Joins With Somalia’s Al Shabaab,” Telegraph (UK), 10 February 2012, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/al-qaeda/9074047/Al-Qaedas-morale-boost-as-it-formally-joins-with-Somalias-al-Shabaab.html.

  219 “created the space”: Author interview with Jendayi Frazer, 12 January 2014.

  219 recalled Frazer: Third parties have also reported that Ethiopia’s presence in AMISOM was excluded “in the hope of preventing anti-Ethiopian nationalistic recruitment to Al-Shabaab.” Hansen, Stig Jarle. Al Shabaab in Somalia: The History and Ideology of a Militant Islamist Group, 2005–2012. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013, p. 117. Kindle.

  219 dispatched Marines: Edwards, Jocelyn. “U.S. Steps Up Training for African Force in Somalia.” Chicago Tribune, 1 May 2012, http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-05-01/news/sns-rt-us-somalia-uganda-usabre84011e-20120501_1_shabaab-somalia-siad-barre.

  219 private contractors: “Several private military corporations, most notably Bancroft, were involved in the build up and had advisers in the front line.” Hansen, Stig Jarle. Al Shabaab in Somalia: The History and Ideology of a Militant Islamist Group, 2005–2012. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013, p. 118. Kindle.

  219 number of children: Nichols, Michelle. “Somalia Cases of Killing, Maiming, Abuse of Children Halved: UN,” Reuters, 3 June 2013, http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/03/us-somalia-un-idUSBRE95216420130603.

  219 al-Shabaab’s hands: Axe, David. “U.S. Weapons Now in Somali Terrorists’ Hands.” Wired, 2 August 2011, https://www.wired.com/2011/08/u-s-weapons-now-in-somali-terrorists-hands.

  219 “Its capabilities and tactics have become more sophisticated”: Author interview with Matthew Bryden, conducted by phone from Somaliland, 11 January 2014.

  220 more than twenty: Roggio, Bill and Weiss, Caleb. “Al-Shabaab Releases Video Showing Deadly Raid on Somali Military Base.” Business Insider, 13 November 2017, www.businessinsider.com/al-shabaab-attack-somali-military-base-video-2017-11?IR=T.

  220 fresh spate of air strikes: “U.S. Mounts Air Strike Against al Shabaab Militants in Somalia.” Reuters, 15 November 2017, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-somalia/u-s-mounts-air-strike-against-al-shabaab-militants-in-somalia-idUSKBN1DF1ZK.

  220 “Do they have the aspiration”: Author interview with Anders Folk, 25 November 2013.

  221 “looked so skinny”: Author interview with Sally and Micheal Evans, 6 October 2016, in person at their home in Wooburn Green, England.

  221 “ ‘I love you, Mom’ ”: Author interview with Sally and Micheal Evans, 6 October 2016, in person at their home in Wooburn Green, England.

  221 “It never goes away”: Author interview with Sally and Micheal Evans, 6 October 2016, in person at their home in Wooburn Green, England.

  20: THE SHORTEST SPRING

  223 been warned: “Egypt Police to Break up Sit-in Protests within 24 Hours.” Associated Press, 11 August 2013, http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/egypt-police-to-break-up-sit-in-protests-within-24-hours-1.1372985.

  223 “tried to scream”: Interview with Teo Butturini, 17 January 2014.

  223 stashed in a boot: Author interview with Teo Butturini, 18 January 2015.

  223 taking surviving protesters into custody: Interview with Teo Butturini, 17 January 2014.

  223 Egypt’s “Tiananmen Square”: The comparison has been employed by several commentators, including Amy Austin Holmes, assistant professor of sociology at the American University in Cairo who specializes in military and social mobilization issues in Egypt. See Holmes, “Why Egypt’s Military Orchestrated A Massacre.” Washington Post, 22 August 2014, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/08/22/why-egypts-military-orchestrated-a-massacre/.

  223 “excessive lethal force”: “All According to Plan: The Rab’a Massacre and Mass Killings of Protesters in Egypt.” Human Rights Watch, August 2014, http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/egypt0814web.pdf.

  224 to block exits: “The Weeks of Killing, State Violence, Communal Fighting, and Sectarian Attacks in the Summer of 2013.” Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, June 2014, eipr.org/sites/default/files/reports/pdf/weeks_of_killing_en.pdf.

  224 “had been our concern”: Author interview with Ambassador Anne Patterson, 12 May 2016.

  224 “intoxicated by power”: Khalifa, Sherif. Egypt’s Lost Spring: Causes and Consequences. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger, 2015.

  224 “We talked”: Author interview with Ambassador Anne Patterson, 12 May 2016.

  225 “made a difference”: A
uthor interview with John Kerry, 21 November 2017.

  225 “we’d said everything”: Author interview with Ambassador Anne Patterson, 12 May 2016.

  225 “any pressure”: Author interview with Hazem Beblawi, IMF offices, Washington, DC, 30 June 2017.

  226 “I have no regrets”: Author interview with Hazem Beblawi, IMF offices, Washington, DC, 30 June 2017.

  226 “a cabinet decision”: Author interview with Nabil Fahmy in New York City, 7 April 2017.

  227 “Transitions can be derailed”: “In Tunisia, Clinton Cites Promise of Arab Spring.” CBS News, 24 September 2012, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/in-tunisia-clinton-cites-promise-of-arab-spring/.

  228 Soviet sponsorship: Williams, Carol. “Amid U.S.-Egypt Chill, el-Sisi Seeks Military Assistance from Russia.” Los Angeles Times, 13 February 2014, http://articles.latimes.com/2014/feb/13/world/la-fg-wn-russia-egypt-sisi-putin-20140213.

  228 constant conflict: Moaz, Zeev. Defending the Holy Land: A Critical Analysis of Israel’s Security & Foreign Policy. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2009.

  228 with Israel: Aloni, Shlomo. Arab-Israeli Air Wars 1947–1982. Oxford: Osprey, 2001.

  228 over land: Oren, Michael. Speech to the Washington Institute, 2 July 2002, http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/the-six-day-war-and-its-enduring-legacy.

  228 reclaim the Sinai: Pace, Eric. “Anwar el-Sadat, the Daring Arab Pioneer of Peace with Israel.” New York Times, 7 October 1981, http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/1225.html.

  228 continued into the 1970s: Mørk, Hulda Kjeang. “The Jarring Mission” (master’s thesis, University of Oslo), http://www.duo.uio.no/publ/IAKH/2007/58588/HuldaxMxrkxxMasteropgavexixhistorie.pdf.

  228 peace was the way: Pace, Eric. “Anwar el-Sadat, the Daring Arab Pioneer of Peace with Israel. New York Times, 7 October 1981, http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/1225.html.

  228 president Jimmy Carter: “Walter Mondale, his Vice President, was surprised by the fact that on Carter’s first day in office he announced that peace in the Middle East was a top priority. That seemed wildly naïve. . . . Carter’s closest advisors told him that he should wait until his second term to risk any of his fragile political capital.” Wright, Lawrence. Thirteen Days in September: Carter, Begin, and Sadat at Camp David. New York: Knopf, 2004, p. 6.

  228 Egypt and Israel at Camp David: President Carter Speech on 25th Anniversary of Accords. Washington, DC, 16 September, 2003, https://www.cartercenter.org/news/documents/doc1482.html.

  229 would commit to: Interview with Laurence Wright. “ ‘13 Days In September’ Examines 1978 Camp David Accords.” NPR, 16 September 2014, https://www.npr.org/2014/09/16/348903279/-13-days-in-september-examines-1978-camp-david-conference.

  229 bankrolling Egypt: Sharp, Jeremy M. “Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations.” Congressional Research Service, 5 June 2014, www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33003.pdf.

  229 at $1.3 billion: Sharp, Jeremy M. “Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations.” Congressional Research Service, 5 June 2014, www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33003.pdf.

  229 military aid: Sharp, Jeremy M. “Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations.” Congressional Research Service, 5 June 2014, www.fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/RL33003.pdf.

  229 80 percent of Egypt’s weapons: Plumer, Brad. “The U.S. Gives Egypt $1.5 Billion a Year in Aid. Here’s What it Does.” Washington Post, 9 July 2013, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/07/09/the-u-s-gives-egypt-1-5-billion-a-year-in-aid-heres-what-it-does/.

  229 13,500 times: Thompson, Mark. “U.S. Military Aid to Egypt: An IV Drip, With Side-Effects.” Time, 19 August 2016, www.swampland.time.com/2013/08/19/u-s-military-aid-to-egypt-an-iv-drip-with-side-effects/.

  229 Revolution was spreading: “The January 25 Revolution.” In Arab Spring: A Research and Study Guide, Cornell University Library, 2010, guides.library.cornell.edu/c.php?g=31688&p=200748%20%20Id.

  229 from mass unemployment: “The January 25 Revolution.” In Arab Spring: A Research and Study Guide, Cornell University Library, 2010, guides.library.cornell.edu/c.php?g=31688&p=200748%20%20Id.

  230 proclaimed the regime “stable”: “Our assessment is that the Egyptian government is stable and is looking for ways to respond to the legitimate needs and interests of the Egyptian people.” The following day she encouraged “all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from violence”; “Clinton Calls for Calm, Restraint in Egypt.” CBS News, 26 January 2011, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/clinton-calls-for-calm-restraint-in-egypt/.

  230 “must stay in office”: Fahim, Kareem, Landler, Mark and Shadid, Anthony. “West Backs Gradual Egyptian Transition.” New York Times, 5 February 2011, www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/world/middleeast/06egypt.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0.

  230 to step down: Fahim, Kareem, Landler, Mark and Shadid, Anthony. “West Backs Gradual Egyptian Transition.” New York Times, 5 February 2011, www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/world/middleeast/06egypt.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0.

  230 little effect: “The January 25 Revolution.” In Arab Spring: A Research and Study Guide, Cornell University Library, 2010, guides.library.cornell.edu/c.php?g=31688&p=200748%20%20Id.

  230 first free elections: Childress, Sarah. “The Deep State: How Egypt’s Shadow State Won Out.” Frontline, 17 September 2013, http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/foreign-affairs-defense/egypt-in-crisis/the-deep-state-how-egypts-shadow-state-won-out/.

  230 Sam LaHood: Monteforte, Filippo. “Egypt Cracks Down on NGOs.” Newsweek, 6 February 2012, www.newsweek.com/egypt-cracks-down-ngos-65823.

  230 “really, really disruptive”: Interview with Ambassador Anne Patterson, 12 May 2016.

  230 securing the presidency: Carlstom. Greg. “Meet the Candidates: Morsi vs Shafiq.” Al-Jazeera, 24 June 2012, www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spotlight/egypt/2012/06/201261482158653237.html.

  231 “bloodsuckers”: “Morsi Called Israelis ‘Descendants of Apes and Pigs.’ ” Haaretz, 4 January 2013, https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/morsi-called-israelis-descendants-of-apes-and-pigs-in-2010-video-1.491979.

  231 harsh social policies: Black, Ian. “Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Poised to Prosper in Post-Mubarak New Era.” Guardian (Manchester), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/may/19/muslim-brotherhood-poised-prosper-egypt.

  231 faced street protests: Black, Ian. “Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood Poised to Prosper in Post-Mubarak New Era.” Guardian (Manchester), https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/may/19/muslim-brotherhood-poised-prosper-egypt.

  231 “a lot more brutal”: Interview with Ambassador Anne Patterson, 12 May 2016.

  231 at least 2,500 civilians: Hamid, Shadi. “Rethinking the U.S.-Egypt Relationship: How Repression is Undermining Egyptian Stability and What the United States Can Do.” Brookings, 3 November 2015, https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/rethinking-the-u-s-egypt-relationship-how-repression-is-undermining-egyptian-stability-and-what-the-united-states-can-do/.

  231 Egyptians were “disappeared”: Hamid, Shadi. “Rethinking the U.S.-Egypt Relationship: How Repression is Undermining Egyptian Stability and What the United States Can Do.” Brookings, 3 November 2015, https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/rethinking-the-u-s-egypt-relationship-how-repression-is-undermining-egyptian-stability-and-what-the-united-states-can-do/.

  231 “scale unprecedented”: Hamid, Shadi. “Rethinking the U.S.-Egypt Relationship: How Repression is Undermining Egyptian Stability and What the United States Can Do.” Brookings, 3 November 2015, https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/rethinking-the-u-s-egypt-relationship-how-repression-is-undermining-egyptian-stability-and-what-the-united-states-can-do/.

  232 were threatened: Hamid, Shadi. “Rethinking the U.S.-Egypt Relationship: How Repression is Undermining Egyptian Stability and What the United States Can Do.” Brookings, 3 November 2015, https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/rethinking-the-u-s-egypt-relationship-how-repression-is-undermining-egyptian-stability-and-what-the-united-states-can-do/.

  232 already died: H
amid, Shadi. “Rethinking the U.S.-Egypt Relationship: How Repression is Undermining Egyptian Stability and What the United States Can Do.” Brookings, 3 November 2015, https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/rethinking-the-u-s-egypt-relationship-how-repression-is-undermining-egyptian-stability-and-what-the-united-states-can-do/.

  232 “outside of a war zone”: Author interview with Frank Lowenstein, 5 August 2016.

  232 “recipe for radicalizing”: Author phone interview with Tony Blinken, 12 May 2016.

  232 “coup clause”: Office of Senator Patrick Leahy, Provisions Relevant to the Situation in Egypt in the FY12 State Department and Foreign Operations Appropriations Law, 3 July 2013, http://www.leahy.senate.gov/press/provisions-relevant-to-the-situation-in-egypt-in-the-fy12-state-department-and-foreign-operations-appropriations-law_.

  232 “duly elected”: Hughes, Dana and Hunter, Molly. “President Morsi Ousted: First Democratically Elected Leader Under House Arrest.” ABC News, 3 July 2013, http://abcnews.go.com/International/president-morsi-ousted-democratically-elected-leader-house-arrest/story?id=19568447.

  233 “difficult contortions”: Hudson, John. “Obama Administration Won’t Call Egypt’s Coup a Coup.” Foreign Policy, 8 July 2013, foreignpolicy.com/2013/07/08/obama-administration-wont-call-egypts-coup-a-coup.

  233 not be called a coup: Ackerman, Spencer and Black, Ian. “U.S. Trims Aid to Egypt as Part of Diplomatic ‘Recalibration.’ ” Guardian (Manchester), 9 October 2013, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/09/obama-cuts-military-aid-egypt.

  233 resumed deliveries: Broder, Jonathan. “The Winter of Egypt’s Dissent.” Newsweek, 6 January 2015, http://www.newsweek.com/2015/01/16/winter-egypts-dissent-296918.html.

  233 escalating crackdowns: After what were widely reported to be sham trials, they were sentenced to seven years in prison each. One, an Egyptian-Canadian reporter named Mohammed Fahmy, was sentenced to an additional three years for picking up a spent bullet casing after a protest.

  233 temporarily froze: Gordon, Michel R, and Landler, Mark. “In Crackdown Response, U.S. Temporarily Freezes Some Military Aid to Egypt.” New York Times, 9 October 2013, available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/10/world/middleeast/obama-military-aid-to-egypt.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0.