Ras Kamboni
| Ras Kamboni | |
|---|---|
 Ras Kamboni
|
|
| Coordinates: 1°38′S 41°35′E / 1.633°S 41.583°E | |
| Country |
 Somalia
|
| Region | Jubbada Hoose |
| District | Badhaadhe District |
| Time zone | East Africa Time (UTC+3) |
Ras Kamboni (Somali: Raas kambooni) is a town in the Badhaadhe district of Lower Juba region, Somalia, which lies on a peninsula near the border with Kenya. The town is located 274 kilometers south of Kismayo. American officials have said that it has served as a training camp for extremists with connections to Al-Qaeda; al-Sharq al-Awsat reported in May 1999 that al-Qaeda was installing sophisticated communications equipment in the camp.
US security concerns in the Horn of Africa, particularly at Ras Kamboni, heightened after the attacks on 9/11. On December 16, 2001, Paul Wolfowitz said the US was meeting with various Somali and Ethiopian contacts to "observe, survey possible escape routes, possible sanctuaries" for Al Qaeda operatives. On March 2, 2002 a briefing was held in the Pentagon discussing the possible use of Ras Kamboni by Islamic terrorist groups, including al-Ittihaad al-Islamiya (AIAI) and Al Qaeda. In December 2002, the US established the Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) to monitor developments in the region and to train local militaries on counterterrorism.
American officials believe that several terrorist attacks were orchestrated from Ras Kamboni, including the 1998 United States embassy bombings and the 2002 Mombasa hotel bombing.
In the 2006 war in Somalia, Islamic Courts Union fighters fled Ethiopian troops to Ras Kamboni, to make a last stand on the country's southernmost tip.
...
Wikipedia