[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16001]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      ISLAMIST PRESENCE IN SOMALIA

  (Mr. ROYCE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, recently the subcommittee on international 
terrorism and nonproliferation that I chair held a hearing on the 
growing Islamist terrorist threat in Somalia. The country's unsecured 
borders and proximity to the Arabian Peninsula provide a potential 
transit point and safe haven for terrorists there. Especially worrying 
is the powerful presence of the Union of Islamic Courts, which took 
over Mogadishu last month.
  This group is headed by a known associate of al Qaeda and aims to 
introduce Sharia law throughout Somalia. Mr. Speaker, we are living in 
an age in which threats in faraway places can hit us at home.
  The events unfolding in Somalia mark a critical point in our struggle 
against Islamist terrorism. Afghanistan is the lesson. I remember those 
on Afghanistan that said that the Taliban offered stability in that 
country because the country was deeply divided.
  I remember testifying that the Taliban and their support for terror 
training could lead to more World Trade Center-style attacks on 
America. That was 11 years ago. Now Somalia demands our focused 
attention.

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