U.N. Aide in Somalia Calls on U.S. to ‘Stay the Course’

UNITED NATIONS —  Jonathan Howe, the retired American admiral who heads the trouble-plagued U.N. operation in Somalia, expressed hope Thursday that the Clinton Administration will “stay the course” and continue to support his efforts to hunt down warlord Mohammed Farah Aidid.

Asked at a news conference whether American support would last if his bloody but futile raids against Aidid go on for another six months, Howe replied, “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”

The U.N. official, who plans to brief members of Congress in Washington next week, laid down a spirited defense of his operation, disparaging Aidid for relying on women and children to attack U.N. positions in Mogadishu and accusing private agencies such as the International Committee of the Red Cross of exaggerating the numbers of dead civilians.

Howe, who once served on the national security staff at the White House, said that the U.N. peacekeepers lack experience in dealing with rioting crowds and implied that the United Nations is considering new tactics in suppressing these riots.

“We can use tear gas, pepper gas, other things that are coming in, people trained in riot control,” he said. “But what we are up against is that these people use crowds as weapons.”

Howe later told reporters that up to 5,000 additional troops are needed in Mogadishu “to protect the people better.”

Asked during the news conference if it is true that Nigerian peacekeepers--the target of recent ambushes in Mogadishu as they replaced Italian troops moved out of the city by their government--were hit because they refused to emulate the Italians and bribe Aidid’s militia, Howe replied ambiguously.

“I’ve heard those allegations,” he said. “Clearly, with regard to the Italian situation, we’ve had differences. I would prefer not to get into who was doing what.”

Howe’s differences with the Italians, who have publicly disagreed with his tactics, were underscored in Rome on Thursday when Defense Minister Fabio Fabbri demanded that the United Nations rely more on politics and less on military force in Somalia.