Feingold faults Bush policy on Somalia

WASHINGTON After returning from a trip to Africa, Senator Russ Feingold is faulting the Bush administration for what he calls a failure to develop a policy on Somalia ... but the Wisconsin Democrat is praising U-S efforts to combat AIDS on the continent.

Feingold will chair the Senate Foreign Relations African Affairs subcommittee next year.

He visited Ethiopia and Kenya, two countries that neighbour Somalia, during his weeklong trip. An Islamic militia has taken over much of Somalia, including the capital, and the country’s prime minister said this week his troops were bracing for war.

Feingold tells The Associated Press in a phone interview that the stakes are high for the U-S.

He says the militants could have an impact not just in Somalia, but in the entire region. The U-S has said the Islamic movement has links to al-Qaida, which Islamic leaders deny.

Feingold contends that the failure to have a policy in the region is a threat to the U-S people.

But the State Department says the U-S is working with all sides to prevent Somalia from becoming a safe haven for terrorists.

Associated Press