German navy joins war on terror

Six ships, some carrying marines, will patrol off the Horn of Africa to protect shipping and cut off routes used by terror groups.

©Associated Press
January 3, 2002

BERLIN -- Six German navy ships joined the U.S.-led war on terrorism Wednesday, setting off to patrol seas off the Horn of Africa in Germany's largest naval deployment since World War II.

Two frigates and four support ships carrying 750 marines slipped out of the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven on a mission to protect shipping and cut off any routes used by terror groups.

The craft, along with five German speedboats expected to leave later this week on transport ships, are due to reach the Horn of Africa in about three weeks.

Germany has pledged up to 3,900 troops, including 1,800 marines, for the fight against terrorism. While none have been involved in combat missions, German planes have helped carry supplies toward Afghanistan.

While it is still unclear in which port the German ships will be based, they are patrolling an area close to Yemen, Sudan and Somalia -- three countries where the al-Qaida terrorist organization of Osama bin Laden is thought to have bases and supporters.

"Of course, the mission carries a risk. It would be irresponsible to ignore that," its commander, Vice-Admiral Lutz Feldt, said in Wilhelmshaven before the ships weighed anchor.

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has urged caution in seeking new targets in the campaign to destroy international terror groups. But in his New Year's address, he reminded Germans of the need to combat terrorism "in every place."

Schroeder promised "unlimited solidarity" to the United States after the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, which investigators think were led by a terrorist cell that went undetected in the northern German city of Hamburg.

As many as 1,200 German troops are to participate in the international security force in Afghanistan. German officers were among an 11-nation advance team that arrived in Kabul late Tuesday to assess logistics for the full-scale arrival of foreign troops expected this month.

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