1. (SBU) On Thursday January 29, 2004, Post received an
Unclassified E-MAIL from the Foreign Minister of the self

SIPDIS
proclaimed State of Somaliland, Edna Adan Ismail claiming an
unconfirmed threat to the sea ports of Djibouti and Berbera.
Ismail sent this report to Post's Executive OMS using her
internet Yahoo.com account. Ismail states the following in
her E-MAIL:

BEGIN QUOTE - There are some unconfirmed reports that there
is a plot to attack the ports of Djibouti and Berbera. The
attack is threatened from the North east Coast of Somalia.
We are keeping our eyes open and would advise that just an
extra vigilance be exercised at your end. Although we hope
that this turns out to be a false alarm. It does not do any
harm to be alert and trust that you will take the necessary
measures. With best regards, Edna Adan Ismail. END QUOTE.



2. (S/NF) RSO, CDA and COS discussed the content of the
E-MAIL and felt it prudent to share the information with Host
Nation sources to determine the validity of the threat.
Taking into consideration the information from Ismail, the
Host Nation immediately discounted the information sighting
several political reasons why the threat is unlikely. RSO
and COS concur with the Host Nation and believe that this is
not a viable threat nor does it pose any risk to Americans,
coalition partners or Western interests. That being said,
the Host Nation advised that it would take the necessary
precautions and closely monitor activity at the port.



3. (S/NF) It must be noted that there has been a rivalry
brewing between Puntland and Somaliland. Somaliland has had
increasingly good relations with the Government of Djibouti
(GODJ) while Puntland continues to criticize the GODJ for
providing arms support to Somaliland. The GODJ has strongly
denied such support. This reporting from Ismail could be
evidence that Somaliland continues to nurture hope for closer
Djibouti-US-Somaliland security cooperation.

The self proclaimed government of Somaliland has stated on
several occasions that it wishes to gain favor and support
from the USG as an active partner in the Global War on
Terrorism. Although Post believes that this sort of
reporting from Mrs. Ismail could be a sign of button pushing
it could also be a sign of a closer dialogue evolving between
the USG and Somaliland. Key Embassy and Military officers
have met with Mrs. Ismail on several occasions and she is
completely aware that the USG has a keen interest in the
region. Post expects to receive more communications from
Ismail in the future.



4. (U) POC is RSO Marc Ramos at 253-35-39-95 or
RamosMA@State.SGOV.GOV.
SMITH