Security Watch: Africa's Instability Adds to Threats to U.S.

While the world watches with bated breath as the U.S. military expands in the Persian Gulf, many events elsewhere are going almost unnoticed. The U.S. war against al Qaeda and the looming attack on Iraq are exacerbating current instabilities and creating new ones the world over. Even without tensions created by the conflict with Iraq, hot spots in other parts of the world are bound to flare in coming months. In this second installment of a new series, STRATFOR looks at security in Africa, a continent struggling with conflicts, chaos, corruption, gun-running and drug-smuggling, and where large areas — even countries — are beyond the rule of law. It also has been the site of at least two simultaneous militant strikes against the United States.