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Cabinet Approves Extension of Enduring Freedom Deployment
The German Armed Forces will continue to fight international terrorism. The German Government has decided to allow the German Armed Forces to continue participating in operation "Enduring Freedom" for another 12 months beyond November 15. Operation Enduring Freedom was launched in November 2001 in response to the September 11 attacks. The Cabinet decision is still subject to approval by the German Parliament, which is slated to decide on the matter in its November 8 session. The decision by the government extends the current mandate largely unchanged. However, deployment of the surface surveillance aircraft currently in use along the Horn of Africa will not be able to continue because the aircraft model Atlantic Breguet will be converted to the P3 Orion. The number of deployed personnel will correspondingly be reduced and the maximum limit adjusted to 2,800 soldiers (currently, 3,100). The mission significantly helps eliminate withdrawal territories for terrorists and has a stabilizing influence on the countries on the Horn of Africa. In the fight against terrorism, the German Government is applying political, development-policy, and law-enforcement instruments, in addition to military tools. Operation Enduring Freedom One day following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the United Nations Security Council condemned the act as an armed attack on the United States and as a threat to international peace. The resolution affirmed the right of individual and collective self-defense. In response, the NATO Council adopted a resolution stating that the attack on the United States falls under Article 5 of the Washington treaty. The article specifically states that an armed attack on one or several Alliance partners in Europe or North America will be viewed as an attack on all members of the Alliance. The German Parliament adopted a resolution on November 16, 2001, enabling German forces to work together with the United States and the other nations of the anti-terror coalition in the military fight against international terrorism. The German Armed Forces are participating in operation Enduring Freedom through the German navy. The missions of the deployed German units are surface surveillance and protection of sea lines of communication along the Horn of Africa. The aim is to prevent the transport of any persons or goods that might support international terrorism (e.g. weapons, ammunition, and drugs).November 7, 2005
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