Ethiopia rebels deny standoff with NW Somalia forces

[Thankful]

Ethiopia rebels deny standoff with Somaliland forces 14 Sep 2010 18:50:21 GMT

Source: Reuters

 

* Somaliland says rebels en route to Ethiopia

 

* Officials say fighters trained in Eritrea

 

* Men alleged to be carrying Eritrean cash

 

By Barry Malone

 

ADDIS ABABA, September 14 (Reuters) - Ethiopia's ONLF rebel group denied on Tuesday that almost 300 of its fighters were surrounded in Somaliland after landing on the breakaway region's coast following training in Eritrea.

 

The assertions were made by Somaliland's army and its police force on Tuesday. The officials also said the Ethiopian military had joined the battle. Ethiopian government spokespeople were unavailable for comment.

 

ONLF sources in Ethiopia told Reuters the reports were lies.

 

"This is untrue," a senior ONLF member said. "There are no ONLF units in Somaliland. There are no ONLF units outside the borders of Ethiopia." An ONLF-linked website also denied that ONLF fighters were in Somaliland.

 

"There is politics and Ethiopian favour-seeking motives behind the spread of this rumour," ****** Online said.

 

The ONLF wants independence for Ethiopia's mainly ethnic-Somali ****** region and has warned international oil and gas companies to stay away or face attack.

 

Firms including Petronas and the Vancouver-based Africa Oil Corporation are exploring the ****** for potential oil and gas reserves.

 

"This is the largest number of insurgents to enter the country," the commander of Somaliland's army, Nouh Ismail Tani, told Reuters. "Their destination was Ethiopia but they were using our country as a crossing point. A joint operation is going smoothly. I hope it will not take more than 3 days."

 

Somaliland officials said the men had guns and were carrying 64 rocket launchers. Some of them had Eritrean currency and documents that proved they were trained in Eritrea, police commander Elmi Roble Furre said.

 

Eritrea has long denied financing rebel groups in Ethiopia and Somalia. Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a 1998-2000 border war that killed at least 70,000 people, and relations between the two have been bitter since.

 

The United Nations sanctioned Eritrea in December, accusing it of financing Somalia's Islamist al Shabaab rebels. Eritrea denies that.

 

Ethiopian forces launched an assault against the ONLF -- who have been fighting for more than 20 years -- after a 2007 attack on an oil exploration field owned by a subsidiary of China's Sinopec Corp, Asia's biggest refinery.

 

(Additional reporting by Husein Ali Noor; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

[Thankful]

I think the truth is somewhere in the middle, no doubt that NW Somali claims that they captured some of them with one Eritrean bill and a rusty AK, is a fabrication. Or That they will finish the operation in 2 days.

 

Again I believe the ONLF, why would these guys all travel in such a large group, wouldn't it be wiser to split up? Knowing Ethiopia has planes?

[Jacaylbaro]

So there is no Awdal upraising ??

[Thankful]

We can never verify the truth! One thing for certain is the news you are spewing is definitely not accurate. That your forces are assisting, however where not capable of stoping them in water even though they knew of their arrival, or couldnt stop them until they travelled the length of your enclave to the Ethiopian border?

[PasserBy]

Thankful,

 

Next time A Osman releases a press statement accusing Pland administration of collaborating with or seeking favour from Meles, you believe him. I will hold your feet to the fire.

[AfricaOwn]

The ssdf boys are upset because we took side with the people of Gagala.

[General Duke]

^^^The SSDF does not exist and neither do the people of Galgala know tof your exixtence.

 

We are upset that you are shaming the Somali name with your incompetence and cowardice.

[Thankful]

PasseryBy,

 

Did I not say the truth is somewhere in the middle and that it is hard to verify? So I have no clue what you mean.

 

I said it already that the news NW Somalia is coming out with is obviously false, it doesn't add up.

 

From what NW Somalia is reporting is that. We did nothing to these guys the whole time they were at sea or when they landed and went through our enclave, it was only until they reached the border with Ethiopia and were engaged by their forces that we came in and helped out.

[AfricaOwn]

Originally posted by General Duke:

 

We are upset that you are shaming the Somali name with your incompetence and

cowardice.

The irony there...What happen in Sool back in October 2007? Why did Cade cry about Al Qeida? Why couldn't he just fight? Why did he promise to take back LA within a month, and still the story remains the same till today? You can't be serious..

 

ssdf boys are just too lame.

[PasserBy]

Thankful,

 

Could it be that neither one is telling the truth? Silanyo cannot possibly be seeking favour from Meles by showing his complicity in the affair. A Osman is denying the obvious because his boys are getting slaughtered.

[Thankful]

Originally posted by AfricaOwn:

quote:Originally posted by General Duke:

 

We are upset that you are shaming the Somali name with your incompetence and

cowardice.

The irony there...What happen in Sool back in October 2007? Why did Cade cry about Al Qeida? Why couldn't he just fight? Why did he promise to take back LA within a month, and still the story remains the same till today? You can't be serious..

 

ssdf boys are just too lame.

You are not making things up, Cade nor has any Puntland government officer ever said that what happened in LA back in 2007 was the work of terrorists. We all know it was Habsaade and the fact none of your presidents have visited he city is proof! It is ironic that you would laugh at that considering the fact that your government has claimed the SSC are terrorist and used Ethiopians from their side of the border to help you, (the same thing that is happening right now), it seems there is this tendency to get help from the Ethiopians whether it is the SSC a few months ago or the men who crossed through yesterday!

 

 

PasserBy

 

I thought I made it clear that both stories are shady and that the truth is somewhere in the middle.

[PasserBy]

I say the truth is no in the middle. It is somewhere else.

[AfricaOwn]

Originally posted by Thankful:

quote:Originally posted by AfricaOwn:

quote:

---

Originally posted by General Duke:

 

We are upset that you are shaming the Somali name with your incompetence and

cowardice.

The irony there...What happen in Sool back in October 2007? Why did Cade cry about Al Qeida? Why couldn't he just fight? Why did he promise to take back LA within a month, and still the story remains the same till today? You can't be serious..

 

ssdf boys are just too lame.

You are not making things up, Cade nor has any Puntland government officer ever said that what happened in LA back in 2007 was the work of terrorists.

Somebody provide this dude with the audio link from the bbc.

[AfricaOwn]

Originally posted by Thankful:

quote:Originally posted by AfricaOwn:

quote:

---

Originally posted by General Duke:

 

We are upset that you are shaming the Somali name with your incompetence and

cowardice.

The irony there...What happen in Sool back in October 2007? Why did Cade cry about Al Qeida? Why couldn't he just fight? Why did he promise to take back LA within a month, and still the story remains the same till today? You can't be serious..

 

ssdf boys are just too lame.

Ethiopians whether it is the SSC a few months ago or the men who crossed through yesterday!

 

 

As long as the aim is to crush Somaliland foes, I say anything goes.

[Burn Notice]

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Somaliland: Eritrean Trained ONLF Rebels Surrounded

HARGEISA (Somalilandpress) — Somaliland’s top generals said on Tuesday they have surrounded up to 300 rebel forces from neighboring Ethiopia who recently arrived in Somaliland from Eritrea.

Gen. Elmi Robleh Furrur, the general of Somaliland’s armed forces and police Commissioner Nouh Ismail Taani held a press conference in Hargeisa in which they showcased different types of weapons, military training manuals and large sums of cash that they said was seized from the ****** National Liberation Front. They said the group has entered the country from Northwestern shores, near the seaport towns of Zeila and Lughaya.

The two official estimated the numbers of the militia close to 250 men. General Elmi Robel Furr said that the Somaliland armed forces are surrounding the militia in Maar-maar Mountains in Awdal Region.

Although, it is not independently confirmed but the Somaliland secret and armed services believe the men are part of the Ogadan National Liberation Front. The ONLF has been engaged in brutal war against the Ethiopian government since 1984. The ONLF and the Ethiopia government have been accused of committing human right violation in the Eastern part of the country, which inhabited by Somali majority. The ONLF has been fighting to liberate Ogadan Region (Eastern part of Ethiopia) also to join the Somalia.

“A group of armed men entered Somaliland from Bulle-Adde, which is situated between the towns of Zeila and Lughaya in the North West of the country. Our information confirms that they entered the country on 10th of September. We estimated their numbers be between 250-300 men. Three large trucks were waiting for them. The group was transported in the trucks, pretending to be carrying shipments of salt. The trucks were able to pass through security checkpoints, because they were familiar to the Somaliland police in that rout in Jidh.”

Chief of Police added that:“Somaliland security services received news of abandoned artillery and ammunition found outside of Abdulqadir town near the Ethiopian borders. The army and police were able to act quickly and track the men to Maar-maar Mountains. Some of the things we recovered include 62 bazookas, chemical materials, cash (Eritrean Nakfa), communication equipments, and military training manuals in Somali and Amharic languages.”

“The militants were trying to cross into Ethiopia near the town of Abdoulqadir, however, they are surrounded in Maar-maar and Libahalaye mountains, on the western border with Ethiopia. The Ethiopia army received this information early. They were able to prevent the group from crossing into Ethiopia. We are working closely with the Ethiopian army. So the militia is now trapped between Ethiopia and Somaliland,” he revealed.

 

The General of armed forces, Gen. Elmi Robleh Furr said, “this is not the first time that Somaliland police captured individuals illegally entering Ethiopia through Somaliland. But this is the first time we have confronted this large number of militants, who are fully armed.”

The General added that Somaliland coast is long and vast, and Somaliland armed services and Navy cannot patrol it 100 percent. We have limited resources.

“In previous raids, we captured smuggled goods, gasoline, electronic and untaxed products; we have also captured weapons and illegal materials. We will continue our efforts to secure our borders, but as it now, we are under resourced.”

Somaliland army sent reinforcement to Abdulqadir town to captured the armed men. The General confirmed that all the evidences point to ONFL.

The two officials discounted public speculations that the armed men are part of local Somaliland militia from Awdal Regions. The newly elected Somaliland government is unpopular in Awdal Province. There were number of protests in the region after President Mohamed Ahmed Mohamoud ‘Silanyo’ announced his cabinet. Local leaders in the region were unhappy with the representation they received in the cabinet.

The Ethiopian and Somaliland government have close military and security cooperation. In previous incidents the Somaliland government handed over members of ONLF and Islamists activities wanted by the Ethiopian government. In 2008 Human Rights Watch accused the Ethiopian soldiers of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during a counterinsurgency campaign in its Eastern Somali region. In May of this year, the Ethiopian government entered Somaliland borders to crush SSC militia and other Islamist militia.

The SSC (Sool, Saanag and Cyan) is fighting Sin ool and Snaag Regions against the Somaliland government. They are backed by pro-Somalia elements and other militants in the region such as ONLF. Ethiopia has accused groups like the ONLF, al-Shabab and SSC to be proxy for Eritrea, the regional and historic enemy of Ethiopia.

Many analysts have accused both countries to play a proxy war in Somalia. Eritrea supports number of anti-Ethiopian militant group like ONLF and al Shabab, whereas the Ethiopian government supports the weak Transitional Federal Government in Mogadishu. Both government have openly supported opposing political sides inside Somalia. The two countries have a long history of border dispute.

Written by Abdiqani Baynah and Mohamed Gulaid