Somalia: Govt Forces, Ethiopian Military Clash in Central Region

Photo: Shabelle
Somalia's Al-Shabaab drill in November 2008.

Belet-Weyne — At least one Somali soldier and another civilian injured after the transitional federal government forces clashed with Ethiopian military troops in Hiran region of central Somalia, reports said on Thursday.

The confrontation, which lasted a limited amount of time, sparked after Ethiopian forces took a Somali soldier into custody in Jawil district just out side of Belet-weyne town, the regional capital of Hiran.

Somali forces in the area had been outraged by the Ethiopian move and in response Somalis attacked Ethiopians in the region.

Reports from Jawil district, right now, confirm clam has returned in that place as guns fell silent.

The clash is said to be a clear sign that Ethiopian forces, which had already crossed into Somalia, are present inside Somalia soil.

Forces from Ethiopia routinely cross into southern and central Somalia because it fears Islamists whose numbers are growing, experts said.

Late in 2006, a large number of Ethiopian troops endorsing the former leader of the Somali Transitional Federal Government, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, invaded Somalia and managed to dislodge the Union of Islamic Courts that used to rule much of southern and central Somalia.

During the invasion, more than 20,000 people died and 1.5 million were displaced.

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Somali - Ethiopia Forces Clash in Central Region

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At least one Somali soldier and another civilian injured after the transitional federal government forces clashed with Ethiopian military troops in Hiran region of central Somalia, ... Read more »