BAIDOA -- Some 4395 peacekeepers from the neighbouring country of Ethiopia have been officially integrated into the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) on Wednesday, Garowe Online reports.
| Watch out, Shaboobs, the Æthiops are after you! |
AMISOM force commanders held a welcoming ceremony for the new Ethiopian peacekeepers at a military base in Bay regional capital of Baidoa of southern Somalia after EthiopiaÂ’s government agreed to join the ongoing stabilization operations in the war-ravaged southern part of the country.
According to a press statement by Ethiopian government, two battalions were sent into Somalia to dwindle Al Shabaab threats.
Under the overall directive of the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission (SRCC) for Somalia Ambassador Mahamat Saleh Annadif and the command of Ethiopian sector commander, Ethiopian forces will operate in Bay, Bakool and Gedo regions.
Ethiopian troops moved into Beled Hawo town of Gedo region in October 2013 to resolve grudges that degenerated into deadly battles between Somali Government troops and Ahlu Sunah Wal Jamea militia.
Heavily armed Ethiopian forces in battle tanks crossed the border into southern Somalia in Dec-2006 and withdrew by Jan, 2009 but returned to Gedo, Hiran, Bay, Galgaduud and Bakool border regions in early 2012 in support of Somali government's fight on Al Qaeda linked Al Shabaab group. |