Ethiopian forces are accused of “illegal” entry by Somalia

On Monday, the ambassador of Somalia to the UN charged Ethiopian military with breaking the law by crossing their common border illegally and engaging in combat with local security forces.

As part of an African Union peacekeeping mission (ATMIS), at least 3,000 Ethiopian soldiers are stationed in the Horn of Africa nation, where they are engaged in combat with al Shabaab, an Islamist organization that holds significant territory in Somalia.

According to a bilateral agreement, an additional 5,000–7,000 Ethiopian soldiers are stationed in various areas.

According to multiple local elders who spoke with Reuters, a group of Ethiopian soldiers entered the Hiraan region of Somalia on Saturday to keep an eye on al Shabaab threats and left on Sunday.

A request for comment was not immediately answered by representatives for the Ethiopian army or ministry of foreign affairs.

The latest’misadventure’ by Ethiopia, according to Somalia’s U.N. envoy Abukar Dahir Osman, has caused his country to move the next pullout of ATMIS forces from July to September.

By December 31, when a new, smaller force is anticipated to replace it, ATMIS has committed to withdrawing.

With 5,000 of the approximately 18,500 troops leaving last year, the reduction is ongoing, and the government has expressed confidence in its ability to hold the line against al Shabaab. It has stated that the new force should be confined to securing major population areas and should not number more than 10,000.

The agreement by landlocked Ethiopia to lease 20 km (12 miles) of coastline from Somaliland, a region of Somalia that claims independence and has had effective autonomy since 1991 but has failed to earn international recognition, caused relations between Mogadishu and Addis Ababa to plunge earlier this year.

In exchange for being permitted to establish a naval base and commercial port in Somaliland—a move that Mogadishu has denounced as illegal—Ethiopia gave Somaliland the possibility of recognition.