Ethiopia deploys thousands of fresh troops in south Somalia

Somalia

MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Ethiopia’s military on Sunday deployed thousands of fresh troops in south Somalia amid simmering tensions with the new government of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Heavily armed Ethiopian troops crossed over the border into Somalia and established a military base at an airport in the border town of Dolow while another military convoy entered the nearby town of Balad-hawo.

Gedo regional officials, who are allied with former President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo and fought against Jubaland authorities, welcomed the renewed Ethiopian incursion.

Allies of Somali President describe the move as an attempt to further aggravate tensions in the region and undermine the new Somali administration.

It came weeks after Islamist militants launched attacks on border bases housing Ethiopian Liyu Police paramilitary forces. Addis Ababa has since carried out a number of air strikes, including one that resulted in the death of a woman in Bakol region.

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