Ethiopian troops move in to Jigjiga following dispute with Somali regional president Abdi Iley
In a Facebook live address, the Speaker of the Somali regional Parliament Mohamed Rashid Isaq confirmed that ENDF troops have seized key installations in Jigjiga but declined to offer an official response as to why. The troop deployment in Jigjiga cancelled a planned meeting by the regional parliament.
Jigjiga residents who have spoken to HOL have
described the situation has extremely tense and have said that there is
very little traffic in the city with checkpoints set up throughout.
There have been unconfirmed reports of looting in Dhegahbur, Jarar Zone.
One resident said that he doesn't know who is in charge of the towns
security at the moment.
Regional officials remain mum on the whereabouts of Abdi Mohamoud Omar.
Relations between the
Federal Government of Ethiopia and the leaders of the Somali region
were said to have reached a flashpoint after reports emerged that
attempts to summon regional president Abdi Iley failed. There were
reports that Liyu Police moved into Jigjiga ahead of a rumoured vote by
the region’s parliament to invoke Article 39 of the Ethiopian
constitution which allows the unconditional right to self-determination
including the right to secession.
In early July, the Human
Rights Watch released a harrowing report that described Prison officials
and security forces of arbitrarily detaining and systematically
torturing prisoners for years in the notorious Jail Ogaden. Ethiopia’s
new Prime Minister denounced the widespread use of torture by state
security forces, describing it as a form of terrorism.
Ethiopian troops move in to Jigjiga following dispute with Somali regional president Abdi Iley
The Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) have moved into Jijiga, the capital of the Somali Regional State (SRS) in Ethiopia, and have strategically positioned themselves in key installations after a break down of relations between the Federal Gove