Eritrea denies its troops in Somalia
Oct 29, 2006 (NAIROBI) — Eritrea has strongly denied it has deployed 2,000 troops in Somalia, claiming instead the U.S. is using its arch rival Ethiopia to carry out a war in the country.
The Red Sea nation also accused the United Nations of “pure fabrication” following the leaking of a confidential U.N. briefing note which concluded that thousands of Ethiopian and Eritrean troops are in Somalia, backing opposing sides in the struggle for supremacy in the strategic country.
A statement posted on the information ministry’s web site late Saturday said the troop claim was an attempt “to cover up the U.S. governments plans and the war it is carrying out in Somalia and the Horn of Africa in general” through the Ethiopian government.
The U.N. report, dated Oct. 26 and obtained by The Associated Press on Friday, cites diplomatic sources estimating that “between 6,000-8,000 Ethiopians” are supporting the government and that “2,000 fully equipped Eritrean troops are now inside Somalia” backing the Islamic group known as the Council of Islamic Courts.
Eritrea’s denial came on the eve of important peace talks between the Islamic Courts group that has been tightening its grip on Somalia and the transitional, internationally recognized government, which has the support of neighboring Ethiopia.
Monday’s talks, the third round to take place between the two sides and which aim to avert a disastrous war in the Horn of Africa region _ one of the World’s poorest _ will focus on sharing power. They will be held in Khartoum, Sudan, but most observers are pessimistic about the chances for an agreement and fear major fighting could follow if the talks fail.
Tension in the region is mounting with the transitional government and the Council of Islamic Courts girding for battle in recent weeks. The unresolved border war between Ethiopia and Eritrea could spillover into Somalia, where the Islamic courts have been growing in strength since seizing the capital, Mogadishu in June. They now control most of the south.
Ethiopia, with nearly half its 77 million people Muslim, fears a neighboring Islamic fundamentalist state.
“Both sides in the Somali conflict are reported to have major outside backers _ the government supported by Ethiopia, Uganda and Yemen; the Islamic courts receiving aid from Iran, Libya, Saudi Arabia and Gulf States,” the U.N. report added.
The top U.S. diplomat to Africa, Jendayi Frazer, on Oct. 19 accused Eritrea of using Somalia to open a second front against Ethiopia. Relations between the two sides are at a low with Frazer claiming Eritrea is shipping in weapons to the Islamic group, whom the U.S. believe are harboring al-Qaida terrorists.
Eritrea, meanwhile, believes the U.S. has failed to pressure Ethiopia into handing over territories awarded to Eritrea in an international ruling after their border war ended in 2000.
In Washington on Thursday, U.S. State Dept. spokesman Sean McCormack called on both Ethiopia and Eritrea not to further aggravate the tense situation in Somalia.
Meanwhile around 100 pro-government fighters loyal to Somalia’s Defense Minister Col. Barre “Hirale” Aden Shire surrendered their weapons Saturday to Islamic militia, Islamic officials said. The pro-government fighters had lost a series of skirmishes against Islamic militia.
(AP)