Ethiopia to withdraw troops from Somalia by the end of year
November 27, 2008 (ADDIS ABAB) — Ethiopia has officially informed the United Nations and African Union of the withdrawal of its troops from the neighbouring Somalia by the end of the year two years after a military intervention to back a transitional government, Voice of America reported today.
The announcement comes one week after the Ethiopian foreign minister Seyoum Mesfin publicly threatened at an IGAD meeting in Addis Ababa on November 17 to withdraw troops if the Somali political forces fail to embrace peace and end quarrel over ministerial positions.
The IGAD members also issued a statement expressing disappointment with the failure of Somalia’s transitional President Abdullahi Yusuf and Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein to end their quarrel over cabinet posts, as they had promised to do at an IGAD summit meeting in Nairobi last month.
The letter of the withdrawal had been sent to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and AU Commission Chairman Jean Ping after the announcement made at the IGAD meeting.
However the AU chief said that the Ethiopian troops would remain on the other side of the border and they would intervene whenever there is a need for that. He further reassured that they would not abandon completely Somalia.
Ping also said he hope to convince Ethiopia, currently the head of the IGAD countries, to postpone the withdrawal if the Somali politicians put an end to their internal disputes.
“This depends on the behavior of the Transitional Government of Somalia,” Ping said. We hope they will understand they are there to help the country to help them and they should stop quarreling… So we hope that this will be the case and then we can continue this operation in Somalia.”
Somalia has lacked an effective government since the 1991 ouster of President Mohamed Siad Barre touched off a bloody power struggle that has defied numerous attempts to restore stability.
Founded in 1986, IGAD has six active members: Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan and Uganda.
(ST)
Gerrie Lijam
Ethiopia to withdraw troops from Somalia by the end of year
Wow, Ethiopia is finally running away from Somalia? Did the Bush administration stopped the ransom payments to TPLF (Ethiopia), for it’s slavery-services in destabilizing the Horn of Africa, in the name of “democracy”?
What ever happened to the TPLF Prime Minister’s (Ethiopian) “promise” & bluff of digging & pulling out Eritreans out of Somali women’s dresses & mini skirts? What a bluff?
Poor Ethiopia’s TPLF, where is there to hide now?
Never bite more than you can chew & never serve your masters at the expense of your neighbors, for the fire next door always ends up burning your home & not your masters.
Congratulations Ethiopia, for admitting your own defeat in Somalia.