Ethiopian forces killed ONLF, OLF top leaders – statement
By Tesfa-alem Tekle
March 19, 2009 (ADDIS ABABA) — Ethiopia on Thursday said that its forces has entirely destroyed OLF (Oromo liberation Front) and ONLF (Ogaden National Liberation Front) rebels who were regrouping in the south east part of the country.
According to a statement released by the ministry of defense, Ethiopian forces in a military mission carried out during the past few days have killed and captured undisclosed number of top military leaders and fighters of the OLF and ONLF.
Among those killed includes Dr. Mohamed Serri, an ONLF leader who led the ‘terror’ attack at a Chinese-run oil venture in Ethiopia’s Somali region in 2007.
The 2007’s assault by more than 200 gunmen near the Somali border left 65 Ethiopians and nine Chinese workers dead.
Furgasa, OLF military chief in Ethiopia’s south east and central committee of OLF is also the key person among those captured. He admitted that he has been carrying out direct orders coming by phone from Dawd Ibssa, OLF’s leader in Eritrea.
During the military mission a number of weapons, satellite phones, video cassettes and documents are seized, the statement added.
Formed by Somalis, an ethnic minority in Ethiopia, the ONLF rebel group has been fighting for secession of the region, with 4 million inhabitants, since the early 1990s, it launches occasionally hit-and-run attacks on government troops.
ONLF and OLF are considered as illegal organizations by the Ethiopian which has long designated the two groups as “terrorists.”
(ST)
Mark Yoa Lual
Ethiopian forces killed ONLF, OLF top leaders – statement
Bravo Mele!
This is the fate of all so called rebel which don’t organize under specific political objective.
First of all, OLF(Oromo Liberation Front) is a sister party with EPDRF(Ethiopian People Democratic Front) in strugle against the former Ethiopian Seventeen years’ one man dictatorship(Derg)regime.
And it was because of its political unfitness the let them leave the fruit of their strugle to their parner EPDRF and rebel to their destruction.
A lesson need to be learnt from these Oromo and Somolia led rebel groups:is when divided you don’t succeed!Plus when your political ob jective is based on one tribe you lose.