Meanwhile in East-Africa, Ethiopian troops enter Somalia

**Dâriûsh** · 07-21-2006, 08:25

Hundreds of Ethiopian troops in armoured vehicles have entered the central Somali town of Baidoa, home of the country's transitional government.

Residents said Ethiopian troops arrived on Thursday afternoon and set up a camp near the president's home there.

A spokesman for the transitional federal government denied that any Ethiopian soliders were in the town and maintained the claims were part of an Islamist plot to launch an attack.

"It is absolutely false," Abdirahman Nur Mohamed Dinari told AFP news agency. "Every time the Islamists want to attack, they start propagating rumours and manufacturing lies."

A top Islamic leader Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed responded to the reports saying: "We will declare jihad if the Ethiopian government refuses to withdraw their troops from Somalia."

Berhan Hailu, the Ethiopian minister of information, told Reuters in Addis Ababa on Wednesday: "We will use all means at our disposal to crush the Islamist group if they attempt to attack Baidoa, the seat of the transitional federal government."

Forces from the Supreme Council of the Islamic Courts moved to a town near Baidoa on Wednesday, causing fears of further conflict.

I bet this will rally support for ICU and Hassan Dahir Aweys.

**Bar Kochba** · 07-21-2006, 08:32

Ok im not trying to seem accusing or anything but how come most of the worlds trooubles and wars at the mimnet involve muslims?

**Dâriûsh** · 07-21-2006, 08:42

Or...

Okay, I’m not trying to seem accusing or anything, but how come most of the world's recent invasions has been into Muslim countries?

**PanzerJaeger** · 07-21-2006, 08:50

Okay, I’m not trying to seem accusing or anything, but how come most of the world's recent invasions has been into Muslim countries?

Because they cannot live peacefully in a world full of infidels?

**Fragony** · 07-21-2006, 08:57

Africa is always good for a laugh, say what you want but the place ain't boring.

**Tribesman** · 07-21-2006, 11:21

how come most of the worlds trooubles and wars at the mimnet involve muslims?
How many of the 40 current conflicts in the world involve muslims ?
How many involve Muslims fighting Muslims ?

In relation to this threads conflict , does anyone find it strange that the US is funding the very groups that it went in to disarm only a few yers ago ?
Or is that just par for the course yet again.

**Husar** · 07-21-2006, 11:48

Originally Posted by Dâriûsh

I bet this will rally support for ICU and Hassan Dahir Aweys.

The first sounds like ICQ with webcam and the second I never heard of.

I just wonder why they fight about that town. Sounds like those muslims don´t like the governemnt and the Ethiopians do, because the government seems to support the Ethiopians. But that leaves to explain why the Ethiopians moved into the city.

**Vladimir** · 07-21-2006, 13:20

I think it tends to be more the region than the religion. Besides, in that region of Africa, religion is only one of many reasons to start a war.

**Pannonian** · 07-21-2006, 13:39

Originally Posted by Husar

The first sounds like ICQ with webcam and the second I never heard of.

I just wonder why they fight about that town. Sounds like those muslims don´t like the governemnt and the Ethiopians do, because the government seems to support the Ethiopians. But that leaves to explain why the Ethiopians moved into the city.

I thought Somalia was notorious for not having a functioning government until the Islamists established some kind of order in Mogadishu and its surrounds. Given that the previous struggle in Mogadishu was the result of US-backed warlords using the War on Terrorism as an excuse to carve out their own territories, I wouldn't be surprised if this story has a similar background.