Insurgency in Ogaden

Not to be confused with Battle of the Ogaden or Ogaden War.
Insurgency in Ogaden
Part of the conflicts in the Horn of Africa

A column of ONLF insurgents
Date11 August 1992[3] – 12 August 2018[4][5]
(26 years and 1 day)
Location
Somali Region, Ethiopia
Result Peace agreement reached
Territorial
changes		 Status quo ante bellum
Belligerents
 Ethiopia

Ogaden National Liberation Front
Supported by:
 Eritrea
(until 2018)[1]

al-Itihaad al-Islamiya[2]
(1992–97)
Commanders and leaders
Mulatu Teshome
(2018)
Girma Wolde-Giorgis
(2001–18)
Negasso Gidada
(1995–2001)
Mulatu Teshome
Abiy Ahmed
(2018)
Hailemariam Desalegn
(2012–18)
Meles Zenawi
(1995–2012)
Seare Mekonen
(2018–19)
Samora Yunis
(2001–18)
Tsadkan Gebretensae
(1994–2001)
Abdi Illey
(2010–18)

Abdirahman Mahdi
Mohamed Sirad Dolal †
Mohammed Omar Osman
Abdulahi Mohamed Sa'adi

Hassan Turki
Hassan Dahir Aweys
Gouled Hassan Dourad
Adan Ayrow
Strength
182,500 (2011)[6]

2,000–3,000

1,000
Casualties and losses
1,300 killed[7]

1,430 killed[8]

248 killed[9]

The Insurgency in Ogaden was an armed conflict that took place from 1992 to 2018. It was waged by nationalist and islamist Somali insurgent groups seeking self determination for the region, primarily the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) and Al-Itihaad Al-Islamiya (AIAI). The war in the region began in 1992, when the Ethiopian government attacked AIAI in an attempt to suppress the growth of the organization.[3] In 1994, the ONLF commenced its armed struggle and began publicly calling for an independent 'Ogadenia' state.[10]

Following the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia in late 2006, the insurgency in the Ogaden significantly escalated after a decade of low-intensity conflict. The military occupation in Somalia coincided with the large scale 2007–08 Ethiopian crackdown in Ogaden.[11][12] The Ethiopian National Defence Force (ENDF) perpetrated grave human rights abuses against the civilian population in the region, including the widespread burning of villages, extensive wartime sexual violence, and mass civilian killings. International agencies such as the Red Cross were expelled from the Somali region by the Ethiopian government.[13][14][15][16] Human Rights Watch reported the ENDF engaged in scorched earth tactics to fight the ONLF.[17] The war resulted in the creation of the Ethiopian Regional Special Forces in the mid-2000s, which soon proliferated across the country.[18]

After raging for over 25 years, the conflict ended in a peace agreement during 2018 as part of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's reforms. During October 2024, the ONLF announced announced it is reassessing the 2018 agreement, citing a lack of progress on key provisions.[19][20][21]

  1. ^ Ethiopia: Crackdown in East Punishes Civilians Archived 2008-10-18 at the Wayback Machine, Human Rights Watch, July 4, 2007.
  2. ^ "Counter-Terrorism in Somalia: Losing Hearts and Minds?" (PDF). Crisis Group Africa Report (95). 2005-07-11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-06-13. Retrieved 2007-06-26.
  3. ^ a b Abdi 2021, p. 192.
  4. ^ Ulan, Adam (2004). "Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF)". Defense & Foreign Affairs Strategic Policy. 32 (7/8): 9. ProQuest 197562444.
  5. ^ "Ethiopia's Ogaden rebels declare unilateral ceasefire - Ethiopia". ReliefWeb. 13 August 2018. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  6. ^ "Ethiopia Military Strength". Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
  7. ^ "Government of Ethiopia: Deaths". UCDP.
  8. ^ "ONLF: Deaths". UCDP.
  9. ^ "AIAI: Deaths". UCDP.
  10. ^ "IRIN Special Report on the Ogaden". The New Humanitarian. 11 May 200.
  11. ^ McGregor, Andrew (5 June 2007). "Ethiopia Faces Ethnic Fallout from Somalia Intervention". Terrorism Focus. 4 (17). Jamestown Foundation.
  12. ^ Vries, Lotje de; Englebert, Pierre; Schomerus, Mareike (2018-08-20). Secessionism in African Politics: Aspiration, Grievance, Performance, Disenchantment. Springer. p. 111. ISBN 978-3-319-90206-7.
  13. ^ Bloomfield, Steve (2007-10-16). "Ethiopia's 'own Darfur' as villagers flee government-backed violence". The Independent. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  14. ^ Porteous, Tom (2007-08-05). "Ethiopia's dirty war". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  15. ^ "Ethiopia 'bombs' Ogaden villages". BBC News. 2007-11-19. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  16. ^ McLure, Jason (2008-01-21). "Caught in Ethiopia's War". Newsweek. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  17. ^ "UN: Atrocities Fuel Worsening Crisis in Horn of Africa". Hiiraan Online. Human Rights Watch. 3 December 2007. Retrieved 2024-11-05.
  18. ^ Gardner, Tom (2024-06-20). The Abiy Project: God, Power and War in the New Ethiopia. Oxford University Press. p. 100. ISBN 978-1-911723-10-3.
  19. ^ "ONLF reassesses 2018 peace deal with Ethiopia, citing unmet promises". Hiiraan Online. 18 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  20. ^ "ONLF suspends participation in Ethiopia's National Dialogue". Hiiraan Online. 21 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-28.
  21. ^ "Ethiopian Dialogue Commission presses ONLF to rejoin peace talks". Hiiraan Online. 27 October 2024. Retrieved 2024-10-30.