Ethiopian forces return to Somalia
Witnesses report Ethiopian troops in dozens of armoured vehicles set up roadblocks in Kalabeyrka.
MOGADISHU - Ethiopian forces, who pulled out of Somalia in January, on Tuesday crossed into their war-torn neighbour, witnesses said.
Troops in dozens of armoured vehicles set up roadblocks in Kalabeyrka, near Beledweyne, a town some 300 kilometres (186 miles) north of the capital Mogadishu, they said.
"Ethiopian forces have been checking vehicles in the Kalabeyrka area. They were asking people where they came from but they were not arresting anybody," said Abdurahman Afey, a truck driver.
Another witness, Mohamed Sheikh Abdi said: "I have seen Ethiopian forces manning checkpoints in Kalabeyrka. They were many and there were also armoured vehicles including big trucks mounted with anti-aircraft weapons."
Fierce clashes between insurgents and government troops erupted earlier this month and in two days this week the rebels have seized two key towns north of Mogadishu, sparking fears they would advance to Beledweyne.
The rebel onslaught has been led by the Shebab and Hezb al-Islam, a political group loyal to senior opposition leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys.
On Monday, Ethiopian Communications Minister Bereket Simon ruled out re-deploying to Somalia.
"We are not contemplating going back there for the moment," he said. "For the moment there is no immediate danger to Ethiopia."
Insurgents now control much of southern and central Somalia, with forces loyal to the internationally recognised government pushed back to a few remaining pockets in Mogadishu and close to the Ethiopian border.
The Ethiopian army invaded Somalia in late 2006 to rescue Somalia's embattled transitional government and oust the Islamic Courts Union (ICU), which controlled of much of the country's central and southern regions.
The ICU had ruled much of Somalia with relative peace and prosperity until the Ethiopian involvement.
Since then, ICU fighters have waged a deadly insurgency against the Ethiopian and the transitional government forces.
But Ethiopian troops’ retaliations have caused many casualties among Somali civilians.
Since the Ethiopian invasion, about one million Somalis have fled their homes. An estimated 6,500 civilians have been killed.
Aid workers estimate 2.6 million Somalis need assistance. That number is expected to reach 3.5 million by the end of the year if the humanitarian situation does not improve, according to the UN.
In May 2008, Amnesty International accused the Ethiopian troops in Somalia of increasingly resorting to throat-slitting executions, highlighting an "increasing incidence" of gruesome methods by Ethiopian forces that include rape and torture.
Since the ousting of the ICU, Somalia had plunged into unprecedented chaos, where warlords and pirates have returned to the scene.
Somalia is still struggling for stability since the Ethiopian withdrawal.
maxaad xoorayseen shabaabow
