[ShabelleMedia] The commander of the Æthiopian Defense Forces, General Birhanu Jula, who gave an interview to the government TV, said that the Æthiopian military is in control of 60% of Somalia, and if they leave, the federal government cannot stay in Mogadishu.
Interesting.
He said that Æthiopian forces are the backbone of Somalia’s security, and they are also protecting al-Shabaab... Somalia's version of the Taliban, functioning as an arm of al-Qaeda...
from taking over the city of Mogadishu.
General Birhanu Jula was deployed three times in Somalia as the leader of the Æthiopian forces from 2007 to 2009, and the places he worked in were Bay, Bakol, and Galgadud regions where he stayed from 2010 to 2013.
Speaking to ENTV, Æthiopia’s national TV, he pointed out that the Somali government is dependent on its country’s army, which is present in many regions, adding that Æthiopia has shed a lot of blood, and many soldiers have died in Somalia fighting al-Shabaab.
The statement of General Birhanu Jula comes at a time of conflict and tension arising from the maritime agreement between Æthiopia and the Somaliland
...Republic of Somaliland is an unrecognised sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, recognised internationally as a de jure part of Somalia. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden with approximately 5.7 million residents as of 2021. The capital and largest city is Hargeisa. The government regards itself as the successor state to British Somaliland, which united from 1960 to 1991 with the Trust Territory of Somaliland (the former Italian Somaliland) to form the Somali Republic. Under the Siad Barre regime, Somaliadestroyed ninety percent of Hargeisa Per international law, once you're in, you gotta stay in, no matter how bad it smells....administration on January 1 of this year, and President Hassan Sheikh refused to discuss this maritime case with Abiy Ahmed, who requested a meeting several times.