A Shabaab suicide bomber attacked an Ethiopian military compound in
western Somalia today, killing an unknown number of troops. Shabaab
claimed credit for the attack.
The attack took place in the city of Beledweyne near the border of
Ethiopia. Shabaab said the suicide bomber from the "Martyrdom Brigade"
targeted "a building known as the Regional Headquarters which housed the
Ethiopian army," and claimed more than 200 Ethiopian troops and their
officers were stationed there, according to a statement provided by the
SITE Intelligence Group.
A local security official
told the BBC
that Ethiopian soldiers shot and killed the suicide bomber at the gate
of the compound. The blast was sufficiently large enough to cause most
of the building to collapse, however.
Ethiopian officials have not disclosed the number of casualties.
African countries such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, and Burundi, which
have forces in Somalia, often underreport their casualties.
Shabaab claimed that "33 Ethiopian soldiers, including 4 senior
commanders" were killed "and up to 72 injured and the number is steadily
increasing." The figures provided by Shabaab could not be confirmed,
and the terror group is known to exaggerate the results of its
operations.
Shabaab said that today's suicide attack "is part of the new strategy
adopted by the Mujahideen as a bold response to the increasingly
hostile enemies that have invaded Somalia." Shabaab withdrew from
Beledweyne weeks ago after Ethiopian forces reentered Somalia in force.
Shabaab has also withdrawn from most of the capital of Mogadishu after
African Union forces went on the offensive last summer. Shabaab has
launched suicide attacks, and conducted ambushes and assassinations in
the capital.
Today's suicide attack in Somalia is the second in the war-torn country in the past week. On Jan. 19, a suicide bomber
killed six people at a refugee camp in Mogadishu.
Shabaab, which has close ties to al Qaeda and serves as its affiliate
in East Africa, and its predecessor, the Islamic Courts Union, have
carried out more than 30 suicide attacks in Somalia since they sought to
control the country in 2006. At least two of those suicide attacks were
carried out by American citizens.
The US has been targeting senior al Qaeda and Shabaab leaders in drone strikes and special operations raids. Just last weekend,
US drones killed Bilal al Berjawi, a senior al Qaeda leader who also served as a top commander for Shabaab, in a strike near Mogadishu.
African Union forces have launched offensives against Shabaab on
three fronts over the past year, but Shabaab still holds much of central
and southern Somalia [see
map from BBC].
Ugandan and Burundian troops control of much of Mogadishu after
battling Shabaab forces starting last summer. In the fall, Kenyan troops
invaded southern Somalia, and took over some border areas. Later in
2011, Ethiopian troops entered Somalia and seized Beledweyne and the
surrounding areas.
For more information on Americans and foreigners who are fighting for Shabaab, see
LWJ report,
American Shabaab fighter and commander pictured together. For more information on Shabaab's links to al Qaeda, see
LWJ reports,
Somalia's Shabaab vows allegiance to new al Qaeda emir Zawahiri, and
Al Qaeda leaders play significant role in Shabaab.
Sources:
Somalia's al-Shabab attack Ethiopian base in Beledweyne,
BBC
Somalia: Suicide blast targets Ethiopian military base in Belet-weyn town,
Mareeg Online
Truck bomb explodes at Ethiopian base in Somalia,
AP
Washington Time
Kabul Time
London Time
