Al-Shabaab invasion of Ethiopia

Common card · No. 222099

On 20 July 2022, the Islamist militant group al-Shabaab launched an invasion from Somalia into Ethiopia's Somali Region. Taking advantage of the instability created by the Tigray war, the goal of the operation was to establish a presence for the group within southern Ethiopia. The incursion began with over a thousand al-Shabaab fighters staging diversionary attacks on four Ethiopian–Somali border towns in order to allow a force of 500 to 800 fighters to penetrate the Ethiopian security zone and advance into the region. During the initial days of fighting, al-Shabaab primarily fought against the Somali Region's security forces. Further cross-border attacks continued in the following days, while the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) carried out counter-offensives in response. Al-Shabaab forces advanced 150 kilometres into the Ogaden. After two weeks of intense clashes and airstrikes, the ENDF and Somali Region security forces began to reassert control. A battalion of around 500 al...

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