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Amnesty International
misled by Al-Shabaab
Last weekend, a successful operation was undertaken in the outskirts of
Northern Mogadishu against Al-Shabaab. The terrorist group suffered
heavy losses, many of their senior commanders having been killed or wounded.
The consequences of the fighting for civilians were very minimal.
The reasons for this are obvious:
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The
fighting took place far from where civilians are concentrated. The
focus was on the hideouts of Al-Shabaab for which there had been sufficient
preparation in advance. The operation was successful beyond
expectation. In this regard, to reiterate, there was minimal civilian
causality. All those who argue to the contrary are either deliberately
peddling false information or are being misled by Al-Shabaab propaganda.
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There
was no confusion about the protagonists in this fighting which took
place on 19 and 20 April, 2008. On one side were Ethiopian troops
and the TFG security personnel. On the other side were the Al-Shabaab
terrorists. There was no clan militia involvement in the military
confrontation. That explains why there were so many losses suffered
by the terrorists. That also explains why Al-Shabaab fighters
went about committing atrocities, particularly at the Al Hidaya Mosque.
Amnesty International has a different version about what took place in
the course of the fighting. It is the wrong version which would in no
way enhance AI’s credibility. AI has accused Ethiopian defense forces
of having been responsible for various atrocities. That is regrettable
and would not be in the interest of the promotion of respect for human
rights and humanitarian laws.
The alleged killing by Ethiopian defense forces of 21 people, including
a number of religious clerics in a raid on the Al Hidaya Mosque, is entirely
wrong. Whoever is asserting this is victim of Al-Shabaab propaganda.
There was no extra-judicial execution by Ethiopian troops. The cutting
of the throats of even enemies and mutilating bodies is not in the tradition
of the Ethiopian troops. On the other hand, the Al-Shabaab terrorists
have never been ashamed of these types of atrocities.
The truth is that only one Islamic cleric was killed at the Mosque and
that was when he refused to allow Al-Shabaab fighters to take refuge there.
No religious person has been a victim of Ethiopian defense forces.
The assertion to the contrary is nothing but politically motivated and
fabricated claim which can easily be verified to be wrong by talking to
relevant sources in Mogadishu. That should not be too difficult for the
AI to do. Ethiopian and TFG forces did detain students who have been studying
in the Mosque and who had subsequently taken refuge in the basement. They
are being questioned as part of the inquiry into what actually happened
at the Mosque. A number of them have already been released.
Amnesty International has been misled by Al-Shabaab and its supporters
into accusing the innocent. Al-Shabaab terrorists have lost on the
ground during this military engagement. They should not be allowed
even in the short term to win at the propaganda front.
Ministry of Foreign
Affairs
Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
April 25, 2008, Addis Ababa
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