Somalia’s ambassador to the United Nations has accused Ethiopian troops of illegal incursions across the countries’ shared border, blaming it for clashes with local security forces. Ethiopia has about 3,000 soldiers in Somalia as part of an African Union peacekeeping mission (ATMIS) fighting al Shabaab. It has another 5,000-7,000 in different parts of Somalia under a bilateral agreement. Over the weekend, Ethiopian soldiers entered Somalia’s Hiraan region to monitor al Shabaab threats. However, the troop withdrew the next day. Somalia does not believe the Ethiopian troop stepped on its soil in good faith and, as a result, has requested the postponement of the next ATMIS troop withdrawal from July to September. Relations soured between both countries after Ethiopia offered recognition to Somaliland, a self-declared independent region of Somalia, in exchange for the leasing of a coastline.
SOURCE: REUTERS
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