In 1913 the grandson of the Ethiopian emperor Menelik through his eldest daughter, Lij Yasu, became his succesor. But Lij Yasu wasn't an ordinary heir as his father was a once oromo muslim king who after defeat converted to Christianity and became an abyssinan general.
In his reign he was very supportive of Muslims and wanted to allly himself with the somalis like Sayid Mohammed Abdullah hassan, who he funded with arms and supplies. He even declared his intentions of marrying his daughter to the son of the Sayid for an alliance with which to defeat the colonial powers and supposedly create a muslim empire in the horn.
All these actions terrified the shewa amhara elite and the colonial powers. The allied powers (Italy, Britain, france) began to pressure him to stop his "pro-muslim" policy and the arming of somalis but it was to no avail
The amhara elites began to believe he was a second ahmed gurey out to destroy the amhara christian empire and replace it with a muslim oromo-somali alliance. When Lij Yasu was in Harar and began building a somali army, they had enough and with help of the colonial powers staged a coup, declared him to be an apostate and secret muslim and sent an army against him to Harar
The Christian soldiers of Lij Yasu deserted him not wanting to fight on the side of muslims which led to him fleeing Harar and leaving his somali allies alone in charge. Harar was then conquered by the Ethiopian coup plotters who arrested the leaders and then began to massacre every other somali they found
The British colonial officers in the region supported the massacre of the somalis
After this massacre the Ethiopians were still not able to control any somali lands outside of Harar. Many armies they sent in to the Ogaden region were defeated by somali clans there ( many still supporting Lij Yasu) and they were in fear of losing Harar itself to the somalis.
Source: British Policy in ethiopia 1909-17 by Andrew Caplan
In his reign he was very supportive of Muslims and wanted to allly himself with the somalis like Sayid Mohammed Abdullah hassan, who he funded with arms and supplies. He even declared his intentions of marrying his daughter to the son of the Sayid for an alliance with which to defeat the colonial powers and supposedly create a muslim empire in the horn.
All these actions terrified the shewa amhara elite and the colonial powers. The allied powers (Italy, Britain, france) began to pressure him to stop his "pro-muslim" policy and the arming of somalis but it was to no avail
The amhara elites began to believe he was a second ahmed gurey out to destroy the amhara christian empire and replace it with a muslim oromo-somali alliance. When Lij Yasu was in Harar and began building a somali army, they had enough and with help of the colonial powers staged a coup, declared him to be an apostate and secret muslim and sent an army against him to Harar
The Christian soldiers of Lij Yasu deserted him not wanting to fight on the side of muslims which led to him fleeing Harar and leaving his somali allies alone in charge. Harar was then conquered by the Ethiopian coup plotters who arrested the leaders and then began to massacre every other somali they found
The British colonial officers in the region supported the massacre of the somalis
After this massacre the Ethiopians were still not able to control any somali lands outside of Harar. Many armies they sent in to the Ogaden region were defeated by somali clans there ( many still supporting Lij Yasu) and they were in fear of losing Harar itself to the somalis.
Source: British Policy in ethiopia 1909-17 by Andrew Caplan
