Why did Ethiopia invade Somalia around 2006?

In my view it has nothing to do with Somalia or ICU but it is a result of the 2005 election in Ethiopia. The 2005 election was the only competitive election in Ethiopia during the rule of TPLF in which the EU observers were allowed for the first time in the country. In that election the opposition did very well winning every city in Addis Ababa etc. While the counting was underway TPLF decide to stop it and used brutal repression. Protests were suppressed and civilian demonstrators were killed. In Addis Ababa alone over 200 protesters were killed by police. The EU condemned the rigging of the vote and declared the election as NOT free.

After the election the IMF, World Bank and many western countries sanctioned the Ethiopian government stoping the direct government fund etc. The Meles government lost millions of dollars/Euros and was being hammered with harsh condemnation by the west.

This is the context and the background and this when Ethiopia's PM Meles Zenaw was so desperate to get the support and aid money of the west and he saw the ICU and some radicals inside it as a blessing to march into Somalia (in reality ICU was never a serious threat to Ethiopia). In doing so he hopped to blackmail the west and force them to release the funds by making them believe that without Ethiopian troops Somalia would become a terrorist breading hotbed. Meles actually achieved his goal. The western media stopped criticising his vote rigging and brutal suppression and killing of civilians and started to release the funds. From that time on Meles used Somalia and Al Shabab as a scare tactics to blackmail the west and to force them to work with his regime which he actually succeeded. The guy was brutal but you have to admit he was also brilliant.

I remember feeling so sorry for Somalia during the 2006 invasion because it was the first time after so many years of civil war that some level of order and peace was restored and a bit of hope for Somalia was on the horizon. Then comes a brutal dictator and uses the situation to his own advantage without giving an iota of thought about the fate of the people of Somalia. That was really sad to watch. I remember almost all opposition parties in Ethiopia were against the invasion knowing very well what Meles was doing. For me it was one of the darkest parts of our history and I feel ashamed till to this day. That was a sin!
 
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Timo Jareer and proud

2nd Emir of the Akh Right Movement
In my view it has nothing to do with Somalia or ICU but it is a result of the 2005 election in Ethiopia. The 2005 election was the only competitive election in Ethiopia during the rule of TPLF in which the EU observers were allowed for the first time in the country. In that election the opposition did very well winning every city in Addis Ababa etc. While the counting was underway TPLF decide to stop it and used brutal repression. Protests were suppressed and civilian demonstrators were killed. In Addis Ababa alone over 200 protesters were killed by police. The EU condemned the rigging of the vote and declared the election as NOT free.

After the election the IMF, World Bank and many western countries sanctioned the Ethiopian government stoping the direct government fund etc. The Meles government lost millions of dollars/Euros and was being hammered with harsh condemnation by the west.

This is the context and the background and this when Ethiopia's PM Meles Zenaw was so desperate to get the support and aid money of the west and he saw the ICU and some radicals inside it as a blessing to march into Somalia (in reality ICU was never a serious threat to Ethiopia). In doing so he hopped to blackmail the west and force them to release the funds by making them believe that without Ethiopian troops Somalia would become a terrorist breading hotbed. Meles actually achieved his goal. The western media stopped criticising his vote rigging and brutal suppression and killing of civilians and started to release the funds. From that time on Meles used Somalia and Al Shabab as a scare tactics to blackmail the west and to force them to work with his regime which he actually succeeded. The guy was brutal but you have to admit he was also brilliant.

I remember feeling so sorry for Somalia during the 2006 invasion because it was the first time after so many years of civil war that some level of order and peace was restored and a bit of hope for Somalia was on the horizon. Then comes a brutal dictator and uses the situation to his own advantage without giving an iota of thought about the fate of the people of Somalia. That was really sad to watch. I remember almost all opposition parties in Ethiopia were against the invasion knowing very well what Meles was doing. For me it was one of the darkest parts of our history and I feel ashamed till to this day.
Subhanallah that's messed up. Somalis would of been in such a better state today if it wasn't for his politics. :frdfvsb:
 

Jiron

wanaag
NABADOON
VIP
ICU scared a lot of people including the bush administration. Meles Zenawi and TPLF were paid billions of dollars to invade Somalia. The defeat of ICU gave birth to Alshabaab which in return defeated the Ethiopians and won the support of the people before turning their aggression and extremism on the people. It’s really complicated but that’s just tip of the iceberg.

Alxamdulilah, Somalia has come a long way and I pray for everlasting peace for all of us, including the entire Horn of Africa :)
 

Farm

VIP
The answer to your question is obvious.

Massive terrorist stronghold in the south that needed to be quelled. ICU were a menace that was rightfully defeated.
 

Ibrahim hassan

Esteemed Excellency
The answer to your question is obvious.

Massive terrorist stronghold in the south that needed to be quelled. ICU were a menace that was rightfully defeated.
Even the xabashi didn't say this, the level of kufr and hatred to southern Somalis is very strange and disturbing.
 

Farm

VIP
Even the xabashi didn't say this, the level of kufr and hatred to southern Somalis is very strange and disturbing.

Opposing the ICU is kufr? The same people who did the first suicide attack in Somalia’s history and who sent innocent Somalis to their death?

No wonder the south is messed up with people like you living there.
 

Ibrahim hassan

Esteemed Excellency
Opposing the ICU is kufr? The same people who did the first suicide attack in Somalia’s history and who sent innocent Somalis to their death?

No wonder the south is messed up with people like you living there.
You know very well innocent Somalis are the ones who suffered to most, and the ICU are not alshabab. What you actually trying to say is that you were happy because Somalis were killed and that's a clear sign of kufr.
 

Farm

VIP
You know very well innocent Somalis are the ones who suffered to most, and the ICU are not alshabab. What you actually trying to say is that you were happy because Somalis were killed and that's a clear sign of kufr.

Seems you can’t read English and judging from your past posts you obviously have affinity with terror groups. The ICU and Al Shabab are literally the same entity, ICU’s armed wing was literally called Al Shabab, saying I want both to be defeated isn’t kafr. You takfiri dog
 

Duchess

HRH Duchess of Puntland, The Viscount of Garoowe
VIP
There was no invasion. Ethiopia was invited by the internationally recognized government of Somalia. Is Turkey invading Somalia now?
 

tyrannicalmanager

pseudo-intellectual
Seems you can’t read English and judging from your past posts you obviously have affinity with terror groups. The ICU and Al Shabab are literally the same entity, ICU’s arm wing was literally called Al Shabab, saying I want both to be defeated isn’t kafir. You takfiri dog
al-shabaab was one of the arm wing of the icu, also rampant terrorism came after the ethiopian invasion.
 

Farm

VIP
al-shabaab was one of the arm wing of the icu, also rampant terrorism came after the ethiopian invasion.

The ICU was still a terrorist entity. Look up their leadership and compare it to Al Shabab it’s virtually the same people, to deny this is ridiculous. If you supported the ICU’s war against the internationally recognized TFG, why oppose Al Shabab’s war against the FGS? It makes no sense.
 

Duchess

HRH Duchess of Puntland, The Viscount of Garoowe
VIP
The ICU was still a terrorist entity. Look up their leadership and compare it to Al Shabab it’s virtually the same people, to deny this is ridiculous. If you supported the ICU’s war against the internationally recognized TFG, why oppose Al Shabab’s war against the FGS? It makes no sense.

It’s because his clan supported or was allied with the ICU at the time.
 

Exodus

Alienist
The ICU was still a terrorist entity. Look up their leadership and compare it to Al Shabab it’s virtually the same people, to deny this is ridiculous. If you supported the ICU’s war against the internationally recognized TFG, why oppose Al Shabab’s war against the FGS? It makes no sense.
The head of the ICU was Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, who became our president later on.

The ICU, for all its faults, did restore some semblance of order to Xamar and they had the support of the public. When you bring foreign forces to your capital, people will fight back, the fact Al-Shabaab still plagues us is due to the Ethiopian invasion. The Xabashi didn't aid us from the kindness of their hearts, they have their own agenda.

There were better ways to handle the situation.
 
Abdulahi Yusuf invited them, they didn't invade.

He invited them to defeat the clans in the south and the ICU who didn't listen to his leadership. In the end, the Ethiopian Invasion actually lead to Al-Shabaab.

The irony in all of this is that the invasion had the goal of removing the ICU and Sheikh Sharif but end the end he would end up becoming the president.
 

tyrannicalmanager

pseudo-intellectual
The ICU was still a terrorist entity. Look up their leadership and compare it to Al Shabab it’s virtually the same people, to deny this is ridiculous. If you supported the ICU’s war against the internationally recognized TFG, why oppose Al Shabab’s war against the FGS? It makes no sense.
most of the original moderate leadership and not so moderate has defected to the fgs.
al-shabaab was given offer by the president Sheik sharif to quite fighting the goverment for exchange of the removal of ANISOM and sharia law to be implemented somalia, yet they refused.
 
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Duchess

HRH Duchess of Puntland, The Viscount of Garoowe
VIP
most of the original moderate leadership and not so moderate has defected to the fgs.
al-shabaab was given offer by the president Sheik sharif to quite fighting the goverment for exchange of the removal of ANISOM and sharia law to be implemented somalia, yet they refused.

You mean the same “moderate” leadership who were threatening to wage Jihad until they captured Alaska? :gucciwhat:

Once they mentioned praying Jummah in Addis Ababa it was a wrap for them. There’s nothing such a moderate terrorist.
 
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