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Ethiopia Somali Groups
Somali guerrilla activity in the Ogaden and in the Haud
area east of Harer flared sporadically after Somalia gained
its independence in 1960, but the guerrilla activity
remained essentially a police concern until a border war
erupted in 1964. When he seized power in Mogadishu in 1969,
Siad Barre thwarted attempts at an understanding between
Ethiopia and Somalia. He pledged to renew efforts to
establish a "Greater Somalia" that would encompass about
one-third of Ethiopia's territory. Encouraged by the
breakdown of authority in Addis Ababa after the 1974
overthrow of Haile Selassie, Somalia provided matériel,
moral, and organizational support to insurgent movements in
the Ogaden and southern Ethiopia.
The Western Somali Liberation Front (WSLF), which operated
in the Ogaden, supported the "Greater Somalia" concept. The
Somali Abo Liberation Front (SALF) maintained links to the
WSLF. Its sphere of operations was in Bale, Sidamo, and
Arsi, where it advocated union with Somalia or the creation
of an independent state. Somalia equipped both groups with
Soviet arms; both also received aid and training from
various Arab and communist nations, including Cuba.
After the 1977-78 Ogaden War, the WSLF was routed, and its
troops flocked to camps in Somalia (see
The Somali, ch. 5).
The Somali government subsequently forbade the WSLF to use
its territory to launch attacks into Ethiopia. By 1989 the
WSLF had ceased to be an effective guerrilla organization
within Ethiopia. Siad Barre's decision to restrict the WSLF
led to the formation of a WSLF splinter group, the Ogaden
National Liberation Front (ONLF), whose headquarters were in
Kuwait. Elements of the ONLF slipped back into the Ogaden in
1988 but failed to generate a significant military
capability.
Data as of 1991
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