NEWS RELEASE

Friday, August 13, 1999

EXTREMIST INCURSIONS THWARTED

Since May 26,1999 there have been a series of attempted incursions into Ethiopia by OLF, Al-Ithad, and other extremist groups. All these efforts to infiltrate Ethiopia have come from Somalia and have been masterminded by the Eritrean Peoples Liberation Front (EPLF) who has taken advantage of Somalia’s statelessness.

The EPLF has been playing a major role in arming, training and conducting the operations of these extremist groups in a two fold attempt to open up another war front and to try and jeopardise the stability of Ethiopia. The breakdown of these attempts, successfully thwarted by the Ethiopian Defense Forces with support from the people, is given below.

August 10,

Ethiopian defence forces dealt decisively with the 410 members of the armed Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) who attempted to infiltrate into the south of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian forces killed 328 members of the OLF and captured 38.

August 2

In an attempted incursion into Ethiopia by 108 armed members of Al-Ithad, 83 were killed and 4 were captured.

July 17

OLF again attempted to infiltrate in to Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Defense Forces captured 190 and killed 60, whilst the others retreated.

May 28

The Ethiopian Defense Forces killed 265 and captured 55 members of OLF and Al-Ithad at a border base used for training and supported by EPLF and Aideed. Others at the base retreated.

May 26

Of the 80 extremists from a group known as the United Oromo Peoples Liberation Organisation (UOPLO or "Tekutchuma") hastily assembled by the EPLF, 10 were killed and 70 were captured.

Since the outbreak of these armed incursions began in May 1999, a total of 1,103 members of these groups have been rendered inactive with 746 killed and 357 captured. The efforts of these unpatriotic groups who betray the nation and jump to the strings of the EPLF have been met with decisive action from the Ethiopian Defence Forces.