Somalia: ICU says scores of Ethiopian soldiers killed in the fighting

Mohamed Abdi Farah
Despite Diplomatic Efforts, Fighting Between Somalia And Ethiopia ContinuesDecember 21, 2006 4:29 p.m. EST
Julie Farby - All Headline News Staff Writer
Mogadishu, Somalia (AHN)-Despite Western diplomatic efforts to quell the escalating violence, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, the leader of the Union of Islamic Courts, which controls Mogadishu and much of Southern Somalia, says the Islamists are at war with neighboring Ethiopia.
The Islamists have accused Ethiopia of sending troops and funds to help prop up the fledgling interim Somalia government. On the other side of the dispute, Ethiopia's neighboring rival, Eritrea, is believed to be providing arms and troops to the Islamists. However, both countries deny the charges.
While, internationally recognized, the roughly two-year-old interim government has had little success controlling the Islamists, who seized Mogadishu in June and have quickly consolidated their power throughout the country.
Although both the Islamists and Somalia's interim government agreed to a ceasefire and unconditional talks after meetings in Baidoa with EU envoy Louis Michael, fighting on the ground has continued virtually unabated.
SomaliNet