Ethiopian troops withdraw from Kismayo

KISMAYO, Somalia Mar 8 (Garowe Online) - Hundreds of Ethiopian combat troops along with their armored vehicles have left their bases across Lower Jubba region in southern Somalia, according to a Somali military official.

Col. Abdirisaq Afgaduud, commander of the Somali Army’s 1st Brigade, confirmed the withdrawal from the southern port of Kismayo but did not disclose exactly where the Ethiopian troops were heading.

Ethiopia deployed its forces to Somalia last December when the then-ruling Islamic Courts militia, in control of Mogadishu and Kismayo, threatened to attack the interim government’s headquarters at Baidoa.

Yesterday, Ethiopian military officers met privately with local leaders and intellectuals, according to a confidential source who attended the meet.

“They [Ethiopians] told us they were leaving and advised us to uphold the peace,” the source said.

Col. Afgaduud said the Ethiopian military’s phased withdrawal from the Jubba regions cannot be understood as a complete withdrawal from Somalia.

In Mogadishu, Ethiopian officers met with local clan chiefs and politicians to unveil their plan to stand down as more African Union peacekeepers arrive and assume control.

AU peacekeepers from Uganda first landed in Mogadishu on Tuesday, and have been attacked twice since by unidentified gunmen.

The Ethiopian military gradually withdrew some of the heavier military equipment over the last two months, after face-to-face combat operations ended and Islamist fighters fled to the jungle.

Source: Garowe Online