All aid to Siad Barre's regime was halted, while arms shipments to Ethiopia were increased. [21] The Soviet Union disapproved of the invasion and ceased its support of Somalia, instead starting to support Ethiopia. ( Galaal became Minister of Public Works and Leading member of the ruling Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party), Col. Abdulrahman Aare and Col. Ali Ismail co-commanded the Degeh-Bur Front. The biggest obstacle to the Italian advance was heavy rain, swollen rivers, and thick mud. To move the advance along, tanks, flamethrowers, and artillery were brought up to within a few yards of the entrances of the caves where the harassing Ethiopians were sheltered. The Ogaden… Henceforth, Dire Dawa was never at risk of attack.[65]. [50] He and his frontline deputies faced off against their mentor and former Frunze alumnus, General Vasily Ivanovich Petrov, who was assigned by the USSR to advise the Ethiopian Army, in addition to 15,000 Cuban troops supporting Ethiopia,[52] led by General Arnaldo Ochoa. The Battle of the Ogaden was fought in 1936 in the southern front of the Second Italo-Abyssinian War. [3], On 31 March, the last Ethiopian army on the northern front was destroyed during the Battle of Maychew. [6] Anthony Mockler does not express the same opinion of Wehib Pasha's defenses. But it may have been the overcast skies more than a change of heart on Graziani's part that saved the withdrawing Ethiopians from the Italian Royal Air Force. [1] (As the scale of communist assistance became clear in November 1977, Somalia broke diplomatic relations with the USSR and expelled all Soviet citizens from the country.). The Soviet Union disapproved of the invasion and ceased its support of Somalia, instead starting to support Ethiopia. According to a Time Magazine of the period, the "Turkish General (retired)" fancied himself as "the Hero of Gallipoli" after his exploits in that campaign. [66] A column of Ethiopian and Cuban troops crossed northeast into the highlands between Jijiga and the border with Somalia, bypassing the SNA-WSLF force defending the Marda Pass. Background: As the conflict intensifies in the Ogaden desert war, the casualties are mounting on both sides. The Ogaden War (1977–1978) In 1972 oil and gas was found in the disputed Ogaden region and tensions, which had erupted into clashes in 1964 began to increase yet again. Recognizing that his position was untenable, Siad Barre ordered the SNA to retreat back into Somalia on 9 March 1978, although Rene LaFort claims that the Somalis, having foreseen the inevitable, had already withdrawn their heavy weapons. His initial gains were modest. One observer of the Ogaden War summed up the antagonists best, stating that Somali soldiers and Ethiopian pilots would make the best armed forces in Africa. Death has become an increasingly accepted fact, and in Ethiopia they are reserving graves for people who have not yet been killed. Ethiopia was saved from a major defeat and a permanent loss of territory through a massive airlift of military supplies worth $1 billion, the arrival of between 12,000–24,000 Cuban troops sent by Fidel Castro to win a second African victory (after his first success in Angola in 1975–76),[23] and 1,500 Soviet advisors, led by General Vasily Petrov. Years: 1977-1978. Barker indicates 30,000. His goal was to advance from Negele Boran, take Dolo near the border, and to then invade Italian Somaliland. A sign that order had been restored among the Derg was the announcement of Mengistu Haile Mariam as head of state on February 11, 1977. Her losses included over 6,000 killed, and about 400 Cubans and 100 South Yemenis also died. Cuban military intervention; One of the separatist groups seeking to take advantage of the chaos was the pro-Somalia Western Somali Liberation Front (WSLF) operating in the Somali-inhabited Ogaden, which by late 1975 had struck numerous government outposts. The United States adopted Somalia as a Cold War ally from the late 1970s to 1988 in exchange for use of Somali bases, and a way to exert influence upon the region. When additional pressure was applied, the "Hindenburg Wall" gave way and the remaining Ethiopian defenders began a withdrawal. The bombings were stopped only when "catastrophic" reports from Europe started to be received.[9]. Somali Ethiopian Conflict in the Ogaden 1977. [59][60], According to Ethiopian sources, the invaders numbered 70,000 troops, 40 fighter planes, 250 tanks, 350 APCs, and 600 artillery, which would have meant practically the whole Somali Army. [23] The attackers were thus able to assault from two directions in a pincer movement, allowing the re-capture of Jijiga in only two days while killing 6,000 defenders. Because of the Sino-Soviet rivalry, China supported Somalia diplomatically and with token military aid. Gebre Tareke estimates the Somalis advanced with two motorized brigades, one tank battalion and one BM battery upon the city; against them were the Ethiopian Second Militia Division, the 201 Nebelbal battalion, 781 battalion of the 78th Brigade, the 4th Mechanized Company, and a tank platoon possessing two tanks. While the army of Ras Nasibu disintegrated, it was not destroyed. Last edited on 23 December 2020, at 01:30, attacked the Italians along the whole front, Ethiopian Order of Battle Second Italo-Abyssinian War, Italian Order of Battle Second Italo-Abyssinian War, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Battle_of_the_Ogaden&oldid=995818229, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 23 December 2020, at 01:30. The attacking forces did suffer some early setbacks; Ethiopian defenders at Dire Dawa and Jijiga inflicted heavy casualties on assaulting forces. Estimated deaths Korean War 1950-1953 2,950,000 Rwanda and Burundi Civil Wars 1959-1995 1,150,000 Indochina 1960-1975 1,900,000 Ethiopian (Ogaden and Eritrean) 1962-1992 250,000 Nigerian Civil War 1966-1970 2,000,000 Bangladesh War of Independence 1971 1,500,000 On 14 April, Graziani ordered his entire army to advance towards the Ethiopian defensive lines in a three-pronged attack. The Ogaden War, also known as the Ethio-Somali War, was a Somali military offensive between July 1977 and March 1978 over the disputed Ethiopian region Ogaden starting with the Somali Democratic Republic's invasion of Ethiopia. However, against the weight of the Italian firepower, the Ethiopians could make little progress. [2], Late in the year, Ras Desta Damtew started preparations to launch an offensive with his army of approximately 40,000 men. On the northern front, the usual ratio between Ethiopian and Italian casualties was ten to one.[12]. All of these conditions led to a revolt in the army which eventually spiraled into a civil war. The victory in Ogaden was mostly because of support from the Harari populace who had aligned with the WSLF. He was released after the collapse of the Mengistu regime in 1991), Col. Abdullahi Ahmed Irro commanded SNA on the Godey Front. Unlike some of the other Ethiopian armies bombed or sprayed out of existence, Nasibu's army slipped out of the country or melted into the mountains to become the seeds for later resistance. In 1977 Ethiopia and Somalia engaged in a brief territory conflict over the Ogaden region situated between and claimed by both nations. The Ogaden War 1977-1978. The Somali army was equipped entirely by the Soviets and trained by Soviet and Cuban advisors. By May 1980, the rebels, with the assistance of a small number of SNA soldiers who continued to help the guerrilla war, controlled a substantial region of the Ogaden. The third column, commanded by General Agostini, was on the Italian left and was to immediately engage the Ethiopian right flank. The architect of the Ethiopian version was Wehib Pasha, who had been a general in the army of the Ottoman Empire, and was serving as Ras Nasibu's Chief-of-Staff for the southern front. While the Ethiopians themselves had over 5,000 casualties, the disparity was much less than was typical. [62][63] Romania under Nicolae Ceauşescu had a habit of breaking with Soviet policies and maintained good diplomatic relations with Siad Barre. According to A. J. Barker, he had "made brilliant use of the ground and exploited to the fullest the military engineering techniques of the day". In roughly ten days of fighting, the Italians suffered over 2,000 casualties. (Eventually joined the SNM late 1988), Col. Farah Handulle commanded SNA on the Warder Front. Though the Somali forces reached the city outskirts by November, they were too exhausted to take the city and eventually had to withdraw to await the Ethiopian counterattack. The greatest single victory of the SNA-WSLF was a second assault on Jijiga in mid-September (the Battle of Jijiga), in which the demoralized Ethiopian troops withdrew from the town. On 3 May, about one third of the officers on the southern front followed his example. In addition, the WSLF and SALF were significantly weakened after the Ogaden War. Ogaden War; Part of the Ethiopian–Somali conflict and the Cold War: Cuban artillerymen prepare to fire at Somali forces in the Ogaden: Date: July 13, 1977 – March 23, 1978 (8 months and 2 days) Location: Ogaden, Ethiopia. [56][57][58], The Somali National Army committed to invade the Ogaden on July 12, 1977, according to Ethiopian Ministry of National Defense documents (some other sources state July 13 or 23 July). At the first light of dawn on the following day, fighting broke out all along the line. [19] The Somali defense collapsed and every major Somali-occupied town was recaptured in the following weeks. The battle was primarily fought to the south of Harar and Jijiga. Deaths Are Put at 60,000 Since the Somali pullout, it is said, there have been 60,000 deaths in Ogaden, including 25,000 civilians and 6,000 Cuban soldiers supporting the Ethiopians. The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) (Amharic: ኦጋዴን፡ብሔራዊ፡ነፃነት፡ግንባር? [6], On 29 March 1936, in response to numerous insulting messages from Italian dictator Benito Mussolini and from Badoglio chiding him about when he would get started, Graziani sent thirty-three aircraft to Harar to drop twelve tons of bombs. [30], Following World War II, Britain retained control of both British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland as protectorates. (Later the leader of SSDF rebel group based in Ethiopia. The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali war (Somali: Dagaalkii Xoraynta Soomaali Galbeed), was a Somali military offensive between July 1977 and March 1978 over the disputed Ethiopian region of Ogaden, which began with the Somali invasion of Ethiopia. [11], By 23 April, all three columns were in place in front of the "Hindenburg Wall." Casualties among the Somalis may have totaled as many as 40,000 since the start of the war. The Somalis took a terrible beating from Cuban artillery and aerial assaults.[67]. By 17 August elements of the Somali Army had reached the outskirts of the strategic city of Dire Dawa. The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali war (Somali: Dagaalkii Xoraynta Soomaali Galbeed), was a Somali military offensive between July 1977 and March 1978 over the disputed Ethiopian region of Ogaden, which began with the Somali invasion of Ethiopia. [25] The Ethiopians and Cubans (using 300 tanks, 156 pieces of artillery, and 46 combat aircraft)[19] prevailed at Harar, Dire Dawa and Jijiga, and began to push the Somalis systematically out of the Ogaden. [59] By the end of the month 60% of the Ogaden had been taken by the SNA-WSLF force, including Gode, on the Shabelle River. [16] On 22 January 2008, a government official announced the death of former top guerrilla commander Mohamed Sirad Dolal , following an operation in the Denan woreda of the Gode zone. This conflict however held significance greater than most territorial disputes because Ethiopia was backed by the Soviet Union and Somalia was supported by the United States, thus bringing the Cold War to eastern Africa. By the end of the month 60% of the Ogaden had been taken by the SNA-WSLF force, including Gode, on the Shabelle River. [13] Ras Nasibu himself went into exile with the Emperor. His assassination was quickly followed by a military coup d'état on 21 October 1969 (the day after his funeral), in which the Somali Army seized power without encountering armed opposition—essentially a bloodless takeover. The strong defensive positions were designed by Wehib Pasha and known as the "Hindenburg Wall". Not all communist states sided with Ethiopia. [45], Alongside Barre, the Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC) that assumed power after President Sharmarke's assassination was led by Lieutenant Colonel Salaad Gabeyre Kediye and Chief of Police Jama Korshel. The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali war (Somali: Dagaalkii Xoraynta Soomaali Galbeed), was a Somali military offensive between July 1977 and March 1978 over the Ethiopian sector of Ogaden, which began with the Somali invasion of Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Air Force (EAF) also began to establish air superiority using its Northrop F-5s, despite being initially outnumbered by Somali MiG-21s. The Ogaden War was a conventional conflict between Somalia and Ethiopia in … [23], The expected Ethiopian-Cuban attack occurred in early February; however, it was accompanied by a second attack that the Somalis did not expect. (Later became Minister of Tourism. For the Barre regime, the invasion was perhaps the greatest strategic blunder since independence,[70] and it weakened the military. The Somali National Army committed to invade the Ogaden on July 12, 1977, according to Ethiopian Ministry of National Defense documents (some other sources state July 13 or 23 July). ; Somali: Jabhadda Wadaniga Xoreynta Ogaadeenya, JWXO), is a separatist rebel group fighting to make the region of Ogaden in eastern Ethiopia an independent state. Abdullahi Geelqaad commanded Dirir-Dewa. [31] Britain also granted administration of the almost exclusively Somali-inhabited[37] Northern Frontier District (NFD) to Kenyan nationalists despite an informal plebiscite demonstrating the overwhelming desire of the region's population to join the newly formed Somali Republic. (Both Officers were lLater chosen to reinforce the Harar campaign; Col Aare eventually became a military attache and retired as a private citizen after the collapse of SNA in 1990). Somali Ethiopian Conflict in the Ogaden 1977. The 29th "Peloritana" Division and the 6th "Tevere" Blackshirt Division were held in reserve. The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali war (Somali: Dagaalkii Xoraynta Soomaali Galbeed), was a Somali military offensive between July 1977 and March 1978 over the disputed Ethiopian region of Ogaden, which began with the Somali invasion of Ethiopia.The Soviet Union disapproved of the invasion and ceased its support of Somalia, instead starting to support Ethiopia. The regional balance of power now favoured Somalia. [5], Historians disagree concerning Wehib Pasha's abilities. A United Nations peacekeeping force arrived in 2002 but disbanded in 2008 despite continuing tension [ 44 ] and the border remained inaccessible and tense through 2020, even after the two countries reached a peace agreement in 2018. [31] This prompted an unsuccessful bid by Britain in 1956 to buy back the Somali lands it had turned over. In roughly ten days of fighting, the Italians suffered over 2,000 casualties. Ogaden War; Part of the Ethiopian–Somali conflict and the Cold War: Cuban artillerymen prepare to fire at Somali forces in the Ogaden: Date: July 13, 1977 – March 23, 1978 (8 months and 2 days) Location: ... Beginning of war: 25,000–47,000 soldiers in total (Retired and became a Professor of Strategy in Mogadishu Somalia), Col. Ali Hussein commanded SNA in two front's, Qabri Dahare and Harar. [36] Britain included the provision that the Somali residents would retain their autonomy, but Ethiopia immediately claimed sovereignty over the area. It was fought by separatists, the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), against the Ethiopian government. [31][32] British Somaliland remained a protectorate of Britain until 1960. The town had been declared an "open city" since 2 December 1935 and was devoid of military activity. The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali war (Somali: Dagaalkii Xoraynta Soomaali Galbeed), was a Somali military offensive between July 1977 and March 1978 over the disputed Ethiopian region of Ogaden, which began with the Somali invasion of Ethiopia. [46] The SRC subsequently renamed the country the Somali Democratic Republic,[47][48] dissolved the parliament and the Supreme Court, and suspended the constitution. In the late 1970s, Samatar was the Chief Commanding Officer of the Somali National Army during the Ogaden Campaign. Castro's plan didn't get any support and two months later Somali forces attacked the Ethiopians. ( Aftoje became a General and a military attache to France). But, according to Baer, Graziani had approximately 30,000 men. In just one day, Marshal of Italy Pietro Badoglio routed an army personally commanded by Emperor Haile Selassie I. (male, 14/03/2011), for example, insisted that the Ogaden war was much more lethal than the Eritrean war of independence, and an elderly anonymous lady (17/02/2011) could not understand the level of attention South Sudan receives, for she sees this as ‘a much younger conflict with far fewer casualties’. The Derg quickly fell into internal conflict to determine who would have primacy. [50] This was part of a broader effort to unite all of the Somali-inhabited territories in the Horn region into a Greater Somalia (Soomaaliweyn). Almost one-third of the regular SNA soldiers, three-eighths of the armored units and half of the Somali Air Force (SAF) were lost. In 1950, as a result of the Paris Peace Treaties, the United Nations granted Italy trusteeship of Italian Somaliland, but only under close supervision and on the condition—first proposed by the Somali Youth League (SYL) and other nascent Somali political organizations, such as Hizbia Digil Mirifle Somali (HDMS) and the Somali National League (SNL)—that Somalia achieve independence within ten years. When their efforts failed, the Soviets abandoned Somalia. Meanwhile, various anti-Derg as well as separatist movements began throughout the country. [13], In the end, Graziani finally reached Harar on 8 May.[14]. But it was the Ethiopians on the southern front, hoping to relieve the pressure on their fortified line of defense, who attacked the Italians along the whole front. Despite considerable evidence to the contrary, Barre strongly denied this, saying SNA "volunteers" were being allowed to help the WSLF. By November, after additional modest gains and a brief period of Italian inactivity, the initiative on the southern front went over to the Ethiopians. Published prior to 2013 | Updated: 2016-04-08 00:19:19. This plan was not only ill-conceived and overly ambitious, it was the subject of talk at every market place. But, according to Baer, Nasibu had approximately 28,000 men. The 3rd and 4th Ethiopian Infantry Divisions that suffered the brunt of the Somali invasion had practically ceased to exist. [53] General Samatar was assisted in the offensive by several field commanders, most of whom were also Frunze graduates:[54], General Yussuf Salhan commanded SNA on the Jijiga Front assisted by Col. A. Naji, capturing the area on August 30, 1977. Harbi was killed in a plane crash two years later. Ethiopia closed the U.S. military mission and the communications centre in April 1977. Cuba, supported by troops from the USSR and South Yemen, sided with Ethiopia. The first day passed uneventfully. Soviet General Vasily Petrov had to report back to Moscow the "sorry state" of the Ethiopian Army. In addition, he had the garrisons of Jijiga and Harar. A second armed clash in 1988 was resolved when the two countries agreed to withdraw their militaries from the border. They thus secretly approached Mengistu with offers of aid that he accepted. [8], Graziani deployed an army of 38,000 men, which included 15,600 Italians. When the Cubans and the Soviets learned of the Somali plans to annex the Ogaden, Castro flew to Aden in March 1977 where he suggested an Ethiopian-Somali-Yemeni Socialist Federation. Even so, the fighting was fierce and surged back and forth. [51], A distinguished graduate of the Soviet Frunze Military Academy, Samantar oversaw Somalia's military strategy. [1], Italian success came at the cost of heavy casualties. While the Ethiopians themselves had over 5,000 casualties, the disparity was much less than was typical. On 20 July 1961, through a popular referendum, the people of Somalia ratified a new constitution that had been first drafted the previous year. The second column, commanded by General Luigi Frusci, was to move forward to the pivotal point of the "Hindenburg Wall." He had decided to fight a "colonial war" with primarily colonial troops. Result: Ethiopian victory. Also, since the Ethiopian army was a client of U.S weapons, hasty acclimatization to the new Warsaw Pact bloc weaponry took place. Graziani's only resistance on his march to Jijiga and Harar was the never ending rain. After British Somalia and Italian Somalia gained independence from the UK in 1960 as the unified state of Somalia, the leadership aspired to create a Greater Somalia which incorporated surrounding territories populated by Somali. [29] The Soviet Union disapproved of the invasion and ceased its support of Somalia, instead starting to support Ethiopia. [41] On 1 July 1960, the two territories united to form the Somali Republic. Following the withdrawal of the SNA, the WSLF continued their insurgency. Degehabur fell on 30 April and Nasibu withdrew to Harar. His one aim—to reach Harar before Badoglio's March of the Iron Will reached Addis Ababa—was the victim of a sea of mud that slowed all progress to a crawl. He describes them as "half-prepared trenches and gun-sites," manned by two battalions of the Imperial Bodyguard who had fled before the Italians six months before. On 3 October 1935, General Rodolfo Graziani advanced into Ethiopia from Italian Somaliland. Col Ahmed was arrested by Ethiopia's Mengistu. [42][43] A government was formed by Abdullahi Issa and other members of the trusteeship and protectorate governments, with Haji Bashir Ismail Yusuf as President of the Somali National Assembly, Aden Abdullah Osman Daar as President of the Somali Republic and Abdirashid Ali Shermarke as Prime Minister (later to become President from 1967–1969). [33][34], In 1948, under pressure from their World War II allies and to the dismay of the Somalis,[35] the British returned the Haud (an important Somali grazing area that was presumably 'protected' by British treaties with the Somalis in 1884 and 1886) and the Ogaden to Ethiopia, based on a treaty they signed in 1897 in which the British, French and Italians agreed upon the territorial boundaries of Ethiopia with the Ethiopian Emperor Menelik in exchange for his help against raids by hostile clans. The Ogaden National Liberation Front (abbreviated ONLF, Somali: Jabhadda Wadaniga Xoreynta Ogaadeenya; Arabic: الجبهة الوطنية لتحرير أوغادين‎) is a separatist rebel group fighting for the right to self-determination for Somalis in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. The Somalis tallied their losses. By September Ethiopia was forced to admit that it controlled only about 10% of the Ogaden and that the Ethiopian defenders had been pushed back into the non-Somali areas of Harerge, Bale, and Sidamo. The weakness of the Barre administration led it to effectively abandon the dream of a unified Greater Somalia. [55] From 1976 to 1977, Somalia supplied arms and other aid to the WSLF. The war began in 1994, when the ONLF attempted to recreate Greater Somalia by unifying Ethiopia's Somali Region with Somalia.It ended in a peace agreement as part of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's reforms. 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Infantry Divisions that suffered the brunt of the Somali area to fight alongside the WSLF by General Frusci... Ethiopia and Somalia engaged in a three-pronged attack. [ 9 ] of aid that he.! British Somaliland remained a protectorate of Britain until 1960 on 15 March 1978, marking a period turmoil!, in April 1936, Ras Nasibu had approximately 28,000 men facing Graziani 1977! Major Somali-occupied town was recaptured in the southern Command and later commanded the army of men... [ 8 ], the Italians suffered over 2,000 casualties efforts failed, the disparity was less... In 1977 Ethiopia and Somalia engaged in a brief territory conflict over the Ogaden Campaign to. Perhaps the greatest strategic blunder since independence, [ 70 ] and it weakened the military ]! Afterwards became the head of the Sino-Soviet rivalry, China supported Somalia and... And SALF were significantly weakened after the collapse of the SNA, the Emperor left Addis to. 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