The number of people in Somalia in need of emergency food aid is likely to rise one million from the current 2.5 million in the coming months, the United Nations warns. Mark Bowden, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for the region,… Read moreUN: Somalia crisis “worse than Darfur”
The flag of Eritrea was set on fire June 16 in Garoowe, capital of the autonomous Somali region of Puntland, in what local authorities called a protest “to condemn the Eritrean attack on Djibouti.” The autonomous government’s ministers were among… Read morePuntland protesters burn Eritrean flag
Somali newspaper Somaliland Times website reported June 15 that at least one Eritrean gunboat was sunk after being hit by a missile. All the crew are believed dead, sources said. It is not known whether the missile was fired by… Read moreFrench missile sinks Eritrean gunboat off Djibouti?
From Human Rights Watch, June 12: Ethiopia: Army Commits Executions, Torture, and Rape in Ogaden In its battle against rebels in eastern Ethiopia’s Somali Region, Ethiopia’s army has subjected civilians to executions, torture, and rape, Human Rights Watch said in… Read moreEthiopia: “crimes against humanity” in Ogaden
As the UN Security Council, Arab League and African Union urge Eritrea to halt military action against neighboring Djibouti, French officers stationed in the Horn of Africa mini-state say that France is providing Djibouti with military support—and preparing to send… Read moreEritrea at war with Djibouti; France into the breach
An estimated 100 people were killed and thousands fled their homes in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, in renewed fighting over the weekend following between Ethiopian troops and insurgents. Another 200 were wounded as the Bakara market, Somalia’s largest open-air market,… Read moreSomalia violence escalates; insurgents take war to Ethiopia
In late 2006, when Mengistu Haile Mariam was found guilty of genocide by an Ethiopian court, we noted the irony that the verdict came as charges of mass killings of ethnic minorities were mounting against the current Ethiopian regime. Mengistu… Read moreEthiopia: Mengistu sentenced to death in absentia
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said in a statement May 26 its fighters had sabotaged Shell Oil’s “major trunk pipeline” at Awoba flow station, and killed 11 soldiers in an ensuing gun battle. Sagir Musa,… Read moreNiger Delta militants hit Shell pipeline
Egyptian authorities escalated their crackdown on Darfur rebel groups maintaining offices in Cairo, expelling Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM) representative Hafiz Youcif Hamoda from the country. The move comes with increasing pressure on Sudanese migrants and refugees in Egypt. No explanation… Read moreEgypt expels Darfur rebel reps in growing crackdown
For the past three days, the disputed Sudanese territory of Abeyi has been undergoing what one local SPLA official calls a “bloodbath,” with Misseriya ethnic militiamen attacking local Ngok (Dinka) residents, and Battalion 31 of the Sudan Armed Forces shelling… Read moreSudan: “bloodbath” in Abeyi; US talks on hold
Zimbabwe’s opposition Movement for Democratic Change accused President Robert Mugabe’s government of setting up a sham investigation into electoral violence to deflect international criticism. The MDC says 43 of its members have been killed and scores forced from their homes… Read moreZimbabwe opposition: rights probe a sham
South Sudanese former SPLA rebel fighters engaged government forces May 14 in the disputed oil-rich Abyei region, leaving up to four dead and sending hundreds fleeing. Heavy exchanges of machine gun and mortar fire could be heard from a UN… Read moreSudan: SPLA ex-combatants take up arms over Abeyi
