Abole raid

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Abole raid
Map of Ethiopia highlighting the Somali region.
Location	Abole, Somali Region, Ethiopia
Date	April 24, 2007 6:00 am^[1] (UTC+3)
Deaths	65 Ethiopian workers 9 Chinese workers 7 Chinese workers taken hostage.
Injured	Unknown
Perpetrator(s)	Ogaden National Liberation Front

The Abole raid occurred in the early morning of April 24, 2007 when gunmen of the Ogaden National Liberation Front attacked a Chinese oil company's premises in the town of Abole, 30 km (18 miles) northwest of Degehabur, in the Somali Region of Ethiopia, causing heavy casualties. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said more than 200 unidentified gunmen attacked the field.^[2]

At least nine Chinese workers were killed during the attack. Another seven Chinese workers were kidnapped by the gunmen, who also killed 65 Ethiopian employees working for the Zhongyuan Petroleum Exploration Bureau under the China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (Sinopec); the dead included a three-year old child.^[3]^[2]^[4]^[5]

Gunmen briefly took control of the field after a 50-minute fire fight with soldiers protecting it.

1 Aftermath
2 Reaction to the attack
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Aftermath

The responsibility for the raid was claimed by the Ogaden National Liberation Front, whose spokesman said that the attack was carried out in retaliation for the policies of the Ethiopian government in the nomadic region.^[4] The ONLF had previously warned international oil companies not to sign agreements with the Ethiopian government for exploration in the Ogaden Basin.^[6]

On April 29, seven Chinese oil workers kidnapped by rebels in Ethiopia have been released and handed to the Red Cross, Red Cross officials and the rebels said. One Somali and an Ethiopian oil worker were also released, an Ogaden National Liberation Front spokesman said, adding all were in good health. [2]

[edit] Reaction to the attack

The massacre shocked the public and many are worried this might push away foreign investors from coming to the country. Most of the Ethiopians killed in the massacre were daily laborers, guards and other support staff.^[7] Some members of the Ethiopian security officials were also killed during the surprise attack. It was the largest single attack committed by ONLF.^[8]

Some Ethiopians called the attack committed in April 24, the 9/11 of Ethiopia. In addition to the ruling party, opposition parties in parliament also condemned it as a massacre. ^[9] Later, the UK State Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Lord David Triesman, denounced the indiscriminate massacre of innocent Ethiopians and Chinese who were workers of oil exploration project. ^[10] Ogadeni clan leaders living in the Somali State of Ethiopia continued to ask for the removal of all ONLF agents and criminals from the streets and borders.^[11]

According to the Somali State Security and Justice Administration Coordination Supreme Bureau, the founder and Central Committee Member of the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), Sulub Ali Abas gave himself up to the Ethiopian government in addition to another senior leader of the ONLF, Sultan Aden Yusuf Tani. He said the state government has been welcoming ONLF defectors who admit their wrongdoings and offers to them reform education so that they can lead a peaceful life in the community. The ONLF founder said the group was originally established to bring about better alternatives to the people of Somali State, but he noted that the clannish attitude of the leadership and their pursuit of personal gains have resulted in the loss of several innocent civilians and damage on properties.^[12] He stated that military camps in Eritrea are training guerrilla fighters for ONLF, Oromo Liberation Front and Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya (UIC), adding that the aim of those acts was to attack Ethiopia by proxy, and that the extremist leaders of the UIC are aimed at destabilizing the Horn of Africa.^[13] He further urged individuals and organizations that assist the Front financially and materially to end the people's suffering, and called on the Somali community at home to consolidate their unity.^[14] Some scholars continued to talk about the ONLF saying that the United States should take action to reduce the terror threat from the group. ^[15]

Shortly after the attack, the Ethiopian Army launched a military crackdown in Ogaden.