Government officials confirmed the casualties to The Reporter, but other sources say the attacks claimed more than 200 lives.

Harshin, the easternmost woreda of Jigjiga Zone, is bordered on the south by Degehabur Zone, on the west by Kebri Beyah, and on the northeast by Somaliland. Harshin is home to clans who inhabit both the Somali region and Somaliland.

Seven days ago, it turned into the scene of a bloody series of events that reportedly began with a clan-related clash over grazing lands in Yoale Kebele.

The Somali regional administration sent a team of three police officers, including Mohammed Gedi, Harshim’s security chief, to bring the clash under control, according to an official in the Somali regional government.

“The officers went to ensure stability and demarcate the border dispute,” said the official.

However, the team was ambushed upon arrival. Mohammed and another officer were killed. The third officer survived with injuries.

“Dark forces awaiting such an opportunity took the chance,” said the official.

The Reporter cross-checked the government’s information with independent sources and found that a well-armed and organized military force crossed the border with Somaliland into Harshin. The group is reportedly equipped with mortars, heavy machine guns, and even anti-air missiles.

Its members reportedly repurposed pickup trucks belonging to the woreda administration by mounting machine guns on their truck beds.

“These forces, we believe, were sent by a dark force who has been waiting for such an incident to spark conflict between Ethiopia and Somaliland,” said the official.

Regional administrators then sent members of the regional police force to Harshin, where they were met by the heavily armed group. The resulting clashes have seen at least 30 police officers killed over the last few days. Fifty-three civilians have also been killed and many others injured, according to the official.

“The Somali regional police managed to capture six members of the force. They confessed they are members of Somaliland Defense Force wearing civilian clothes and heavily armed,” said the official.

The federal government dispatched the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) to drive the attackers from Harshin following a meeting between Ethiopian and Somaliland officials in Jigjiga on December 26, 2024.

Senior military officers from both countries took part in the meeting, including the commander of the Somaliland Defense Force.

“During the discussion, Ethiopian officials clearly expressed their dismay. The Somaliland officials excused it as a clan clash but Ethiopian officials did not buy it. They see it as a clear infringement of sovereignty,” the official told The Reporter.

ENDF moved into Harshin on Friday. There were no updates by the time this edition of The Reporter went to print.

The Ethio-Somaliland border at Harshin has long been the subject of reports about arms smuggling, with guns flowing primarily into Ethiopia. Al-Shabaab is thought to be behind the supply, arming the clans in a bid to instigate clashes.

However, this specific clash is thought to have been orchestrated by other entities, according to the official.

“It could be actors within the Somaliland government; it could be Al-Shabaab; it could be Egypt,” said the official.

He referred to rumors that former Somaliland President Muse Bihi is upset he lost the recent elections because of a lack of support from Ethiopia’s Somali region.

“Al-Shabaab chiefs have been encouraging Somaliland forces to attack Ethiopia,” said the official.

The scale of the attack and the types of weapons used, however, seem to point it is something much bigger than a typical feud between clans.

“Clans do not have anything more than AKs and traditional weapons. It is clearly Somaliland forces disguised as civilians. But this force might be sent by Somaliland officials who want to create an obstacle between the newly-elected President of Somaliland and Ethiopia. It could also be entities who are upset about the Ankara Declaration,” said the official.

The official believes the move is part of a plan to trigger conflict between Somaliland, Ethiopia, and Somalia.

 

An independent Somali researcher studying regional political dynamics and keeping a close watch on developments in Harshin has arrived at a conclusion similar to Somali regional officials.

“This clash is a complicated matter,” said the scholar, who asked to remain anonymous. “Over 200 people died in a matter of days. Why did heavily armed security forces cross from Somaliland to Ethiopia weeks ago? Why did Ethiopian intelligence officers fail to track them before they caused this much damage?”

The attacks were far from the intensity and scope of typical clan feuds over grazing lands, which, according to the researcher, are common. The identities of the people involved are still a mystery to the Harshin’s communities.

The scholar sees the act as an attempt to destabilize the Somali region, which has been relatively stable for the last six years.

“There has been a lot of infighting between clans in Somalia and Somaliland. Now, it seems somebody is exporting these conflicts to Ethiopia’s Somali region. We are trying to understand why it happened,” said the researcher, who estimates the death toll could be close to 300.

“Why is the Somaliland government involved in this conflict? It is a matter of sovereignty for Ethiopia,” said the researcher, who suspects Al-Shabaab could have a hand in the attacks.

 

“The militia are well prepared and heavily armed. They are not clan members. Why did Ethiopian intelligence not intercept them?” said the scholar.

Social media platforms, including TikTok, in Hargeisa have been awash with calls for war with Ethiopia, according to the researcher.

“They are narrating it as if Ethiopia crossed the Somaliland border and attacked their forces first. This is fabricated,” said the scholar.

The Somaliland Minister of Internal Security, Abdalle Mohamed Arab, has condemned the attack in strong terms, calling it a “massacre.”

Somaliland officials blamed Ethiopia for the attack until the meeting conducted in Jigjiga on December 26.

Speaking on behalf of the Somaliland government, Arab accused the Somali regional special police force of indiscriminately targeting innocent civilians, primarily pastoralists, in an act he described as a blatant violation of human rights and governance principles.

“In addition to the massacre, the Liyu Police abducted traditional elders from Somaliland who had traveled to the area to mediate and resolve the ongoing conflicts peacefully,” Arab reportedly said.

Photos circulating on social media appear to show homes burned and looted as residents fled the area.

Source:thereporterethiopia.com/