Saturday, August 29, 2009
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MOGADISHU, Somalia — Witnesses say hundreds of Ethiopian troops have crossed the border and seized control of a central Somali town from Islamist insurgents.
Saturday morning's incursion into the strategically important town of Belet Weyne is the first time Ethiopian troops have seized territory in war-ravaged Somalia since leaving the country as part of a peace deal in January. The Islamist insurgency had used the presence of Ethiopian Christian troops on Somali soil as a propaganda tool to recruit fighters.
Local resident Abdinur Ahmed Maow said the Islamist forces left without a fight.
The Somali government military commander in the region denied the Ethiopians were present. General Muqtar Hassan Afrah said only Somali troops were in the town.
Source: AP, August 29, 2009