Ethiopian army successfully delivers shipments to Somalia‏

The Ethiopian Defense Force and the African Union’s Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) have announced that the Ethiopian army has successfully delivered shipments of military logistics and equipment to Baidoa state of South-Western Somalia in its first ever cross-border shipment, traversing the dangerous route filled with land mines and explosives allegedly planted by Al-Shabaab.

In a joint statement, the Defense force and AMISOM issued on Wednesday, the successful convoy to deliver the military logistics to AMISOM is a landmark achievement which boosts the confidence of both the local armed forces as well as AMISOM.

According to the Defense Force, the shipment – the first of three phases – has been carried out over the weekend through the dangerous routes, particularly from Dolo Ado areas of Ethiopia crossing into the other side in Western Somalia, which had been under the control of the Islamic extremists that have been terrorizing Somalia and the entire region for longer than a decade.

In the wake of the weekend’s successful mission, Chief Commander of the AMISOM force, Lieutenant General Tigabu Yilma, along with the East Regiment Commander of the Ethiopian Armed Forces, and other senior military commanders and officers, have held a meeting to evaluate and review the mission in Baidoa.

During the meeting, the Lt. Gen. said: “In addition to being a cross-border mission, it came after the mission’s over all deployment was restructured and has been coordinated in collaboration with the Air Force which eventually delivered a successful victory.”

“The achievement has brought not only pride to Ethiopia, but also motivates and encourages the AMISOM force in general,” he said.