Somali Islamists vow holy war on Ethiopian troops

Somalia's Islamists threatened on Thursday to wage holy war on Ethiopian troops they said had crossed into the Horn of Africa nation, Reuters reported July 20, 2006:

"God willing, we will remove the Ethiopians in our country and wage a jihadi war against them," Sheikh Mukhtar Robow, a senior Islamist in charge of defence, told reporters.

Robow said around 20 Ethiopian military vehicles had crossed into Somalia at Dollow on Wednesday, adding to previous Islamist accusations that its giant neighbour was sending in soldiers.

Independent analysts believe Addis Ababa has sent several thousand troops into Somalia, and is massing many more on the border, as a deterrent to any more advances by the Islamists, who took Mogadishu from U.S.-backed warlords last month.

Ethiopia backs the interim Somali government of President Abdullahi Yusuf, based in the provincial town of Baidoa.

Ethiopia, which is the main power in the Horn of Africa region, earlier said it would "crush" any move by the Islamists to take Baidoa.