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The ONLF is a grassroots social and political movement founded in 1984 by the Somali people of Ogaden who could no longer bear the atrocities committed against them by successive Ethiopian regimes. Today, the ONLF as both an advocate for and defender of the people is dedicated to resotring the rights of Somalis in Ogaden to self-determination, peace, development and democracy
| Ethiopian Rebels Declare Cease-Fire Sunday September 2, 2007 9:31 PM By TOM MALITI Associated Press Writer NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) - Rebels in Ethiopia's volatile east declared a unilateral cease-fire Sunday so the United Nations can investigate their claims of human rights abuses by the government in the region. The Ogaden National Liberation Front rebels, ethnic Somalis who have been fighting for autonomy for more than a decade, said they will only defend themselves if attacked. ``We want to give every hand to the U.N. mission so that the Ethiopian government does not find an excuse to interfere, so that they (the U.N.) can do a thorough investigation about what's happening in the Ogaden,'' Abdulrahman Mahdi, spokesman for the ONLF, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. The rebels are fighting the government over what they say are human rights abuses in their region such as blockading humanitarian aid and targeting civilians in military operations, which the government denies. Mahdi said the cease-fire will last as long as the U.N. is in the Ogaden, which is near the Somali border. The 14-person U.N. mission arrived in the region last week. Ethiopian officials could not immediately be reached for comment. Ethiopia announced a crackdown on the rebels in June, two months after the ONLF attacked a Chinese-run oil exploration field, killing 74 people. The U.N. World Food Program said last month that government military operations are hampering the delivery of aid, but the government is not blockading shipments. Last week, aid agency Doctors Without Borders accused the government of denying it access to ``vulnerable civilians living in that area.'' Ethiopian authorities also have ordered the International Committee of the Red Cross to stop work there, accusing the group of talking to rebels operating in the area. |
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