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February 26, 2012 - Ethiopian and Somali forces on Wednesday captured the strategic Somali town of Baidoa from the al-Qaeda-allied al-Shabaab militant group, according to the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Dina Mufti said “Baidoa has fallen into the hands of Transitional Federal Government and Ethiopian forces,” he said in a phone interview from Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, today.
The strategic loss to the militant group, which recently made official it's link with international terrorist organisation al-Quaeda, comes as the international community are stepping up their efforts to address Somalia's many problems.
This week the UN Security Council voted to increase the African Union force in Somalia from 12,000 to 17,731, and conference in London on Thursday aimed to addressed the multidimensional issues that have led to Somalia being described a failed state.
The latest offensive by the Ethiopian forces against al-Shabaab were launched on Tuesday but faced no confrontation from the rebels according to reports.
The campaign to force the rebels from Somalia’s third- largest city began yesterday, according to Dina.
Ethiopian forces will leave Baidoa “as soon as possible,” he said. “As soon as peace and stability is realized we will hand it over to the legitimate owners, Somalis,” he said.
Ethiopia’s military entered Somalia in December, seizing the central town of Beledweyne from al-Shabaab, government spokesman Bereket Simon said last month.
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