Formation In 1969 a new liberation organization began forming. The early 1970s saw the Ogaden liberation movement continue to gain momentum off the foundations of Nasrallah, though the original organization had gradually started to disintegrate. In light of this, veteran insurgents and young
intelligentsia from the Ogaden region within
Siad Barre's government lobbied for Somalia to support the resumption of the armed struggle. Following the toppling of
Halie Selassie's imperial regime by the
Derg military junta, the situation in the Ogaden deteriorated. In the same period, a severe drought gripped the Ogaden resulting in mass suffering. The Derg opted to suppress news of the situation in the region rather than provide relief, and under the junta military oppression in the region increased. As 1974 and 1975 drew on, pressure from Ogaden Somalis rapidly built on the government of Siad Barre. By 1975, the Somali government had been convinced to aid the movement. Significant reorganizations were made in this period, including the decision to choose a new name. There was a sharp debate over whether to name the organization the 'Ogaden' or 'Western Somali' liberation front, with the latter eventually prevailing as the choice. The Ethiopian government claimed the
Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) was training the Somali guerrillas. In January 1976, a general conference of Western Somali society was held 100 km north-west of Mogadishu. A twenty-five-member committee was elected to lead the WSLF, and
Abdullahi Hassan Mahmoud became its first leader when the organization was formerly founded at the conference. That same year, training camps were soon formed across the Ogaden and Somalia. WSLF launched the Western Somali Youth Organization which became the adolescent faction of the WSLF. The youth divisions president was
Mohamoud Dirir Gheddi. WSLF's youth organization would build academies for minors in the region. Despite the organizations clear emphasis on Somalis, the WSLF found support among Muslim
Harari and
Oromo populations. Many Hararis joined the organization, with several such as Colonel Ezedin Yusuf in leading positions during the armed struggle. According to WSLF accounts, a large number of the fronts younger guerrillas were Harari "boys and girls", which was named the Imam Ahmed squad after the sixteenth century Muslim leader
Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi. The WSLF found its opportunity when the
Derg overthrew Haile Selassie in 1974 and switched from American support to the Soviet Union. The initiation of full-scale guerrilla warfare occurred almost simultaneously in the northern and southern regions in the early months of 1976. By the year's end, it had expanded across southeastern Bale and Sidamo. The terrain, comprising partly arid scrubland and mountainous and wooded areas, was familiar to the fighters, and the local inhabitants were considered friendly. Infiltrating from various points in the Somali republic, the guerrillas moved rapidly across the rugged hills. Wherever they went, they dismantled the state presence by destroying government offices and systematically targeting police and civilian administration. In total there were fourth Brigades or in
Somali "Afar Gaas" within the WSLF movement. At the start of 1977, the WSLF began escalating it attacks against Ethiopian troops. First Brigade was known as "Duufaan". Second Brigade was known as "
Ahmed Gurey" and was the largest Brigade of the WSLF. Third Brigade was known as "Horyaal" and the Fourth Brigade was known as "Ciil Tire". Each brigade was assigned to enter different front in the
Somali Region of
Ethiopia. In 1976, the Somali government set up a counterpart of WSLF to fight in the
Oromo areas, calling it the
Somali Abo Liberation Front (SALF), whose sphere of operations was in the provinces of
Bale,
Sidamo, and
Arsi, where it advocated union with Somalia or the creation of an independent state. Wako Gutu and Shekih Hussein were some of the prominent Oromo nationalists who joined SALF, which soon surpassed the
Oromo Liberation Army (OLF). Somalia equipped both groups with Soviet arms, and in early 1977 sent 3,000 soldiers from the
Somali Army to fight as guerrillas with the WSLF.
Escalation (1976–1977) During early 1977, with the exception of towns strategically positioned on vital routes and intersections, the WSLF effectively controlled most of the
Ogaden lowlands. The rebels employed hit-and-run tactics, targeting the Ethiopian army at its vulnerable points and then blending into a predominantly supportive or sympathetic local population. These tactics eroded the morale of the Ethiopian troops, compelling them to retreat to bunkers and camps. The Ethiopian army found itself confined to garrison towns, many of which were besieged. While any attempt to storm these garrison towns invited devastating firepower from the Ethiopian defenders, travel between towns became perilous. Military and civilian vehicles required armed escorts, often falling into ambushes or encountering land mines. On February 11, 1977, a notable ambush occurred near Horakelifo (between
Degehabur and
Jijiga), resulting in the death of 25 soldiers and officers, with another 24 wounded, and the destruction of armored cars and trucks. Around the same time, a police contingent was annihilated not far from
Filtu. These disruptions to supply lines led to frequent transportation delays to the camps. In addition to affecting the morale of the troops, guerrilla actions aimed at sabotaging the economy also occurred. In the summer of 1977, WSLF fighters destroyed several important installations, and on June 1, they detonated the railway connecting the Ethiopian capital to the port of Djibouti. This crucial economic lifeline, normally handling 70 percent of Ethiopia's exports and 50 percent of her imports, remained out of commission until August. Initially composed of an active force of roughly 5,000 guerrillas, the WSLF was not able to seize control of any major towns or important outposts controlled by the Ethiopian military during early stages of the insurgency. June 1977 saw the WSLF step up its campaign. The three major towns of the Ogaden:
Jigjiga,
Dire Dawa and
Harar all came under repeated insurgent attack. Transportation routes between the towns were constantly harassed and vital bridges were destroyed. In order to protect the
Djibouti-Addis railway the Derg deployed thousands of paratroopers on the vital rail lines connecting Ethiopia to the sea. Despite this effort the WSLF successfully cut the rail line. On June 13, 1977, approximately 5,000 SNA soldiers crossed the border, launching a coordinated attack on specific targets in the Ogaden. The soldiers had taken off their uniform insignia and disguised themselves as guerrillas for the operation. Under the command of SNA officers, the WSLF engaged in attacks on Ethiopian military positions, pounding
Gode,
Degehabur and
Kebri Dahar with mortars and rockets. However, the offensive was repulsed with heavy casualties. At
Gode alone, 300 WSLF guerrillas and 14 high ranking SNA officers were killed. Dissent among the army, especially among the
Ogaden clan, became vocal. After this disastrous offensive, the decision was made to invade Ethiopia to support the WSLF.
Ogaden War (1977–1978) On July 13, 1977, the
Somali National Army (SNA) invaded Ethiopia to assist the WSLF. The Somali government refused to declare war, instead insisting that in the media that all the military actions were taken by the WSLF. The WSLF engaged in sabotage actions, impairing the mobility of the Ethiopian army. By September 1977, the SNA/WSLF had overrun 90% of the Ogaden. Former
Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed said "the WSLF brigades were very strong and united against all odds" during his interview with former
BBC World Service report
Abdisalan Harari. This was claim backed by an interview with former Cuban leader
Fidel Castro.
Post Ogaden War insurgency (1978-1984) During June 1978, the WSLF had a major success when it reclaimed the town of
Gode, killing 300 Ethiopian and Cuban troops while disabling the only viable
air base in the area. During the summer of 1978, the WSLF was back in control of most of the Ogaden countryside, and the Ethiopian army was confined to the towns and the roads. Sweeps and patrols in 1979 managed to reduce rebel activity but failed to clear out the insurgents. By the end of the 70s, the WSLF was estimated to have an army of 18,000 men, thus becoming the second largest rebel group in Ethiopia, the first being the
Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF). The SSDF possessed little autonomy over Ethiopian security forces, as it was 'created, organized, trained and financed by Ethiopia'. A
Central Intelligence Agency report on Somali exile activity published in early 1979 observed that SSDF rebels performed poorly against WSLF fighters in battle. It was observed that the WSLF had the backing of the vast majority of the Somalis population and that SSDF's willingness to fight the group adversely impacted its attempts to garner public support. During 1979, the
Isaaq wing of the WSLF,
Afraad, came into conflict with the main
Ogaden clan forces of the WSLF following an incident where a WSLF fighter had committed rape which had then escalated into murder and further violence. Foreign correspondents visiting the region during this time observed a stark 'dual society,' with Somali inhabitants identifying strongly as 'Western Somalis.' The Derg regime also engineered artificial droughts and famines to weaken Somali resistance to Ethiopian rule in the Ogaden. As the WSLF faced large scale Ethiopian and Cuban army assaults following the war, they were left with only small arms and
mortars to combat
helicopter gunships and armored vehicles operating in open terrain. The Ethiopian government initiated a policy of depopulating and resettling Somalis to weaken the WSLF's social base. Simultaneously, they introduced thousands of
Amhara,
Tigrayan, and
Oromo settlers to strengthen Ethiopian control over the region. In 1981, fighting between the WSLF and Ethiopian army continued. In the environs of
Harar and
Jigjiga the WSLF engaged in fierce battles with the Ethiopian army. Fighting also took place around
Kebri Dahar and WSLF claimed that it had severed the major roads linking towns. Throughout the rest of the 1980s the WSLF was mired in a stalemate and unable to expand operations, largely due to hostile Somali rebel groups who served as
proxy forces for Addis Ababa. An April 1988 agreement between Ethiopia and Somalia would result in the end of the organization's operations, as the Somali government withdrew support and restricted it. President
Siad Barre had renounced claims on Western Somalia (Ogaden), telling the WSLF leadership that Somalia's security was at stake and forbidding them from engaging in activity that might anger Addis Ababa. The 1988 agreement with
Mengistu intensified domestic opposition to Barre in Somalia, especially within the
Ogaden clan. The WSLF, ONLF and other liberation organizations condemned the new foreign policy adopted by Mogadishu. By 1989, the WSLF had ceased to be an effective guerrilla force in Ethiopia. In the early 1990s, there were still several hundred people who identified themselves as the WSLF. As the organization faded, it was replaced in the
Somali Region by the
Ogaden National Liberation Front and
Al-Itihaad Al-Islamiya who continued the struggle for
independence from Ethiopia. ==See also==