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 restoring the rights of Somalis in Ogaden to self-determination, peace, development and democracy

Friday, 25 April, 2008

THE Ethiopian decision to cut diplomatic ties with Qatar is considered ‘’a shunning of facts and stems from wrongful allegations and claims,’’ the GCC Secretary General said.

HE Abdulrahman bin Hamad al-Attiyah said in a statement Qatar, which at present presides the Supreme Council of the GCC, pursued a wise policy and played a pioneering role in bolstering ties with fraternal and friendly countries and it was not in its policy or attitudes orientation to disrupt stability in any part of the globe.

On the contrary Qatar’s policy tar fosters security and stability, rejects interference in internal affairs of others and sticks to its well known principled stance on fighting terrorism in all its types and forms, al-Attiyah said.

Qatar enjoys growing African support, he said, while Ethiopia’s role over the ages has been infamous for its instigation of unrest and conflicts through flagrant intervention in affairs of its neighbours. In addition, Addis Ababa backs groups which threaten security and stability of a number of states in the Horn of Africa, in outright violation of the international laws, al-Attiyah added.

He said Ethiopian accusations against Qatar ‘’have triggered astonishment and amazement among GCC states’’ and pointed out to the role of patterned aggression Ethiopia plays in the Horn of Africa which entails real dangers represented in the Ethiopian military intervention in Somalia and its faulty practices in the Ogaden which Addis Ababa turned into a closed field of war to which even the humanitarian organisations have no access. These practices, he pointed out, had transformed the Ethiopians into a people surrounded by crisis and humanitarian problems.

Meanwhile, Eritrea has expressed dismay at Ethiopia’s decision to suspend relations with Qatar. “The measure taken was indeed shocking,” the Eritrean foreign ministry said in a statement yesterday.The statement argued that Ethiopia’s decision had stemmed from the fact that the US has labelled Eritrea a state sponsor of terrorism. – QNA/AFP