Somali State elections “fair”

The Ethiopian Electoral Commission has announced the results of the Somali State elections. In the elections for the local state parliament, the ruling party won 150 seats out of 165, while the remaining 15 seats were divided between two opposition parties, said a report on BBC Focus on Africa on 30 September. In the elections for the federal parliament - the Council of People’s Representatives (CPR) - of the 23 seats allocated to the Somali State, 19 were won by the ruling party, and four by the opposition. The commission dismissed complaints of electoral fraud by the opposition and declared the elections free and fair.

Meanwhile, in an Ethiopian opposition radio broadcast, the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) claimed its forces had ambushed two military convoys in the Somali State, on 12 September. According to the 29 September report, 25 government soldiers were killed when their convoys were attacked while moving respectively towards Dagah Habur and Begeh Madow in the Ogaden area of the state. There has so far been no independent confirmation of the claim.