Oromiya authorities claim successes against rebels

At least 100 members of the rebel Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) have been killed or captured in the latest skirmishes with regional police and militia, according to officials of Oromiya state in southwest Ethiopia.

The Oromiya State Council on Thursday claimed it had destroyed a cell of the rebel group which had been trying to "infiltrate schools". Spokesman Suleiman Dedefo said members of the OLF were trying to stir up trouble in the region. He told IRIN the battle with the OLF was "far from over" and the regional authorities would not give up the hunt.

The latest fighting occurred over the last few days and is the latest in a series of skirmishes. Trouble flared up in late March after several students were shot dead by police following a
demonstration calling for increased aid for farmers.

The government claims the protests were orchestrated by the OLF, but the OLF - which is fighting for self-determination in Oromiya - says the "student resistance against the Ethiopian oppression clearly demonstrates the level the Oromo struggle has reached".

Suleiman said that state police and local militia could contain the rebel movement and that the national army was not needed. The student protests began in the town of Ambo, 80 km from the capital Addis Ababa, before spreading to other areas.

In a statement, the OLF said that despite the "brutal actions" of the authorities, the Oromo students "are continuing with their peaceful demonstration". "This popular civilian resistance that has spread throughout Oromiya has made the TPLF [Tigray People's Liberation Front, part of the ruling coalition] regime so nervous that it is responding by declaring war on Oromo students in particular and the Oromo people's national liberation struggle in general," the statement said.

Suleiman Dedefo retorted that the OLF's plans were to "create instability throughout the country ... and create a kind of system that will satisfy their political interests".

The OLF, which withdrew in protest from the transitional government in 1992, says it has never denied it is waging an armed struggle. But, it added, "armed struggle is not our first choice. It is imposed on us".