Ethiopian Troops Are Starting To Leave Somalia

Somali Islamist insurgent fighters stand at one of the bases vacated by Ethiopian troops in the capital Mogadishu Photo: REUTERS/The Telegraph

Ethiopian Military Hands Over Security Of Somalia
-- Yahoo News/AP

MOGADISHU, Somalia – Ethiopia handed over security duties in neighboring Somalia on Tuesday to a joint force of Somali government security forces and Islamic militiamen, a shift some fear will leave a power vacuum in the lawless African nation.

Somalis overwhelmingly welcomed the Ethiopians' withdrawal despite any guarantee that the Islamists would be able to restore peace.

The Ethiopian troops have been propping up Somalia's weak U.N.-backed government for two years amid a ferocious Islamic insurgency that has killed thousands of civilians and prompted the president to resign in December, saying he had lost the country to the Islamists.

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More News On Somalia

Ethiopia troops quit Somali capital Mogadishu -- The Telegraph
Ethiopian troops begin Somali withdrawal -- CNN
Ethiopia begins withdrawal from Somali capital -- AFP
Ethiopian troops in Somalia hand over security to Somalis -- China View
Somali joy as Ethiopians withdraw -- BBC
TIMELINE-Ethiopia pulls out from Somali capital -- Reuters