ONLF says Ethiopia violently disrupted women’s meeting in Jigjiga

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Friday April 25, 2025

Security forces deploy outside the ONLF regional office in Jigjiga, Somali Regional State, following the disruption of a women’s meeting on April 24, 2025. The ONLF has accused the government of targeting peaceful gatherings as part of a broader crackdown on political dissent.

Jigjiga, Ethiopia (HOL) — The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) has accused Ethiopian security forces of disrupting a women's meeting in Jigjiga on April 24, arresting its members and injuring several others. The ONLF described the attack as part of a widening clamp-down and silence of dissent in the Somali Region.

According to the ONLF, armed security forces violently interrupted a peaceful meeting of the Ogaden Women's Association, held at the ONLF's regional office. Several members of the ONLF were injured, a well-known cultural figure was hospitalized, and multiple officers were detained during the attack. The group condemned the action as a deliberate effort to target unarmed civilians and political activists.

"Today, a peaceful meeting of the Ogaden Women's Association—held at ONLF's regional office in Jigjiga—was violently disrupted by armed security forces. Several ONLF members were injured, a renowned cultural figure was hospitalized, and a number of ONLF officers were unjustly detained," the front said in a press release.

The attack, it added, "is part of a widening crackdown that has become increasingly frequent and brazen."

The statement highlights the political nature of the assault, suggesting that Ethiopian authorities are systematically closing political spaces once promised under the peace agreement. ONLF leaders argue Addis Ababa has delivered "barely 20 percent" of the deal's pledges, citing blocked legal registration, sluggish reintegration of ex-fighters and failure to grant the Somali region a larger say over oil and gas. The ONLF further accused the government of blocking peaceful gatherings and detaining its members in the area.

According to the group, similar operations were carried out earlier in Garbo district, where the head of the ONLF chapter was arrested and ordered to publicly renounce his membership or remain in jail. He reportedly refused.

The ONLF also accused the government of "state-sponsored" interference to undermine its internal leadership, claiming "a state-sponsored effort attempted to manufacture confusion by promoting a false internal leadership change within ONLF through co-opted actors." That accusation refers to a recent move by a rival faction that claimed to have removed Abdirahman Mahdi as chairman and installed Abdikarim Sheikh Muse in his place—a development Mahdi's camp dismissed as "fraudulent" and "state-orchestrated," warning it represented a direct breach of the peace agreement.

"These are not isolated incidents. They reflect a coordinated campaign to silence dissent, intimidate communities, and reverse the gains made under the 2018 Peace Agreement," the statement says. "The political space once promised to the Somali people is being deliberately closed through coercion and violence."

ONLF said the crackdown extends well beyond party members. It pointed to the recent death of a 16-year-old student who died in detention after a minor schoolyard incident, as well as the intimidation of a journalist who interviewed the boy's father. The group also alleged that surveillance, arbitrary arrests, and targeted harassment have become routine for activists, artists, and students throughout the Somali Region.

The statement added that such patterns were not exclusive to the Somali Region, citing similar repression in other parts of Ethiopia. "Entire nations—Oromo, Amhara, Tigray, Sidama, Benishangul, and others—are subjected to similar repression," the ONLF said, noting that the violence is "systemic, and the state is unaccountable."

ONLF Chairman Abdikarim Sheikh Mohamed Mahdi recently told BBC Somali the movement is consulting supporters on "alternative avenues," including the possibility of renewed armed struggle.

The federal government says the deal remains on track. Somali Region President Mustafa Muhumed Omar points to expanded schools, clinics and roads, arguing that progress is measured by budget, not wish lists.

Tensions have simmered since Ethiopian National Defense Forces chief Gen. Berhanu Jula reportedly branded ONLF an "enemy created by Egypt" in a 2024 video. The group demanded a retraction, calling the remark a breach of the peace accord and proof of hostility at the highest military level.

Those frictions are feeding an internal rift. In March, a Nairobi-based faction led by Abdirahman Mahdi declared that the accord had been "dismantled" and that ONLF would stop cooperating with Addis Ababa.

Hours later, the party's Central Committee in Jigjiga disowned the statement, reaffirmed support for the deal and accused the Nairobi wing of speaking without authority — a split some analysts say Addis is happy to exploit.

Oil and gas are another flashpoint. ONLF warned Chinese firm Poly-GCL of "repercussions" if it drills in the Ogaden Basin without "explicit Somali consent," labelling a recent meeting between company executives and regional officials "resource plunder by proxy."

Federal and regional authorities say the talks were routine and vital for economic growth; ONLF counters that promised autonomy over natural wealth remains on paper.

Away from the spotlight, hundreds of ex-combatants — particularly women — struggle with trauma and scant job prospects, according to local NGO Hormud. Rights researchers say the lack of a tailored reintegration program leaves them vulnerable to fresh unrest.

The ONLF says that despite the increasing repression, it remains committed to peaceful political struggle but has previously warned of potentially resuming armed conflict. The group has called on the Ethiopian government to honour the 2018 Peace Agreement and cease using violence to suppress political opposition.

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