The Ethiopian occupation of Somalia, also called the Ethiopian invasion of Somalia or the Ethiopian intervention in the Somali Civil War, was an armed conflict in Somalia that lasted from 2006 to 2009. It began when military forces from Ethiopia, supported by the United States, invaded Somalia to depose the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and install the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). The conflict continued after the invasion when an anti-Ethiopian insurgency emerged and rapidly escalated. During 2007 and 2008, the insurgency recaptured the majority of territory lost by the ICU. At the start of 2009 Ethiopian troops withdrew from Somalia, but became re-involved several years later to counter the growing strength of Al-Shabaab.
The 2006 Islamic Courts Union offensive is the period in the Somali Civil War that began in May 2006 with the Islamic Courts Union's (ICU) conquest of Mogadishu from the Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism (ARPCT) and continued with further ICU expansion in the country. Following the outbreak of the war on December 21, 2006; by December 24, direct Ethiopian intervention in the conflict in support of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) was no longer denied by the Ethiopian government. The Eritrean government denied any involvement despite Ethiopian claims to the contrary.
Dr. Mohamed Mohamud Guled Ga'modhere was Somalia's interior minister, and formerly the Minister of Public Works and Housing. His portfolio was swapped on February 7, 2007, with that of Hussein Mohamed Farah Aidid.
The Battle of Baidoa began on 20 December 2006 when the Somali transitional federal government forces (TFG) allied with Ethiopian forces stationed there attacked advancing Islamic Courts Union (ICU) forces along with 500 alleged Eritrean troops and mujahideen arrayed against them.
Various international and local diplomatic and humanitarian efforts in the Somali Civil War have been in effect since the conflict first began in the early 1990s. The latter include diplomatic initiatives put together by the African Union, the Arab League and the European Union, as well as humanitarian efforts led by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UNICEF, the World Food Programme (WFP), the Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF) and the Somali Red Crescent Society (SRCS).
The Battle of Beledweyne occurred on December 24 to December 25, 2006, when Ethiopian troops seized that Somalian town from Islamic Courts Union fighters, according to some news agencies. Beledweyne is 100 km north of Baidoa, the seat of Transitional Federal Government of Somalia.
The Battle of Bandiradley in Somalia began on December 23, 2006, when Galmudug and Ethiopian forces, along with faction leader Abdi Qeybdid, fought Islamic Courts Union (ICU) militants defending Bandiradley. The fighting pushed the Islamists out of Bandiradley and over the border south into Adado district, Galgadud region, by December 25.
Even before the beginning of the War in Somalia (2006-2009) there were significant assertions and accusations of the use of disinformation and propaganda tactics, classed as forms of information warfare, by various parties to shape the causes and course of the conflict. These include assertions of falsification of the presence or number of forces involved, exaggeration or minimisation of the casualties inflicted or taken, influence or control of media outlets, and other informational means and media to sway popular support and international opinion.
The Battle of Jilib was a battle in the 2006 Somali War fought by the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and affiliated militias against Ethiopian and Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces for control of the town of Jilib. It began on 31 December 2006, when ICU forces dug in and defended the town to prevent approach to Kismayo, the last stronghold of the ICU.
Yusuf Ahmed Hagar (Dabageed) (Somali: Yuusuf Axmed Xagar Dabageed) is a Somali politician and current Vice President of Hirshabelle State. He was governor of the Hiran region of Somalia. He supports the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG), and was militarily supported by Ethiopia in the War in Somalia (2006–2009).
After two decades of violence and civil war and after the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia captured Mogadishu and Kismayo, the TFG attempted to disarm the militias of the country in late 2006. According to the UN/World Bank's Joint Needs Assessment (JNA) coordination secretariat, "the total estimated number of militias [militia members] to be demobilized is 53,000." In 2005, they estimated that "there are 11–15,000 militia people controlling Mogadishu ."
The Battle of Ras Kamboni was a battle in the Somalia War (2006–2009) fought by the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) and affiliated militias against Ethiopian and the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG) forces for control of Ras Kamboni, a town near the Kenyan border which once served as a training camp for the militant Islamist group Al-Itihaad al-Islamiya.
Yusuf Mohammed Siad Indhacade, aka "Inda'ade" was a Somali and former Minister. In 2011 he was a General in the Somali National Army. He hails from the Ayr sub-clan, part of the Habar Gidir, which is a branch of the Hawiye clan. For a short period he was Somali Minister of Defence (Somalia).
The timeline of events in the War in Somalia during 2006 is set out below.
The timeline of events in the War in Somalia during 2007 is set out below.
General Ismail Qasim Naji in Borama, Somalia was the chief of staff of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia and currently the Somali ambassador in Oman. He has served as a senior officer of the Somali army since the administration of Siad Barre, who was removed from power in 1991. Before the formation of the TFG, he also commanded the army of the predecessor Transitional National Government (TNG) of Somalia between 2002 and 2004.
The siege of Baidoa was a military confrontation lasting from July 2008 to January 2009, in which the al-Shabaab militia laid siege to the headquarters of the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG).
A series of battles in Hiraan, Shabeellaha Dhexe and Galgudug, between rebels of al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam and Somali government forces and ICU militants loyal to the government, erupted during spring 2009. The fighting led to al-Shabaab capturing major government strongholds and Ethiopian forces re-entering Somalia and setting up bases in Hiraan. There was a halt in fighting during a government offensive in Mogadishu, which started on May 22.
The Battle of Gedo is a conflict of the 2009–present phase of the Somali Civil War. Centered in the region of Gedo, it pits the Somali government and its allies against the al-Qaeda-aligned militant group Al-Shabaab.
In December 2011, Ethiopian forces recaptured the central Somali town of Beledweyne from Al-Shabaab fighters.
Somalia 
Somali National Army