The commander of the Oromo Liberation Army’s (OLA) western front, Kumsa Diriba (better known as Jaal Maro) fighting the government has denied on Tuesday allegations that he has been receiving any help from Tigray Liberation Front (TPLF).
The OLA emerged from the remnants of the OLF’s military wing formerly led by Dawud Ibssa and supported and hosted by Eritrea in the past as part of the proxy war the Eritrean regime was waging against the government of Ethiopia. The members have arrived in Addis Ababa on August 2018 as part of the reforms launched by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and some of them have been integrated into the Oromia regional security forces in line with a January 2019 “reconciliation pact,” signed by the regional state government and the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF).
OLA, now acting independently from OLF, is battling the federal army in the western Oromia and has been linked to the recent abduction of dozens of Dembi Dollo University students and the assassination of higher government officials from the western Oromia and Benshangul region, allegations the group rejects.
Speaking to the BBC Amharic, Jaal Maro said that there was no TPLF involvement. « We would work with anybody who supports the Oromo people’s cause. We have every right to do so. It could even be with Satan himself. If it to liberate the Oromo, we are open to joining forces with any party, » he said in a telephone interview published on BBC Amharic website Wednesday. « However, despite the rumor, there is a good reason why we cannot collaborate with TPLF as our wounds are too deep, » he was quoted as saying.
Jaal Maro also said there has been pure and simple fabrication about his presence in Mekele, the capital of Tigray and even his premature death. He said he is currently « safe and sound in the coffee woods of Wollega. »
Asked how he happens to respond to calls while the area has been cut off from the telephone and internet network, Jaal Maro said: “Since the government has not succeeded in having dominance over our army, they are trying every means to subjugate us”. But he said that he is effectively able to communicate with members of his army.
The TPLF that has dominated the Ethiopian political scene for the past 27 years is using conventional methods of protest, agitation and, according to some, insurgent activities to rally against the Abiy Ahmed administration.
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