2022 al-Shabaab invasion of Ethiopia

2022 al-Shabaab invasion of Ethiopia
	Part of the Ethiopian–Somali conflict, the Somali Civil War (2009–present), Ethiopian civil conflict (2018–present) and the spillover of the Tigray war
	; Al-Shabaab fighters inside a Liyu Police base, 21 July 2022
Date	20 July – c. early August 2022; (2 weeks);
Location	Ethiopian-Somali border and Ethiopia's Somali Region
Result	Al Shabaab infiltrates Bale Province of southern Ethiopia (see § Result and aftermath) Battalion sized force of al-Shabaab fighters reach the Bale Mountains and establish presence; Somali Region officials claim to crush al-Shabaab force;
Belligerents
Ethiopia Somali Region;	Al-Qaeda Al-Shabaab;
Commanders and leaders
Tesfaye Ayalew; Mohamed Ahmed Gurey;	Ali Diyaar; Ubeda Nur Isse; Fuad Qalaf; Osman Abu Abdi Rahman;
Units involved
Somali Region paramilitary forces; * Liyu Police; Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF); Civilian self-defense groups;	Several units, including the "Ethiopian Front"
Strength
Unclear	At least 1,500 (Critical Threats estimate); c. 2,000 (Le Monde estimate);
Casualties and losses
14 killed (Ethiopian claim); 187 ENDF and several hundred Somali Region forces killed (al-Shabaab claim); Heavy (local officials);	800+ killed, 100 captured (Ethiopian claim)
	3 civilians killed (Ethiopian claim); Several administrators captured by al-Shabaab;

On 20 July 2022, the Islamist militant group al-Shabaab launched an invasion from Somalia into Ethiopia's Somali Region. Taking advantage of the instability created by the Tigray war, the goal of the operation was to establish a presence for the group within southern Ethiopia.

The incursion began with over a thousand al-Shabaab fighters staging diversionary attacks on four Ethiopia–Somalia border towns in order to allow a force of 500 to 800 fighters to penetrate the Ethiopian security zone and advance into the region. During the initial days of fighting, al-Shabaab primarily fought against the Somali Region's security forces. Further cross-border attacks continued in the following days, while Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) carried out counter-offensives in response.

Al-Shabaab forces advanced 150 kilometers into the Ogaden. After two weeks of intense clashes and airstrikes, the ENDF and Somali Region security forces began to reassert control. A battalion of around 500 al-Shabaab fighters succeeded in evading the Ethiopian army and reached its main target, the Bale Mountains. Several weeks after the operation was over, clashes continued to break out in border regions.

Following what was the largest attack by al-Shabaab in Ethiopian territory to date, the group was able to establish a presence in Bale and created several training camps. Al-Shabaab has not claimed any attacks in Ethiopia since mid-2022 in order to maintain their operational security.