[10] Ethiopia's eastern Somali Region, whose major part constitutes the Ogaden, is the site of a long-running, low-intensity armed conflict between the Ethiopian Government and the ONLF.

[12] ONLF: Ogaden National Liberation Front TPLF: Tigrayan People's Liberation Front UN: United Nations HRW: Human Rights Watch ICRC: International Committee of the Red Cross OCHA: Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs UIC: Union of Islamic Courts On October 21, 2007, the ONLF stated its forces had killed 250 soldiers during the battle near the town of Werder.

[15][16] On November 18, 2007, the ONLF reported that the Ethiopian Air Force had carpet bombed villages and nomadic settlements the Ogaden region, killing up to a dozen civilians.

[22] Refugees fleeing the crackdown told stories of widespread violence, with entire villages being destroyed along with arbitrary theft, rape and murder by Ethiopian soldiers.

[23] In October 2007, The Independent reported that the situation in Ogaden had begun to mirror the Darfur conflict, with refugees stating that government troops had burned villages and raped and killed civilians.

[24] Earlier in the month, Human Rights Watch had told the United States House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health that "the Ogaden is not Darfur.

Human Rights Watch says it has documented dozens of cases of severe abuse by Ethiopian troops in the Ogaden, including gang rapes, burned villages and what it calls "demonstration killings," like hanging and beheading of populace, meant to terrorize the population.

In other cases, lists of names were posted on public bulletin boards, ordering government employees to report for duty, according to a current member of the regional parliament and two Ethiopian administrators who have fled the country.

Several United Nations officials and Western diplomats said they were discussing the militia program in private meetings, but contended they could not comment publicly for fear of provoking the ire of the Ethiopian government, resulting in a possible suspension of humanitarian efforts in the region.