Did Somalia Lose its Soldiers to the Conflict in Tigray?

Somalia’s Information Minister Osman Abukar Dubbe on Tuesday denied claims that hundreds of Somali soldiers have been killed while fighting alongside the Ethiopian army against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.

If these claims are true, i swear President @M_Farmaajo will have to answer to this sooner or later, the amount of families that can't find their children is unbelievable, two of my friends have never heard from their cousins who were sent to Eritrea for training. https://t.co/jccKCBMmTG

— Khalid Awmusse (@khalidawmusse) January 18, 2021

Appearing on Somali National TV (SNTV), the Minister noted that Ethiopia did not request any troops from Somalia.

Referring to the reports as rumours and nonsense, he said, "It is unfortunate that people are trying to find political gains from our national army. We are confirming that the fake news, which is meant for politics and business, that claimed Somali troops training in Eritrea took part in fighting in Tigray Region, northern Ethiopia, is not true."

Dubbe said similar "propaganda was spread in the past claiming Somali soldiers took part in fighting in Libya and Azerbaijan, which was confirmed to be fake."

Contradictory Statements

This statement comes after the former deputy spy chief of Somalia's National Intelligence and Security Agency, Abdisalan Yusuf Guled, claimed on Monday that over 370 Somali soldiers died while fighting in Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict in November last year.

Soldiers from mainland Somalia who were on training in ?? forced to fight in ??|s #WarOnTigray. “2500 out of 3000 Somali soldiers were transported on buses overnight on 1st of November“. 3 days prior to the alleged attack. #BidenTakeAction #TigrayGenocide https://t.co/YfbKCBQcpL

— Meaza (@meazaG_) January 19, 2021

Remarks which sparked fear across the Horn of Africa country as many families are now concerned about their relatives serving in the Somali national army.