Ethiopia, a nation in eastern "horn" of Africa, is probably best known by most Americans for the famine it suffered in the 1980s which led musicians to record "We Are the World" in an effort spur relief efforts. More recently, Ethiopia has been in the news for its war against Islamic radicals in neighboring Somalia. The question on many minds is whether, given Ethiopia's success in Somalia, is whether the United States and the West should overlook alleged human rights abuses and consider Ethiopia an ally in the War on Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorists.

According to Human Rights Watch, Ethiopian troops have utilized scorched earth policies in Somalia and Ogaden, the Somali regional state in Ethiopia. They are also alleged to have committed public summary executions, sexual violence against women and girls, confiscated cattle, and burned villages. Somali forces are accused of similar crimes. Both sides have also made it difficult for aid organizations, such as the UN and the Red Cross to help civilians.

While the actions of the Ethiopian soldiers are very troubling, the criticism of the West must be tempered by the knowledge that victory by the Islamists would be worse. While the United States typically does its best to avoid civilian casualties when it goes to war, much of rest of the world does not feel so strongly about confining war to military targets. Al Qaeda and the Islamic terrorists certainly do not concern themselves with avoiding civilian casualties. In fact, their strategy is to sow confusion and terror by killing as many civilians as possible. For example, reports from areas of Iraq and Afghanistan under Al Qaeda control reveal torture chambers, executions, imposition of Sharia law, and even cooking children of families who oppose them (according to reports from Michael Yon.

When the US military became involved in Somalia during the 1990s, they found very few innocent civilians. During the Battle of Mogadishu, chronicled in the book, Black Hawk Down, saw thousands of civilians, including men, women, and children, taking up arms to attack US Army Delta Force and Rangers sent to arrest Somali warlords, as well as relief columns sent to aid them after several helicopters were shot down. There has even been evidence since 9/11/2001 that Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda orchestrated the ambush of the American helicopters.

Involvement by civilians, such as that seen by the Americans in Mogadishu, makes it even harder for soldiers to determine friend from foe. This, in turn, makes it more likely that soldiers will kill innocent civilians, whether on purpose or by accident. If a civilian killed your buddy, then you look on other civilians with suspicion and perhaps even hatred. For soldiers not trained in police operations and interaction with civilians, the problem is even more pronounced.

As is often the case in the Third World, the United States must make a choice between bad and worse. That is not to say that the US must accept the status quo. The United States should use its influence to urge Ethiopia to follow international law. Such pressure should be exercised carefully to prevent weakening the Ethiopian government to a point where the Islamic radicals can defeat them.

Human rights activists have a history of being very critical of friendly governments while ignoring the abuses of terrorist groups and authoritarian regimes. The actions of the US and its allies, while problematic in some cases, pale in comparison to the wholesale slaughter, torture, and lack of freedom under their opponents.

Learn more about this author, David Thornton.
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