General Gebru Ayele, Commander of the
8th Mechanized Brigade, defects to EPPF
Ethiopian Review
Nov 2, 2006
Brigadier General Gebru Ayele Belachew, Commander of the army's 108th Division, 8th Mechanized Brigade, that was stationed in northern Ethiopia, has defected to EPPF (Ethiopian People's Patriotic Front).
General Gebru defected to EPPF on Oct 24, 2006, and joined EPPF army's Asmelash Division that is currently operating in Gojjam and Gonder provinces, according to the EPPF command center.
In the same week, the following members of the Meles army's 26nd Division have also defected to EPPF:
M/A Teshome Asegid
A/A Assefa Hiney
Pvt. Arega Assefa
Pvt. Tesfaye Alemu
Pvt. Gebrehiwot Alemu
Pvt. Endalew Geletu
Pvt. Yigezachew Yihenaw
Only the defection of generals makes the news, but according to EPPF sources, several hundred officers and infantrymen are currently defecting to EPPF and OLF armies on a weekly basis.
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Ethiopia's government will collapse if another war breaks out with Somalia/Eritrea. This is the third general to defect in three months. The government in Ethiopia is on high alert, fear of civil war and major soldier defections are causing their grip of power to diminish. Add to this the 12 other rebel groups in Ethiopia who are fighting them and it looks very good for ICU. If Issias can hit them from the north and ICU/OLF/ONLF attack from the south, it should be clear sailing to addis ababa.
