By Al-Fassel | 2025-07-23

Ethiopian authorities on July 16 announced they had detained 82 fighters linked to the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) Somalia affiliate in a sweeping counterterrorism operation.

The operation exposed the extremist group's unsuccessful effort to incite violence and establish sleeper cells across Ethiopia's Oromia region, according to the National Intelligence Security Services (NISS).

The detainees, trained and deployed by ISIS's Somalia branch operating in semi-autonomous Puntland region, were apprehended in Sheger, Adama, Haramaya, Shashemene, Bale, Jimma and Shakiso, Borkena news reported.

Additional arrests occurred in the Kemise Oromo zone in Amhara region, Silte zone in central Ethiopia, Halaba Kulito, and southeastern cities including Jigjiga and Harari, it said.

The operation involved the federal police and regional security forces, with cooperation from the local community, highlighting the collaborative effort to neutralize the terrorist threat, according to Borkena.

The suspects had been plotting to exploit religious institutions as recruitment hubs and were actively attempting to incite riots and violence, per NISS.

Among them were members of the group's media operations and financial networks, who maintained direct contact with ISIS-Somalia, it said.

The successful operation demonstrates ISIS's continued failure to establish a definitive presence in the Horn of Africa, security analysts said.

Despite fielding an estimated 700 to 1,500 fighters, they noted, the Somalia-based ISIS affiliate has lost significant ground to Puntland forces since a major anti-ISIS offensive began in December.

Sustained pressure on extremists

The coordinated Ethiopian operation aligns with recent US Africa Command (AFRICOM) airstrikes targeting ISIS-Somalia.

On July 13, AFRICOM carried out a collective self-defense airstrike southeast of Bosaso in Puntland, in coordination with the federal government of Somalia.

The strike aimed to degrade ISIS-Somalia's ability to plan and conduct attacks as part of sustained international military pressure against the group's leadership and operational networks across the Horn of Africa

Recent US military airstrikes have further degraded the ISIS-Somalia's command structure and mobility, analysts said.

NISS has been tracking the cross-border network from early stages, using ongoing intelligence assessments to identify infiltration routes and operational tactics, state-affiliated Fana Broadcasting Corporate reported July 15.

The surveillance effort uncovered ISIS's attempt to establish clandestine urban networks in cities such as Adama, Jimma and Jigjiga.

NISS reports that further arrests are expected, as several suspects remain at large.

Analysts note that the successful disruption of the planned attacks underscores the group's operational failures and the effectiveness of regional security cooperation in preventing terrorist expansion beyond Somalia's borders.