103rd Commando Division

Military unit in Ethiopia 103rd Commando Division 103ኛ የኮማንዶ ክፍል January 1987 – May 1989 People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Commando Division Ethiopia Ethiopian National Defense Force Bahir Dar Ethiopian Civil War Battle of Shire (1989) Commander-in-Chief Colonel Getahun Wolde Giorgis The 103rd Commando Division (am 103ኛ የኮማንዶ ክፍል lit 103nya yekomanido kifili) were the commando forces of the Ethiopian Ground Forces under the People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. It was activated and began training in January 1987.Fontanellaz Cooper 2018 18, 68 It was part of the 604th Corps and was described as "the cream of the Ethiopian Army".Cooper Tom https://books.google.com/books?id=R4iWDwAAQBAJ&dq=103rd+Commando+Division+ethiopia&pg=PA18 Ethiopian-Eritrean Wars. Volume 2: Eritrean War of Independence, 1988-1991 & Badme War, 1998-2001 Fontanellaz Adrien 2018-07-31 Helion and Company 978-1-913118-35-8 enBerhe Mulugeta Gebrehiwot https://books.google.com/books?id=Ud7QDwAAQBAJ&dq=103rd+Commando+Division+ethiopia&pg=PA138 Laying the Past to Rest: The EPRDF and the Challenges of Ethiopian State-Building 2020-01-15 Oxford University Press 978-1-78738-370-8 en Creation In early 1987, the government began the process of expanding commando units. The division was created on 13 January 1987, with at its head Colonel Getahun Wolde Giorgis. It was based out of Bahir Dar, Amhara Region with a potential capacity of 10,000 commandos. After initial recruitment, training began at the Harar Military Academy, before commando training began at Hawassa and later at Bahir Dar.Ayele Fantahun https://books.google.com/books?id=QDPVBgAAQBAJ&dq=103rd+Commando+Division+ethiopia&pg=PA38 The Ethiopian Army: From Victory to Collapse, 1977-1991 2014-10-30 Northwestern University Press 978-0-8101-6805-3 en Operations In 1989, the Defence Council sent the 103rd to take part in the defence of the capital during the Fall of Addis Ababa during the Ethiopian Civil War. It also took part in the battles for Axum. In Tigray, the 103rd Commando Division was to provide the government's last hope in keeping Tigray. These attempts were repulsed on 19 February 1989, the division was defeated in and around Shire by the Tigray People's Liberation Front.Bernhard Lindahl 2005 Local history of Ethiopia: Ind'Abba Selama - Insway Nordiska Afrikainstitutet [The Nordic Africa Institute] https://nai.uu.se/download/18.39fca04516faedec8b248df7/1580829012370/ORTIND05.pdf Personnel The 103rd during its existence was often seen as a victim of poor command,African Defence 1989 The Journal https://books.google.com/books?id=TxMyAQAAIAAJ&q=103rd+Commando+Division+ethiopia en as it was mostly made up of conscripts and fresh militiamen.Tareke Gebru https://books.google.com/books?id=dRIfYPTZxJsC&dq=103rd+Commando+Division+ethiopia&pg=PA276 The Ethiopian Revolution: War in the Horn of Africa 2009-06-23 Yale University Press 978-0-300-15615-7 en General Demissie Bulto, who was involved in the 1989 Ethiopian coup d'état attempt, had his mutilated body dragged in the streets of Asmara by half-drunk commandos.Tareke Gebru 2004 From Af Abet to Shire: The Defeat and Demise of Ethiopia's 'Red' Army 1988-89 https://www.jstor.org/stable/3876226 The Journal of Modern African Studies 42 2 239–281 10.1017/S0022278X04000114 3876226 0022-278X subscription Major Bogale was a brigade commander in the division. References 1 Works cited Fontanellaz Adrien Cooper Tom Ethiopian-Eritrean Wars: Volume 2: Eritrean War of Independence, 1988-1991 & Badme War, 1998-2001 Helion & Company 2018 978-1-912390-30-4 Warwick Africa@War No. 30 Category:Military units and formations of Ethiopia Category:Military units and formations established in 1987 Category:1980s establishments in Ethiopia Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1989