Division 60,

Somali National Army The Somali National Army ( Somali: ''Xooga Dalka Soomaaliyeed,'' lit. ''"Somali Ground Forces"'') is the ground forces component of the Somali Armed Forces, and is the largest out of the three service branches that make up the majority of the A ...

( Somali: ''Qeybta 60aad'') is a

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

of the

Somali Armed Forces The Somali Armed Forces are the military forces of the Federal Republic of Somalia. Headed by the president as commander-in-chief, they are constitutionally mandated to ensure the nation's sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. Ch ...

. It has been active in two periods from the 1970s to about 1990 (though being upgraded in status in the process to the level of a corps), fighting in the

Ogaden War The Ogaden War, or the Ethio-Somali War (, am, የኢትዮጵያ ሶማሊያ ጦርነት, ye’ītiyop’iya somalīya t’orineti), was a military conflict fought between Somalia and Ethiopia from July 1977 to March 1978 over the Ethiopi ...

against Ethiopia, and from 2013 to the present. Abdullahi Yusuf Irro once commanded the 60th Division. Under the leadership of General

Abdullah Mohamed Fadil Abdullah Mohamed Fadil ( so, Cabdallah Maxamed Fadhil, ar, عبد الله محمد فاضل; died January 1991), also known as Abdalla Mohamed Fadil, was a prominent Somali military figure. Biography Fadil was the son of a Yemeni musketeer from ...

, Abdullahi Ahmed Irro and other senior Somali military officials formulated a plan of attack for what was to become the

in Ethiopia. At the start of the offensive, the SNA consisted of 35,000 soldiers,Gebru Tareke, "The Ethiopia-Somalia War", p. 638. and was vastly outnumbered by the Ethiopian forces. Somali troops seized the Godey Front on 24 July 1977, after Division 60 defeated the Ethiopian 4th Infantry Division. Godey's capture allowed the Somali side to consolidate its hold on the Ogaden, concentrate its forces, and advance further to other regions of Ethiopia.Gebru Tareke
"From Lash to Red Star: The Pitfalls of Counter-Insurgency in Ethiopia, 1980–82", ''Journal of Modern African Studies''
, 40 (2002), p. 471 The invasion reached an abrupt end with the Soviet Union's sudden shift of support to Ethiopia, followed by almost the entire

communist bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

siding with the latter. The Soviets halted supplies to Barre's regime and instead increased the distribution of aid, weapons, and training to Ethiopia's newly communist

Derg The Derg (also spelled Dergue; , ), officially the Provisional Military Administrative Council (PMAC), was the military junta that ruled Ethiopia, then including present-day Eritrea, from 1974 to 1987, when the military leadership formally " c ...

regime. By 1978, the Somali forces were pushed out of most of the Ogaden, although it would take nearly three more years for the Ethiopian Army to gain full control of Godey. Division 60 then dissolved amid the first phase of the

Somali Civil War The Somali Civil War ( so, Dagaalkii Sokeeye ee Soomaaliya; ar, الحرب الأهلية الصومالية ) is an ongoing civil war that is taking place in Somalia. It grew out of resistance to the Military dictatorship, military junta wh ...

. It was reestablished on 1 July 2013. From that time, it supervised Brigade 7 centered on

Baidoa Baidoa (, Somali: Maay.html"_;"title="f-Maxaa:_Baydhabo,_Maay">f-Maxaa:_Baydhabo,_Maay:_''Baydhowy)''_is_the_largest_city_of_the_South_West_State_of_Somalia. Between_2002_and_2014,_Baidoa_was_the_capital_of_the_South_West_State_of_Somalia.html ...

; Brigade 8 at

Huddur Hudur ( so, Xuddur, Maay: ''Hudur'') is a town in the south Western Bakool region of Somalia. It serves as the province's capital and is the center of the Hudur District. History During the Middle Ages, Hudur and its surrounding area was part of ...

Bakool Bakool ( so, Bakool, Maay: ''Bokool'', ar, بكول) is a region ('' gobol'') in southwestern Somalia. Overview It is bordered by the Somali regions of Hiiraan, Bay and Gedo. Bakool, like Gedo and Bay, as well as most parts of the Jubbada D ...

; and Brigade 9 in

Gedo Gedo ( so, Gedo, Maay: ''Gethy'', ar, جيذو, it, Ghedo or ''Ghedu'') is an administrative region ('' gobol'') in Jubaland, southern Somalia. Its regional capital is Garbahaarreey. It was created in 1974 and is bordered by the Ogaden in E ...

, with divisional headquarters in

. A

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

detachment is assisting the division; and the UK

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

have been paying stipends to Division 60 personnel for several years. The 60th is currently commanded by General Mohamed Sheikh Abdullahi Irro.

Notes

References

* Divisions (military units) Military of Somalia Military units and formations established in the 1970s {{mil-unit-stub