In a statement issued on Thursday,the Ethiopian Intelligence and Security Services (NISS) also accused OLA of having direct links with al-Shabaab.
The allegation came as Ambassador Redwan Hussien, the director general of NISS held discussion with the visiting Kenyan delegation headed by Nuradin Mohamed Haji, the director general of Kenya’s Intelligence Service.
According to NISS’ statement, the two countries had previously signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on “intelligence exchange and other security issues” due to shared “security concerns” along their border.
The NISS alleged that the OLA, which it refers to as the “Shene terrorist group,” has been involved in “illegal activities” in the border region, including “contraband trade, firearms trafficking, and illegal mining.”
It claimed the group recently “abducted two South Korean nationals” and handed them over to al-Shabaab.
“The group is known to have direct connections with al-Shabaab, operating in Somalia, and the two groups are collaborating to create insecurity in the area,” the NISS statement said.
The NISS stated that the two sides also discussed cyber-security cooperation, with a focus on efforts to “prevent and counter future cyber-attacks.”
MG/abj/APA