Shifta War
1963–1967 Somali secessionist conflict in Kenya / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Shifta War or Gaf Daba (1963–1967) was a secessionist conflict in which ethnic Somalis in the Northern Frontier District (NFD) of Kenya attempted to join Somalia. The Kenyan government named the conflict "shifta", after the Swahili word for "bandit", as part of a propaganda effort. The Kenyan counter-insurgency General Service Units forced civilians into "protected villages" (essentially concentration camps)[3] as well as killing livestock kept by the pastoralist Somalis.
Shifta War | |||||||
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Part of the Somali–Kenyan conflict | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Kenya Colony (until Dec. 1963) Kenya (from Dec. 1963) Supported by: United Kingdom Ethiopian Empire[1] |
Northern Frontier Districts Liberation Movement Supported by:Somalia Soviet Union | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Jomo Kenyatta | Maalim Mohammed Stamboul (Darod group) | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
Hundreds (1963) 1,200+ (1966) | |||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
4,200+ killed[2] |
The war ended in 1967 when Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal, Prime Minister of the Somali Republic, signed a ceasefire with Kenya at the Arusha Conference on 23 October 1967.[4] However, the violence in Kenya deteriorated into disorganised banditry, with occasional episodes for the next several decades.
The war and violent clampdowns by the Kenyan government caused large-scale disruption to the way of life in the district, resulting in a slight shift from pastoralist and transhumant lifestyles to sedentary, urban lifestyles.