Kebri Dahar
| Kebri Dahar Qabri Dahar | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
  Kebri Dahar Location within Ethiopia | |
| Coordinates: 6°44′N 44°16′E / 6.733°N 44.267°E | |
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Region | Somali |
| Zone | Kebri Dahar |
| Elevation | 1,609 m (5,279 ft) |
| Population (2005) | |
| • Total | 36,191 |
| Time zone | EAT (UTC+3) |
Kebri Dahar (Somali: Qabridahare) is a town in the eastern part of Ethiopia known as the Ogaden. Located in the Korahe Zone of the Somali Region, this town has a latitude and longitude of 6°44′N 44°16′E / 6.733°N 44.267°ECoordinates: 6°44′N 44°16′E / 6.733°N 44.267°E and an elevation of 493 meters above sea level. Kebri Dahar is served by Kabri Dar Airport (ICAO code HAKD, IATA: ABK).
History
The earliest mention of Kebri Dahar is in 1931, when it was described as "a soldier's camp" that suffered from malaria; although the settlement was 500 meters above the river, the scrub between the two had not been cleared and provided the mosquitos sufficient cover to reach their victims.[1] According to Margery Perham, prior to the Italo-Abyssinian War, the Italians established a garrison at Kebri Dahar.[2]
A hospital for the town was under construction in 1958, when Emperor Haile Selassie inspected it during a tour of the Ogaden. In 1966 a road was built connecting Kebri Dahar and the new town of Gode.[1] The Ethiopian Road Authority announced a construction project to connect Kebri Dahar with neighboring towns. One road, to include 113.5 kilometers of paved road and five bridges will connect Kebri Dahar with Shekosh, while a second, which will include the creation of 95 kilometers of paved road and construction of six large and medium bridges, will connect the town to Danan.[3]
During the Ogaden War, Kebri Dahar was defended by the Ethiopian Ninth Brigade against the Somali Army before abandoning it in disarray and Somali army capturing it thereafter.[4] It was recpatured by the Ethiopian Third Paracommando Brigade 8 March 1978.[5]
Demographics
Based on figures from the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, Kebri Dahar has an estimated total population of 100,191 of whom 51,327 are men and 48,864 are women.[6] The 1997 census reported this town had a total population of 24,263 of whom 12,768 were men and 11,495 women. The two largest ethnic groups reported in this town were the Somali (89.02%), and the Amhara (2.58%); all other ethnic groups made up 8.4% of the population.[7] It is the largest settlement in Kebri Dahar woreda.
Notes
- 1 2 "Local History in Ethiopia" The Nordic Africa Institute website (accessed 21 November 2007)
- ↑ Perham, The Government of Ethiopia, second edition (London: Faber and Faber, 1969), p. 338
- ↑ "ERA building asphalt roads with 600mln birr in Somali State" (Walta Information Center, accessed 13 December 2007)
- ↑ Gebru Tareke, "The Ethiopia-Somalia War of 1977 Revisited", International Journal of African Historical Studies, 2000 (33, #3), pp. 635ff at p. 644. (accessed 13 May 2009)
- ↑ Gebru Tareke, "The Ethiopia-Somalia War", p. 660.
- ↑ CSA 2005 National Statistics, Table B.4
- ↑ 1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Somali Region, Vol. 1 Tables 2.4, 2.14 (accessed 10 January 2009). The results of the 1994 census in the Somali Region were not satisfactory, so the census was repeated in 1997.