After Somalia's defeat in the Ogaden war with Ethiopia, many Ogadeni felt cheated that the intervention of the Somali army contributed to their defeat in the war and in their need to seek refuge in Somalia. Furthermore, the Somali army felt humiliated by President Siyaad Barre's policies. [ "Somali: Ogadeni's Misfortune", Africa Confidential, (London: Miramoor Publications Ltd., 17 October 1984), p.6.] Consequently in 1978, in a bid to oust Siyaad Barre, Colonel Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed and Col. Mohamed Osman led an unsuccessful coup attempt, [ibid.] in which 20 army officers were killed. [George T. Kurian, Encyclopedia of the Third World, vol.II, (New York: Facts On File, Inc., 1978), p.1304.] Col. Mohamed Osman was executed along with several other officers, but Col. Abdullahi Yusuf was able to flee to Kenya and eventually to Ethiopia. [ibid.] There he formed the first anti-Barre front, the Somali Salvation Front (SOSAF) which started armed struggle in 1979. [ibid.] Its name was changed to the Democratic Front for the Salvation of Somalia (DFSS) . [ibid.]

The major weaknesses of the DFSS was its domination by Majerteen people from central Somalia and the negative Somali view of the group's reliance on Ethiopia, the arch-enemy. [ibid.] In 1984 many members of DFSS took advantage of the amnesty offer made by Siyaad Barre, reportedly following a split within the group over the question of Col. Abdullahi's leadership. [ C. Legum, ed., African Contemporary Record: Annual Survey and Documents 1984-1985, (New York: Africana Publishing Company 1985), p.B353.] This split is evidenced in the breakaway group that formed the Somali Popular Liberation Front in Aden in 1983. [Africa Confidential, 13 November 1985, p.7.]

The Ethiopian Government "lost patience" with divisions in the DFSS and on 1 October 1985, Ethiopian security forces shot four of Col. Abdullahi's closest supporters and then detained the Colonel in Addis Abeba. ["Somalia: Opposition Bust-Up", Africa Confidential, 13 November 1985, p.7.] Mr. Ibrahim Mead, president of the Northern Somali Association in Ottawa, asserts that, to his knowledge, Col. Abdullahi Yusuf was still in detention in Ethiopia in February 1988.

Little SSDF military activity has been reported in the last few years. According to an 18 November 1988 Africa Confidential report, the SSDF has been in disarray since Ethiopia detained its head, Colonel Abdullahi Yusuf, in 1985. The report further noted that "although racked by desertion, the Front does still have well over 1,000 fighters". [ "Somalia: Wounded North, Bruised South", Africa Confidential, 18 November 1988, p. 3.] Although the SSDF is said to have been fairly moribund throughout 1989, Africa Events reported in December 1989 that "efforts are now being made to reactivate [the Front]". ["Hanging by Their Nails", Africa Events, December 1989, p. 24.]

For more information on the DFSS please consult the attached excerpts from the following documents:

"Somalia: Opposition Bust-Up", Africa Confidential, London: Miramoor Publications Ltd., 13 November 1985, p.7.

"Somalia: The Ogadeni's Misfortune", Africa Confidential, 17 October 1984, pp. 1, 5-7.

George T. Kurian, Encyclopedia of the Third World, vol.II, New York: Facts On File, Inc., 1978, p.1304.

David D. Laitin and Said S. Samatar, Somalia Nation in Search of a State, London: Westview Press, 1987, pp. 92-93, 142.

I.M. Lewis, A Modern History of Somalia Nation and State in the Horn of Africa, Boulder: Westview Press, 1988, pp.244-247, 250-255.

Henry W. Degenhardt, ed., Revolutionary and Dissident Movements, London: Longman, 1988, pp.323-325.