Abdirahman Mahdi, the spokesman of the Ogaden National Liberation Front, also accused the troops of starving inhabitants by driving them out of their villages and rounding up their livestock.
The Ethiopian government denied civilians had been targeted or warplanes used, saying rebels had been captured in an operation it said was continuing.
"On Thursday, Ethiopian planes bombarded Abaqorow, Darasalam and Ayun and killed 40 civilians, including women and children and wounded dozen others," said Mahdi, adding that the troops killed about 100 civilians across the region since last Tuesday. "Heavy fighting is continuing near major towns of the region now."
The spokesman for the Ethiopian government, Bereket Simon, said that military operations were under way against the rebels, but that no aircraft were involved and that human rights were being respected.
"Ethiopia doesn’t use war planes in domestic conflicts," he said. "We’re not bombing anybody, but we have troops on the ground who are continuing operations. We have captured some" rebels.
The rebels have fought for the secession of the Ogaden region since the early 1990s.
Mahdi said his group killed about 250 Ethiopian soldiers in fighting in Wardher, Dhaqahbur and around Babili towns.
"Only 30 of our soldiers were killed because they are well-trained and they know the terrain very well," Mahdi said. "The Ethiopian soldiers who are fighting us were forcefully conscripted and start fleeing as soon as the fighting starts."
Source: http://www.sudantribune.com
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