Italian conquest of the Horn of Africa (1924–1940)

The Italian conquest of the Horn of Africa was initiated in 1924 by the fascist government of Italy under Benito Mussolini. With great brutality, Somalia had been totally pacified by late 1927. In 1935, Mussolini launched an invasion of Ethiopia. By mid-1936, the Italian troops controlled the entire territory. 1,757 Italians and 1,593 Eritreans were killed in the brief war. More than 275,000 Ethiopians were killed. In 1940, Italian troops invaded British Somaliland, expelling the British. The Italians also occupied the bordering Kenya areas along the Oltregiuba, around the villages of Moyale and Buna.

Ethiopian losses from the Italian invasion and occupation
The Ethiopians recorded 275,000 combatants killed in action, 78,500 patriots (guerrilla fighters) killed during the occupation, 17,800 civilians killed by aerial bombardment and 30,000 in the February 1937 massacre, 35,000 people died in concentration camps, 24,000 patriots executed by Summary Courts, 300,000 persons died of privation due to the destruction of their villages, amounting to 760,300 deaths.