By Tsegaye Tadesse

ADDIS ABABA, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Ethiopian rebels said on Wednesday they had killed 43 soldiers during two weeks of battles in the remote Ogaden region, but the government said there had not even been fighting in the area.

"The bulk of the fighting has taken place in northern Ogaden in and around Nogob province," the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) said in a statement.

Reporters are generally barred from the area and there was no independent verification.

The rebels said dozens of soldiers were wounded and a government armoured car destroyed in the clashes.

Zemedhun Tekle, Ethiopia's Information Ministry spokesman, said the rebel statement was untrue and the guerrillas were on the run.

"They are in no position now to challenge government troops," he told Reuters. "The ONLF is no longer a fighting force. If there are any remnants left, they are in hiding."

Ogaden made headlines last April when ONLF gunmen attacked a Chinese-run oil exploration field and killed 74 people. Both the government and rebels accuse each other of human rights abuses, and aid workers say almost a million people there need help. (Writing by Daniel Wallis; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)

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