Somaliland Warns Puntland Either To Withdraw ‎Militia Forces Or Face Immediate Consequences

By Somalilandtimes network    

Hargeysa, Somaliland, March 25, 2006 – The government of Somaliland has warned Somalia ’s regional state of Puntland to withdraw its armed militia men from Somaliland ’s north eastern territories or face immediate consequences.

The warning came in a press statement issued yesterday by Somaliland’s Foreign Affairs minister Ms Edna Ismail following clashes in earlier this week between Puntland militia forces and the Warsangeli clansmen in the most north-easterly part of Somaliland’s Sanag region that borders Somalia’s Majeerteen enclave of Puntland.

The fighting began when about 100 militiamen using five vehicles mounted with heavy machine guns crossed over on 19/3/2006 from the neighboring regional state of Puntland and reached the Somaliland village of Majiyahan in an apparent bid to quell resistance of the local community to mineral exploration activities being carried out in the area by an Australian company called Range Resources. Fighting erupted again on 21/3/2006. Both sides sustained casualties including deaths.

“The republic of Somaliland had up to now shown extreme patience and restraint, however as result of repeated provocations on the part of Puntland, Somaliland ’s tolerance and peaceful intentions are wearing out.” Ms. Edna Ismail warned while reassuring the international community that her government forces will not pursue the militia of the Puntland region of Somalia if the latter voluntarily withdrew its militia out of Somaliland territory.

In October 2005, the ruler of Puntland Mohamed Muse Hersi who is better known as Adde Muse, concluded a deal for the exploration of oil, gas and minerals in a an area of 212,500km2 that he claimed was the size of his Majeerteen region. Though the agreement with Range was also endorsed by Abdillahi Yusuf, Puntland’s more senior warlord who had since promoted himself as president of lawless Somalia , however the terms of the deal remained secret until they were exposed in a story published by our sister publication, the daily Somali language “Haatuf”, on Jan 10, 2006.

The revelation that the exclusive rights given to Range’s Consort Private Limited (an affiliate company registered in Maldive Islands) also covered areas in Somaliland, prompted the Hargeysa government to issue a strongly worded warning on Jan 10, 2006 to both the rulers of the Majeerteen enclave and the Australian company against entering the territories of Somaliland including Sool and Sanag regions.

However an increased rate of incursions by Majeerteen militia into Somaliland side of the border since the beginning of this year had been greeted with hostility by the Warsangeli community living in the area. Attempts by the Majeerteen dominated Puntland militia to subdue the local Warsangeli inhabitants led to a number of skirmishes between the two sides.

Tensions rose high last moth following the murder of 3 Warsangeli men who opposed infiltrations into their tribal lands. Last month’s arrival in the area of a Range team of mining experts also sparked Warsangeli resistance against any attempts at exploiting their mineral prospects.

Somaliland regular troops have so far stayed away from the clashes between the Warsangeli tribesmen and the Puntland militia. But this situation might change soon as indicated by Somaliland minister for Youth and Sports, Mahmud Saeed Mohamed, who while speaking to reporters in Hargeysa yesterday said “ Somaliland cannot remain unmoved by the atrocities being committed by Majeerteen militiamen against its civilian population. The government is 100% ready to quell this aggression without any further delay.”

The minister who comes from the border area which saw the clashes said that “ Somaliland has in the past exercised restraint despite continued aggression from Puntland’s militia. They tried to kill Somaliland ’s president while visiting Las-Anod on December 2002 and in December 2003 they invaded Las-Anod and are still there. We had enough.”

Mr. Mohamed accused Puntland’s junior warlord Adde Muse of trying to purchase weapons from Yemen .

Adde Muse arrived in the Yemeni capital Sana’a earlier this week. A spokesman for Adde said the purpose of the visit was to seek Yemeni assistance in stopping human trafficking from Bosaso to Yemen across the Gulf of Eden .

Source: Somaliland Times