Hargeisa (Dawan Africa) - Somaliland has strongly condemned today the establishment of a new federal member state — referred to as North-East Somalia — formally declared in the regions of Sool, Sanaag, and part of Togdheer. Following an extraordinary Cabinet meeting held in Hargeisa, Somaliland issued a statement describing the move as illegal and politically motivated, accusing the Federal Government of Somalia of encroaching on its claimed territory.
The emergency session was chaired by President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi “Irro”, with Minister of Information Ahmed Yassin later delivering a press briefing to announce the Council’s position.
“The regions of Sool, Sanaag, and Togdheer are indivisible parts of Somaliland’s national territory. The Federal Government’s actions in eastern Sool constitute unlawful interference,” Minister Yassin said.
Somaliland further accused the Federal Government of exacerbating clan divisions and manipulating political conditions in northern Somalia to establish influence in areas beyond its control.
“The people of these regions took part in Somaliland’s independence referendum. There is no legal ground for Mogadishu to form an administration in territory it does not govern,” Yassin added.
The statement also referenced the lifting of the UN arms embargo on Somalia, suggesting that the Federal Government may now have access to weapons that could be used in political conflicts in disputed zones.
The declaration of North-East Somalia came at the conclusion of an eight-day conference held in Lasanod, which ended on August 30. According to Somalia’s Ministry of Interior, the next phase will involve forming a regional parliament and conducting presidential and vice presidential elections for the new state.
Somaliland concluded its message by calling on the international community and Horn of Africa stakeholders to take note of what it called a serious threat to peace and sovereignty, warning that political interference in contested territories could destabilize the region.
