Somalia’s international partners express grave concern over continued violence in Las Anod

By Mohammed Dhaysane

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) - Somalia’s international partners expressed serious concern Monday over the violence and conflict in the northern town of Las Anod, which is now in its 10th week and has left nearly 200 people dead and around a thousand others injured.

Their joint statement came after the group of 15 partners including Belgium, Canada, Denmark, the European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Türkiye, the UK and the US held a joint call with the president of the breakaway region of Somaliland, Muse Bihi Abdi.

“Partners noted that the worrying situation is seriously impacting discussions about their engagement with Somaliland,” said the statement.

They expressed the hope that the security and well-being of the population would be put at the center of all political decisions and stressed that there must be an immediate and unconditional cessation of hostilities and separation of forces to agreed locations.

“We reiterated the importance of ensuring humanitarian access and delivery of assistance to those in need. Similar messages have been passed to other parties of the conflict from the partners”, the statement added.

The partners alleged that the main parties to the conflict have repeatedly and publicly committed to a cease-fire and dialogue but have not yet implemented these commitments.

“We offered our support to identifying paths towards sustainable peace, including assisting to facilitate such dialogue. Partners welcomed the efforts and initiatives by local and regional actors to secure a cease-fire and facilitate a dialogue,” it said.

They also stressed the importance of urgent progress on elections in Somaliland.

“Tangible steps are needed to ensure elections can take place as soon as possible,” they said.

The partners said they appreciated Abdi’s assurances that he is willing to pursue peace and dialogue and allow unhindered humanitarian access to Las Anod but said they were “disappointed that the president did not commit to a withdrawal of Somaliland forces centered around” the town.

Las Anod, the provincial capital of the Sool region in Somaliland, has seen fierce fighting between Somaliland forces and local militias that has been ongoing for the past 10 weeks.

The violence has killed nearly 200 people, including women and children.

The fighting started after a group of traditional leaders announced that they would no longer recognize the Somaliland government and declared that the territory of the Sool and Sanaag region will be ruled from Mogadishu.

Somaliland is a former British protectorate in northwestern Somalia that declared independence in 1991 but has received no international recognition.