Somaliland Withdraws Troops from Disputed Town to Halt Violence
Security forces in
Somalia's breakaway republic of Somaliland on Thursday withdrew from the
contested border town of Las Anod after days of deadly protests. The town is
claimed by Somalia's Puntland State but run by Somaliland, which broke from
Somalia in 1991. Anti-government protests erupted there last week after a
politician was shot dead, leading to clashes with police in which at least
eight other people were killed.
Las Anod Mayor
Abdirahim Ali told VOA calm returned to the town Thursday after traditional
leaders called on all sides to maintain peace as Somaliland withdrew troops.
He says the troops
stationed in the town were instructed by their commanders to withdraw and
return to their previous stations. Ali says elders, the business community, and
everyone who supports security and peace in Las Anod have agreed to work
together to restore the peace that once existed in this town.
Somaliland deployed
troops to the disputed border town after deadly clashes broke out last week
between anti-government protesters and police.
The protests were
sparked by the shooting death of a local politician and escalated Wednesday
when a shopkeeper was shot dead.
Medical sources in Las
Anod told VOA at least 15 people were killed in the fighting over the past week
but Dr. Abdirahim Warfa, who works in the town's main public hospital, recorded
only eight deaths.
Somalia's Puntland
State claims Las Anod, which is controlled by Somaliland, a northern territory
that broke away from Somalia in 1991.
Somaliland is self-governed
and more stable than Somalia, but not recognized internationally as a country.
Hassan Sheikh, a
political analyst at Somali National University, said people in La Anod
identify more with Somalia than Somaliland.
Political grievances
are a major part of the Las Anod violence, he said, because people lack
representatives in the bodies of government that correspond to their social,
economic, and territorial groups.
Abdiwahab Sheikh
Abdisamad, director of the Nairobi-based HORN International Institute for
Strategic Studies, said Somaliland has failed to convince Las Anod's population
to support its breaking away from Somalia.
He said in the fifteen
years since Somaliland's administration was established in Las Anod aren't
convinced that Somaliland's project to split them from the rest of Somalia is
viable, since the population does not favor it. Abdisamad said to persuade
them, Somaliland tried to use force, which is impossible.
Somaliland army
commanders said they withdrew from the town to avoid further escalation but
said they would prevent further instability.
Sheikh said the
uprising that occurred in Las Anod could lead to others and spread from town to
town. He said that could negatively impact Somaliland's political goal, which
is to secede from Somalia.
Somaliland President
Muse Bihi on Wednesday dismissed concerns about the deadly unrest, calling it
an "incidental clash between the police and the people."
Bihi promised an
investigation into the violence but also declared a readiness to defend the
territory if neighboring Puntland declared war.
Somaliland and Puntland
have a history of disputes over their border areas that occasionally turn
violent.
While Somaliland is relatively
stable, it has seen protests in recent months that turned violent and raised
international concerns.
In August, clashes
between police and opposition supporters over delayed elections saw at least
five people killed and scores injured.
VOA
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