Somaliland

Somaliland Battles against Three Deadly Wars—Clan, Jihad, & Pan-Somalism

February 28, 2011   ·   2052141 Commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fsomalilandpress.com%2Fsomaliland-battles-against-three-deadly-wars%25e2%2580%2594clan-jihad-pan-somalism-20521Somaliland+Battles+against+Three+Deadly+Wars%E2%80%94Clan%2C+Jihad%2C+%26+Pan-Somalism+2011-03-01+03%3A23%3A30Mo+Guledhttp%3A%2F%2Fsomalilandpress.com%2F%3Fp%3D20521

While the International community revives Somalia, an ominous storm gathers at Somaliland´s borders. The storm gains momentum, and so does the invasive war with ghastly stories to tell. And unlike Somalia´s “Transitional Federal Government” (TFG) that fights against only Jihadists, Somaliland faces three violent groups with conflicting ideologies but with one common goal: achieving Somali unity—at any cost. That is, Somaliland now battles against clan militias, Jihadists, and pan-Somalism rebels.

Buhodle town, in Togdheer province of Somaliland, after enjoying stability and tranquility for over tow decades, now hosts clan militias, Jihadist warriors, and pan-Somalism fighters. A deadly mixture, the town remains a tinder box waiting to explode. And one of Buhodle´s violent militias, the SSC (PSS/NSUM) uses the town as a lunch pad to attack Somaliland security forces. The SSC´s top warlords: a Somali-American from Columbus, Ohio, Suleman Essa Ahmed (Hagal Tosiye), and a Somali-Canadian from Toronto, Col. Ali Hassan Ahmed Sabarey repeatedly call for a clan war to trap Somaliland army. First, the warlords´ objectives are to goad the local clans against one another. Second, of course, once clan fights erupt, Somaliland security forces intervene and disband the clan fighters. But in doing so, the SSC´s warlords accuse Somaliland forces of taking sides and massacring their clan (Dhulbahante, sub-clan of Darod clan). Hence, the warlords hope that either the wider Darod clan of Somalia or Puntland´s would rescue the SSC militias. Also, traditionally, Puntland prefers fueling a clan war in Somaliland to engaging Somaliland militarily.

Now, Puntland´s governor, Abdirahman Mohamud Farole, the epicenter of the clan violence in Somaliland and the primary weapons supplier to the SSC militias, never conceals his clannish war against Somaliland. Recently, he tells the BBC, “We will strike Somaliland…” (How about striking pirates that hold 815 seafarers and 50 ships hostage, mainly, in Puntland?) “…because we don´t want Somaliland in our people´s [our clan´s men of Dhulbahante] land; their land is ours; and they are our people…” he adds. Puntland disregards Somaliland´s borders; it wants to draw clan boundaries based on the regions inhabited by the Harti clans (Majerten, the predominant clan in Puntland, Dhulbahante, and Warsangeli), members of the wider Darod clan in the Horn of Africa. He also permits the SSC commanders to take off from Puntland´s airports via Mogadishu. For instance, the current SSC´s commander, Yassin Ali Abdi (Tamad), a former Puntland elections´ candidate, arrives in Puntland from Mogadishu after conducting meetings with the TFG and Al-Shabab officials to shore up support for his militias. He then travels to the battlefields near Buhodle, without a hitch, few days ago.

On his way to Buhodle, Mr. Abdi (Tamad) meets former Puntland´s aviations Minister, Ahmed Ilmi Isman (Karash) in Tuke Raq village, in Sool province of Somaliland. Mr. Isman (Karash) too now assembles his militias to attack Somaliland. According to Mr. Abdi (Tamad), they agree to amass enough forces to attack Somaliland security forces in Las Annod, the provincial capital of Sool. Also, the vice governor of Puntland, Gen.Abdisamad Ali Shire, a former Somaliland army commander, who hails from the Dhulbahante clan, is in Tuke Raq village. Gen. Shire will be responsible for commanding thousands of clan militias from as far afield as Somalia´s Gedo province in habited by Marehan (a Darod sub-clan), the current Somali PM, a pro-SSC group, Mohammed Abdullahi Mohammed´s (Farmajo) clan and the Ogden region in Ethiopia, home to Ogden clan(a Darod sub-clan). Marehan clan militias and ONLF rebels now arrive in Tuke Raq village in droves, gearing up for a showdown with Somaliland security forces. The SSC (PSS/NSUM) and ONLF´s common interests is summarized by none other than the SSC itself, as its “executive” committee states, “It needs no reminding that the SSC and the Ogaden peoples do not only share territory in the Ogaden but are also bound by close blood ties. It has therefore itself to blame if it forces the SSC people to throw their lot with the ONLF and together face their common enemy.” Well the opportunity is here now.

Evidently, Gen. Shire´s clan war campaign is further testified by Garad Saleban Garad Mohamed, a pro-Puntland Dhulbahante clan chief. He details, “We are preparing forces and Puntland forces and, of course, its leaders will be part of the upcoming attacks against Somaliland.” (Oddly enough, Garad Saleban´s son recently switches allegiances and joins Somaliland, as the Garad himself admits.)

Also, the second warlord in command of the SSC rebels, Col. Sabarey calls for a clan war long before the Buhodle conflict erupts, and today he openly retreats his wishes to see a massive bloodbath between the Darod clan of Somalia and Isaq clan of Somaliland. This is exactly how Puntland officials and SSC warmongers want to roll the dice. Doubtless, the devastating clan war they hope for now looms. No doubt, Puntland and Al-Shabab as well as Eritrea are all involved in this battle. And although the recent nine anti-tank mines captured in Hargeisa, Somaliland´s capital, is still under investigation, very likely they come from Eretria and destined to Buhodle.

Just like the clan militias, many of the fighters embroiled in conflict with Somaliland security forces are motivated by pan-Somalism ideologies. Their objective is to destabilize Somaliland and reduce it to tiny clan enclaves, where each clan controls its territory, with countless warlords. Hence, tearing the fabric of Somaliland society is yet another perquisite for Somali unity. That is, the SSC´s top warlord, Mr. Ahmed, a “celebrity” wannabe, directs his orders to attack Somaliland security forces from his cozy house in the U.S.A., in the name of resurrecting Somali unity. (Surely, the money spent on Mr. Ahmed´s makeup alone could have bought enough water to submerge the drought-stricken town of Buhodle.) Mr. Ahmed, a former Puntland elections´ candidate, also demands Somalis to join his SSC militias to defend Somali “unity”. He states, “Our goal is to unify Somalia and we repeatedly ask Somalis to join our fight against Somaliland.” Well, how about taking the fight to Al-Shabab held territory of southern Somalia, instead of engulfing peaceful and democratic Somaliland? Let´s put Somali “patriotism” (or hollow mantras) to the test, shall we?

Now, unlike the clan and pan-Somalis wars, the deadliest of all battles remains the Jihadists´ war against Somaliland. No sooner is the SSC groomed in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2009, than a wave of bombings strikes Somaliland cities. Now, the evidences against the SSC (PPS/NSUM)´s connection to Al-Shabab is overwhelming. To illustrate this claim, first, the SSC itself admits bombing police stations in Las Annod. Second, Somali MPs in Mogadishu warn against the growing relationship between Al-Shabab and the SSC group. Also, the previous and the current Somaliland governments declare the SSC as a terror-bent organization. And above all, now the SSC itself circulates its Jihadist videos in the Internet, a copycat of Al-Shabab´s Jihad war. In a video clip, the SSC militants call for Jihad war against Somaliland, shouting “God is great and calling for holy war against Somaliland” the familiar chilling voices of the typical terror groups. (Unfortunately, as I write this paper, the video is being removed. But, of course, the authorities can simply obtain a copy from the YouTube Company.) God is, of course, great. But the SSC´s misuse and abuse of the word God and the verses from the Koran, just like Al-Shabab does, worries many people. Yet, the man leading this violent group that demands a holy war against peaceful and democratic republic of Somaliland lives in the U.S. freely. By harboring a known terrorist, the U.S. is, inadvertently or ignorantly, endangering its security cooperation with Somaliland and that of the entire region.

Meanwhile, Somaliland´s efforts to disarm the SSC group peacefully never lose steam. For instance, the Somaliland President, Mr. Ahmed Mohamed Mohamud Silanyo, tells the BBC, “Since I took office, this is the fourth time I call for peaceful dialogue to end the violence in Buhodle. I have sent high-level delegations to the area and accepted their recommendations. But, Puntland´s Minister of Fishing encouraged clan wars. Also, Mr. Farole [the governor of Puntland] himself has been fueling the clan conflicts in Somaliland. And Puntland delegations visited Buhodle to openly campaign for inciting clan violence. Despite our peace efforts to reach out to the disgruntled groups in Buhodle, the anti-peace elements attacked our security forces three times. And we are still hopeful that peace will prevail.”

Now more than ever before, clan militias, Jihadist suicide bombers, and pan-Somalism rebels vow to inflict a major blow to Somaliland guarded peace and democracy. With their conflicting ideologies, despite these three militants, Puntland, and TFG all squabbling and maintaining a chronic instability in Somalia, there is one thing that unites them: that is, coercing Somaliland to reunify with Somalia—at any cost. So, the idea of disintegrating Somaliland into clan enclaves, launching pan-Somalism struggle, and conducting a holy war against Somaliland is no longer a perceived threat, but it is a coordinated strategy unfolding before our eyes.

Therefore, IGAD, U.N., U.S. and U.E. aught to avert catastrophic clan, Jihad, and pan-Somalism wars brewing near Somaliland borders. Failure to persuade Puntland that clan ambition is, indisputably, the root cause of Somalia´s turmoil, could compel Somaliland to snap and react, swiftly and devastatingly, after two decades of hoping that peace will prevail one day. Also, the war could spillover into Puntland´s territory, for the first time.

Dalmar Kaahin
dalmar_k@yahoo.com

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By Mo Guled

Tags: Dalmar Kahin, Puntland, Somaliland, Somaliland Army, Somalilandpress, ssc