Written by Jama A. Feyte
A recent clan conference in Badhan, spearheaded by Dhulbahante and Warsangali leaders, has ignited fresh tensions between Somalia and Somaliland, with prominent Somaliland traditional leader Boqor Osman Aw Mohamud Buurmadow accusing Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of orchestrating the gathering to provoke unrest.
The conference concluded with clan leaders announcing plans to seize the strategic city of Erigavo, located in Somaliland’s Sanaag region, triggering fears of an impending military confrontation. Buurmadow described the meeting as a politically motivated scheme to undermine Somaliland’s sovereignty under the pretext of democratic reforms.
“This is a project driven by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud,” Buurmadow said. “He is using the idea of a one-person, one-vote election to justify his interference in Sool and Sanaag, but in reality, he is fueling conflict.”
Buurmadow warned that the clans had begun stockpiling weapons and were preparing for a full-scale offensive. He claimed that their primary goal was to destabilize Somaliland by taking over key cities, starting with Erigavo.
“They have resolved to capture Erigavo, and preparations for war are already underway,” Buurmadow said, accusing clan militias of breaking previous ceasefire agreements and attacking rural communities.
In 2000, Boqor Osman Aw Mohamud Buurmadow, a prominent Somaliland traditional leader, was crowned as Boqor or king, in Somali. Mohamud is known for his efforts at mediating regional conflicts, particularly among clans in Somaliland.
He earned fame as a mediator between Abdullahi Yusuf, the first and founding president of the Puntland region in northern Somalia and Mohamud Muse Hersi (Gen Adde Muuse) in the dispute over the presidency in Puntland between 2002 and 2003.
With the help of his mediation, a peace agreement that prevented Puntland from an all out civil war and guaranteed its stability for the coming years was finally signed in May 2003. Mohamud has since then been considered a man with great influence and with good connections to the governments of both Somaliland and Puntland.
