BOSASO, Somalia (AXADLE) – “Puntland is rolling up its sleeves,” they say, focusing its efforts on investigating ISIS’s sneaky dealings with the gold hidden in the rugged stretches of the Bari region. Apparently, this treasure hunt is bankrolling their terrifying escapades there.
Just last Monday, Puntland security forces were busy fending off an ISIS stunt—an audacious suicide car bomb party, swiftly followed by a hardcore gunfight raid at the army camp in Dharjaalle, nestled in the remote beauty of the Bari region. The aftermath wasn’t pretty—for ISIS, at least. The security forces managed to neutralize the threat and recovered 12 bodies of those who thought they could mess with Puntland, including recruits from afar, like Tanzania, Morocco, and beyond.
Later, ISIS’s own promo clips confirmed it was indeed their fighters. Puntland’s intelligence folks observed that these foreign recruits seem quite chummy with the militant outfit in the region. Most of them are absolutely savvy in the gold-digging business, exploiting the lucrative mineral portfolios the area boasts.
Local workers, meanwhile, are reported to be roped into the mining game, with communities under ISIS’s thumb finding themselves being bled dry financially, stopping just short of disrupting the extortion racket.
“These thugs have just waltzed in here to pillage our resources and exploit our folks,” barked Abdirahman Mohamed Jama, the head honcho of Puntland Maritime Police, as he huddled up with residents from Timirshe village over the weekend.
Puntland’s honchos, alongside their UAE-schooled maritime cops, are rallying the villagers, nudging them to share intel, and to slam the breaks on any sneaky dealings with these radical scumbags.
“Keep calm and carry on, ’cause we’re standing guard here. Nobody’s laying a finger on you,” promised Mohamud Silal Omar, another security bigwig.
Interestingly, the rough-and-ready geography of the Bari region doesn’t make it any easier for the security fellas. The coastlines are littered with distant fishing hamlets, perfect launchpads for loot, making the sea a clear alley for the bad guys.
Such access is a jet stream, propelling the movement of their warriors and goodies, not to mention the smuggling of their shiny gold and lethal toys.
Puntland’s number two, Deputy President Ilyas Osman, flagged last month that foreign recruits make up a hefty 80% of ISIS’s muscle in the region.
Osman also mentioned the group’s cunning ploy to seize control near the bustling maritime pathway of the Red Sea, which is often dubbed the spine of global trade.
There’s chatter of ISIS and Al-Shabaab swapping weapons with Yemen’s notorious Houthi militia, cranking up the alarm over this wide-open sea lane between Puntland and Yemen.
Intelligence folks suspect that the gold ISIS digs up might well be swapped for arms, though whether the Houthis or others are players in this game remains vague.
Word from the ground is that cash flowing from these mining ventures is fueling conflicts across major spots, including Bosaso, Puntland’s key port city along the rich stretch of the Red Sea.
Faced with this scenario, Puntland has unveiled “Hillac Operation,” marshalling thousands of soldiers into the remote mountainous nooks to tear down ISIS’s cash cow.
Puntland’s head honcho, President Said Abdullahi Deni, passionately emphasized that axeing ISIS’s financial web—thanks to the strong-arm tactics against local businesses and gold mining—is pivotal to resurrecting calm in the region.
The mix of exploiting resources, unchecked coastal pathways, and foreign fighters creates an alarming cocktail of threats from ISIS in not just Puntland, but the Horn of Africa at large.
Security buffs are waving red flags, asserting that unless immediate, robust moves are taken, ISIS’s operations could unleash turmoil on a broader scale, rocking both the regional and international boat.
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
Axadle international–Monitoring
