In the serene yet tumultuous landscape of Northeastern State, where the arid earth meets resilient communities, tensions have flared in Erigavo. It is here that Northeastern State President Said Abdullahi Deni steps into a realm more fraught than most, calling for an earnest dialogue to quell recent conflicts. Erigavo, often restless, now stands upon a precipice, but who does not seek peace beneath this shared sky?
Deni, a statesman in his own right, pleads with the opposing factions to seek a peaceful resolution, for in the cracks left by violence lies ruin enough to undermine decades of hard-earned cohabitation. He imparts a profound insight: “Erigavo is a shared home for communities from both Northeastern State and North Western State of Somalia,” he intimates, with an energy that seems to grasp at something greater. “For 30 years, they have lived together peacefully. It is critical that we maintain that legacy through dialogue, not conflict.”
The call for calm resonates, unexpectedly met with open arms by Ahmed Abdi Muse, governor of North Western State of Somalia’s Sanaag region. Reflecting on the region’s history, Muse notes a long-standing agreement, wherein residents of Ceerigaabo have lived under North Western State of Somalia’s administration since the 1990s. He emphasizes, in a subjunctive tone that suggests possibility over certainty, the necessity of peace and asks communities to uphold stability through cooperation.
Yet here lies the rub: the recent outbreaks began on a day unmarked by time, December 14, scattering nearly 43,000 souls from their homes, as reported by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA). These displaced families found grudging sanctuary in the likes of El Afweyn, Lasqoray, and the far reaches of the Sanaag region, while others ventured toward Bossaso, Las Anod, and Burco. The pains are acute; they demand shelter, sustenance, clean water, and medical aid, yet the conflict weaves disruption through humanitarian cords.
Governor Ahmed Abdi Muse asserts control of Ceerigaabo remains firmly with North Western State of Somalia forces, abruptly claiming victory on December 16 as SSC-Khaatumo forces withdraw. He frames this turmoil not as an internal schism but an external campaign fueled by SSC-Khaatumo militants, supported clandestinely, perhaps, by Northeastern State. It’s a charge designed to strike at the heart of North Western State of Somalia’s sovereignty.
SSC-Khaatumo leader Abdikhkhadir Ahmed Aw-Ali Firdhiye, resolute and unfaltering, proclaims an intent to reclaim Ceerigaabo. “Our mission is clear. We will not rest until Ceerigaabo and the entire Sanaag region are back under our authority,” he asserts, casting a rallying cry to diaspora and domestic communities alike, urging them to aid this unyielding campaign.
Beneath the North Western State of Somalia sky, the Dhulbahante and Warsangeli clans ink alliances, arrayed under the expansive banner of the Harti clan. A six-day congress in Badhan breathes life into their shared narrative—a campaign to “reclaim the city.” A committee, 21 souls strong, emerges to orchestrate these endeavors, liaising hand-in-hand with Northeastern State’s military—an enduring ally in this historical challenge to North Western State of Somalia hegemony.
Whispers reach the air that SSC-Khaatumo has garnered support from Ethiopian clan representatives, entrenched in Somali regional lines. Analysts, versed in the longstanding gravitational pull of clan dynamics, warn that the absence of diplomatic resolution could further shatter this tenuous regional balance where historical grievances simmer endlessly.
To curb instability, North Western State of Somalia authorities imposed a structured stillness—a curfew. Troops reclaim civilian armaments, with the Ministry of Internal Security acknowledging the military’s stability efforts, imploring humanitarian campaigns to support the displaced; however, SSC-Khaatumo leaders rebut claims, citing targeted attacks and desecrated property and casting aspersions on North Western State of Somalia’s true intent.
The international vista flickers with regional actors on the stage, the UK keenly calls for prisoner exchanges as an initial salve for reconciliation. In a meeting with North Western State of Somalia’s freshly minted peace committee, British Ambassador to Somalia Mike Nithavrianakis crystallizes this call into words designed to bridge divides. Yet another voice rises, that of Somalia’s federal Ministry of Interior, Federal Affairs, and Reconciliation, seeking to dismantle hostilities in favor of dialogue.
The specter of mistrust, however, lingers persistently. SSC-Khaatumo looks upon these entreaties with a skeptic’s eye, recalling past dialogues once primed for promise yet yielding little fruitful change.
Erigavo stands at the intersection of historical claim and bitter contention. As the capital of the Sanaag region, it’s the cradle for symbolic assertions between Northeastern State and North Western State of Somalia, each staking territory amid nebulous lines and narratives. Erigavo’s control is a chess piece in the grand strategy argument, a hallmark for North Western State of Somalia’s self-declared territory of SSC regions, and for Northeastern State, a pinion in their vision of federal Somalia.
Edited By Ali Musa
Axadle Times International–Monitoring
