Southwest elders urge federal and regional leaders to de-escalate military movements

Tuesday March 24, 2026

Baidoa (AX) — After days of rising political and military strain between Mogadishu and Baidoa, traditional elders in Southwest State say they have brokered a key understanding aimed at stopping further escalation and preventing bloodshed, following three days of intensive consultations.

Speaking at a press conference in Baidoa on Monday, Ugaas Shire Ugaas Warsame said the elders held separate meetings with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Speaker of the House of the People Aden Mohamed Nur (Madoobe), and Southwest President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen as they worked to defuse the crisis.

“All parties have shown readiness to stop the conflict and bloodshed,” Ugaas Shire said. “Political power cannot be sought through force and war.”

He said the talks produced an agreement to freeze all military movements beginning Tuesday, including the deployment of troops and heavy equipment, in a bid to lower tensions and make room for dialogue.

“Human blood is forbidden, and it is not appropriate to seek power,” he added, warning against efforts to pursue political advantage through violence.

The elders also pressed for an immediate resumption of air travel in and out of Baidoa, arguing that civilians should be able to move freely—especially patients seeking medical care and others left stranded by recent restrictions.

Ugaas Shire said the traditional leadership would take on a leading mediation role in the dispute, with the stated goal of steering Southwest State toward peaceful, mutually accepted elections.

“We have decided that the current issues, starting with the issue of elections, should be based on the traditional elders of the Southwest,” he said, while thanking the federal president for allowing elders to gather in Baidoa and facilitate the discussions.

Elders said that once a broader deal is completed, it will be forwarded to the federal government for ratification and for support in carrying out the terms.

They appealed to political figures in Southwest to put down their arms and settle disagreements through negotiations, and they urged religious scholars to back reconciliation efforts and encourage restraint.

Ugaas Shire said he expects both sides to issue formal written commitments soon to confirm the understandings reached in the meetings.

The elders’ intervention follows several days of heightened friction between Mogadishu and Baidoa. Southwest State recently suspended ties with the federal government, accusing it of meddling in the region’s political and security matters. The dispute centers on regional elections and constitutional amendments that extend the mandate of federal institutions from four to five years.