HARGEYSA (Kaab TV) – The Supreme Sultan of the Samaron clan, Sultan Abubakar Sultan Wabar Elmi, returned to Hargeisa on Wednesday after the Somaliland government granted him amnesty.
The Sultan was welcomed upon his arrival at Egal Airport, Hargeisa.
He told the media that he had decided to return following persistent efforts by Somaliland President Abdirahman Abdillahi Irro, who had maintained contact with him for a long time and repeatedly sent delegations to persuade him to return.
“I have always strived for the interests of the Samaron community and that of Somaliland,” Said Sultan Abubakar.
“I send my regards to the President of Somaliland, Abdirahman Abdillahi Irro, who sent elders and delegations to reach out to me,” he added.
Sultan Abubakar Wabar stated that he would hold meetings with Somaliland officials and emphasized that he had long campaigned for the rights of the Samaron community, similar to how now deceased Ali Khalif Galeyr “advocated for the rights of the people of the Sool region”.
Sources within the Somaliland government say the Sultan’s return came after President Abdirahman Irro officially granted him amnesty.
Sultan Abubakar Wabar had been in exile from Somaliland for more than ten years residing in Mogadishu, where he reportedly held several meetings with members of the Federal Government of Somalia.
The Sultan had previously been a leading figure in a movement seeking to separate Awdal state from Somaliland where officials from the Somali federal government stated on several occasions the plan to establish “Awdal State” as a key part of Somalia’s federal system.
The Sultan and several diaspora politicians also met with representatives from Djibouti, China, and Turkey, who supported efforts aimed at seceding the Awdal region in order to separate it from the rest of Somaliland.
Since Somaliland established ties with Israel, the Somali government in Mogadishu has intensified political and clan-based activities in Awdal State. However, local observers view Sultan Abubakar Wabar’s return to Somaliland as a major setback for the proposed “Awdal State” project.