HARGEISA (KAAB TV) – Somaliland’s ministry of defense has made allegations claiming that various armed forces, including the Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF) trained by the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Somalia government forces trained in Eritrea, and U.S.-trained Puntland counter-terror units, are participating in the conflict in Laascaanood.
According to Somaliland ministry of defense, these forces have joined forces with the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabaab group with the intention of destabilizing and destroying Somaliland.
The ministry released a statement on Wednesday expressing concerns over the involvement of these forces.
It stated, “Our intelligence sources have unequivocally confirmed that the Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF), trained by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to combat terrorist groups and pirates operating in Puntland-State of Somalia, has now joined this malevolent alliance. Furthermore, we are deeply concerned about the participation of Puntland-State of Somalia soldiers, who were trained by the USA to combat terrorism and piracy but are now involved in attacks against Somaliland.”
Somaliland claims to have been subjected to relentless attacks and ongoing efforts to destabilize the region by a coalition consisting of forces from “Puntland State of Somalia, terrorist groups, militias from Laascaanood, and Somalia soldiers trained in Eritrea”.
This is not the first time such allegations have been made by Somaliland. Puntland has previously denied involvement in the conflict in Laascaanood, despite members of the Daarood clan militia from Puntland joining forces with their fellow Dhulbahahte in Laascaanood.
Meanwhile, the U.S.-trained Somali National Army brigade, Danab, stated that they are not participating in the conflict in Laascaanood, which they described as a “clan conflict.”
Commander Ahmed Abdulahi Beeryare, of Danab, stated, “The primary objective of the Danab Unit within the Somali National Army is to fight against terrorist organizations within Somalia. Danab will remain fully committed to this objective and will not engage in any clan conflicts or clan-related affairs.”
However, evidence has emerged indicating that a U.S.-trained Danab officer, Mohamed Sulaiman, joined the fighters in Laascaanood and was killed in the fighting in March.
Commander Beeryare responded by saying, “It is necessary to clarify that the individual referred to in recent reports, Mohamed Sulaiman, was a former officer within the SNA Danab who left in 2021 for personal reasons.”
There have been no immediate comments from the U.S. Embassy or the U.S. Africa Command regarding the new allegations made by Somaliland. The UAE Embassy in Somalia has not responded to the statement from Somaliland’s ministry of defense.