Somaliland forces rebuff Puntl militia attacks on two front

[Adan_1]

Somaliland forces rebuff Puntland militia attacks on two fronts



Hargeisa (Observer)- On Wednesday Puntland forces attacked a small village near its border with Somaliland where the National Elections Committee was registering voters for the upcoming presidential elections.



The attack at Awr Bogays was clearly aimed at disrupting the voter registration process. The Puntland militia with 6 technicals launched the attack at the small town, but Somali army units in the area quickly chased the attackers across the border with Puntland. Somaliland’s Minister of Defence, Mr. Ali Ibrahim, told the Observer on Wednesday night that his army destroyed two of the 6 technicals.



A more robust attack by Puntland militia also occurred in the Sool region of Somaliland, where a force of 30 technicals attacked villages in the Agaarane. The attacking militia are reported to have come all the way from Galkayo in the Mudug region and were said to be from former TFG President Abdillahi Yusuf’s militia. The well-armed militia have recently left Mogadishu and Baidoa after Yusuf was ousted as the TFG President. Analysts have feared that the well-armed, unpaid militia will return to Puntland and create instability in the region, a concern that appears to have turned prophetic.



Residents in the area report that the attacking militia shelled civilian areas heavily. Reporters indicate that the fighting started as a small clan dispute that the Puntland used as pretence for a full attack to recapture Sool, which they lost to Somaliland two years ago.



No further fighting was reported on Thursday.