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| Africa Horn |
| Tensions in the Horn of Africa escalate as competing regional influences converge on Somaliland and Somalia |
| 2026-01-15 |
Text: Tensions in the Horn of Africa are escalating as competing regional influences converge on Somaliland and Somalia, with Saudi Arabia emerging as a central actor increasingly challenging areas long shaped by Emirati influence. The immediate trigger came from remarks by Somalia’s Minister of Defence, Ahmed Moalim Fiqi, who publicly called on Saudi Arabia to intervene militarily against Somaliland. Speaking to @ajmubasher, Fiqi said: “We call on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to intervene militarily, with full authority, against the Somaliland administration, just as it did with @AidrosAlzubidi in Yemen.” The statement marked a sharp rhetorical escalation and signaled Mogadishu’s willingness to internationalize the dispute. This led directly to a formal response today from Somaliland. In a press release issued in Hargeisa on 11 January 2026, the Somaliland government strongly condemned the Somali federal government’s calls for foreign military intervention, describing them as a serious and irresponsible escalation and a clear violation of the United Nations Charter and international law. Somaliland reiterated that it is not under Mogadishu’s authority, stating that it lawfully restored its sovereignty in 1991 within its internationally recognized 1960 borders and has since maintained peace, stability, and democratic governance. The government warned that it holds Somalia fully responsible for the consequences of such rhetoric, while reaffirming its commitment to peace and its inherent right to self-defense. More at the link Related: Somaliland: 2026-01-13 Retaliation against the UAE disrupted Emirati weapons shipments to the RSF in western Sudan Somaliland: 2026-01-12 Somali army has deployed to the northern regions in Las Anod in North Eastern State Somaliland: 2026-01-10 Somalia, US relations hit low point as Washington pauses aid to government |
| Posted by:badanov |