The Vietnam News Agency correspondent in Africa, citing medical sources on February 7, confirmed that at least 24 people were killed and 53 others injured on the day. fierce fighting second in the breakaway Somaliland region of Somaliaafter local leaders announced their intention to rejoin the Somali Federation.
Somaliland broke away from Somalia in 1991, but was not widely recognized by the international community and was opposed by some tribal elders in eastern Somaliland who supported Mogadishu’s control.
On February 7, Somaliland said militants from the vicinity of Puntland, a semi-autonomous region of Somalia, were fighting with local militias in the town of Las Anod. However, Puntland has denied the allegation.
[Somalia: Đụng độ ở Somaliland khiến ít nhất 34 người thiệt mạng]
According to two local doctors, the bodies of 58 people have been taken to their public hospital in the town of Las Anod since the raids began. conflict broke out on the morning of February 6, with many wounded unable to go to the hospital because of intense fighting in the town.
Elders in Las Anod said electricity and water had been cut off, while medical centers were attacked with mortars.
One resident shared: “Somaliland forces are carrying out a fierce attack on medical facilities and civilian homes. The number of civilians killed and injured cannot be assessed at this time.”
It is not clear which side initiated the fighting, but the violence came just a day after a committee made up of local leaders, religious scholars and civil society groups declared their disapproval of the government. Somaliland.
The interior minister of the semi-autonomous Puntland region, Abdi Farah Said Juhaa, insisted his government, which controlled the town of Las Anod in the past, was not involved in the fighting and that Somaliland should withdraw its troops from Las. Anod and other areas.
Also on February 7, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud called for a ceasefire, emphasizing: “Let the Somaliland government and the tribal elders of Las Anod sit down and talk. The solution is that we pursue the goal of a unified Somalia.”
Nguyen Truong (VNA/Vietnam+)