Understanding Las anod conflict: Exclusionary politics, strategic (re) alignment, and rupture

In early February 2023, a major conflict broke out in Las Anod, the capital of the Sool region, between Somaliland forces and the local community. This followed the shooting and crackdown on protesters expressing their frustration over the killing of an opposition party official, Abdifatah Abdullahi Abdi (aka Hadrawi), in the evening of December 26, 2022. He was the latest victim of a string of assassinations targeting prominent figures in the city. These continued killings and the government’s harsh response to the protesters aggravated the tension, prompting traditional leaders to gather in the city and issue a communal statement, calling on the government to leave their land peacefully, failing which they will take up arms against it. Somaliland rejected the elders’ decision, and the two parties started fighting over the control of the city.

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