Mutinous troops capture a town in central Somalia amid dispute over control

Hiran Salvation Forces [HSF] is led by Colonel Abdullahi Elmi Barre [L] who is against Ali Guudlaawe [Photo: GO]

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The situation in central Somalia is gradually mutating from bad to worse following the latest capture of Baladwayn, an ancient town in Shabelle valley within Hirshabelle state in the Central part of the troubled nation.

Reports from Baladwayne District in the Hiran region indicate that Hiran Salvation Forces [HSF] led by Colonel Abdullahi Elmi Barre from the SNA's 5th battalion captured the town on Sunday night, in a move that could plunge the country into unprecedented chaos in the coming days.

The Mutinous troops, eyewitnesses said, took control of the regional administration offices as protests against the local administration also took place in several streets of the central town. Protesters accused the local administration of neglect.

The residents of the city (some of them armed) staged a mass demonstration in the city, stressing their opposition towards the HirShabelle administration. "We will sacrifice ourselves in defense of this city," said the commander of the forces in control of the city.

This is not the first time Mutinous troops are seizing a town within central Somalia over alleged underperformance of regional administration. Such militia accuses the government of not only abdicating its duties but also failing to provide essentials during calamities.

Further reports indicate that the president of HirShabelle Ali Gudlawe Hussein was set to travel to the city on Monday. Sources close to the matter state that fears of an armed confrontation looms, with the regional troops likely to engage in a battle with the Mutinous troops.

Ali Gudlawe Hussein is a close ally of outgoing President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo and only took over power in October 2020. The opposition has often accused him of working hard to protect the outgoing administration from a possible defeat in upcoming elections.

Adam Abdulle, a security pundit, believes that events in the Hiran region are indications of Farmaajo's card to disrupt elections in the country. Already, all stakeholders have agreed on the right framework for parliamentary polls which had been delayed.

"Hirshabelle was Farmaajo’s final trump card, aimed at disrupting the elections. By tampering with a fragile power-sharing agreement just months before general elections, Farmaajo ensured that elections were marred by violence," he says.

"But the problems in Hirshabelle, like those in Galmudug and Southwest, predate Farmaajo, and are a consequence of the rushed federalization process in 2014-2016, which were created to advance the electoral interests of the then incumbent," he adds.

Somalia is also battling with Al-Shabaab militants, who are keen to topple the fragile UN-backed administration, which was first constituted in 2012. The Al-Shabaab control large swathes of the rural central and southern part of Somalia.

GAROWE ONLINE