Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed

Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed

Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed (Somali: Cabdullaahi Yuusuf Axmed, Arabic: عبدالله يوسف أحمد‎) (born December 15, 1934) is a veteran Somali politician and was the transitional President of Somalia from 2004 until 2008.

Ahmed was born in 1934 in the town of Gaalkacyo situated in the north-central Mudug region of Somalia. He later joined the Somali army, and was among the first cadet officials sent to Italy in 1957, together with Mohamed Farrah Aidid and others. As an army officer, Ahmed participated in the Somali-Ethiopian wars of 1964 and 1977. He was decorated for bravery in both conflicts, but remained a colonel throughout his military career.

In 1978, Ahmed, together with a group of officials mostly from his own Majeerteen (Darod) clan, participated in a failed coup attempt against the regime of then President of Somalia, Mohamed Siad Barre. Yusuf escaped to Kenya, then to Ethiopia where he started a rebel movement called SODAF, which later became the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (SSDF).

Disagreements arose between Yusuf and his Ethiopian hosts when Somalia and Ethiopia signed a pact in 1984 to not support opposing militias who were based in each other's respective countries. For his refusal to obey Ethiopian generals, Yusuf was sent to jail where he remained for five years until his release when the then-ruling Dergue was overthrown in 1991.

Yusuf later became President of the semi-autonomous Puntland macro-region in northern Somalia.

On October 10, 2004, in a session held by the Transitional Federal Parliament (TFP), Yusuf was elected as President of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). He was sworn in a few ways later on October 14, 2004.

In September 1978, Ahmed, as a former army officer in the Somali National Army (SNA), founded the SSDF, a guerrilla movement aimed at ousting the Somali dictator Siad Barre.

In the 1990s, Ahmed emerged as the pre-eminent leader of his native Puntland region; he declared the territory autonomous in 1998. On July 23, 1998, he became the President of Puntland and served in this position until his term expired on July 1, 2001. However, after this he continued to declare himself to be the President of Puntland and started a military campaign against the new leadership, which had elected Jama Ali Jama in November 2001. In May 2002 he gained control of Puntland's capital and was recognized as President of Puntland again, though rebellions continued until 2003. Ahmed then continued serving as President of Puntland until October 2004 when he resigned to become President of Somalia. He is said to have an authoritarian approach to leadership.

The United States Department of State, in its 2002 Country Report on Human Rights Practices, identifies militia members loyal to Ahmed as being responsible for at least two deliberate killings of non-combatants while he was president of the disputed regional state of Puntland. On January 11, 2002, Garah Mohammed Said Gom'ad, a prominent businessman, was reportedly killed by forces loyal to Ahmed in a deliberate attack in which Ahmed's militia reportedly stopped his car and Gom'ad was fatally shot. On August 17, 2002, Sultan Ahmed Mohamoud Mohammed, a British citizen, was killed by bodyguards in the employ of Ahmed as their respective convoys passed each other approximately two miles south of the Puntland capital of Garoowe. Ahmed reportedly claimed the death was accidental and that his men were only attempting to question Mohamed and fired to get the attention of the convoy Mohammed was traveling in, but witnesses have claimed otherwise. According to press reports, Mohammed was targeted by Ahmed for arrest as a religious extremist. The Country Report says that by the end of 2002 no action had been taken against those responsible for the killings. Militias associated with Ahmed were also implicated in the killings of Farah Mohamed Said ("Farah Dheere") in Garowe in 2002.

On October 10, 2004, Ahmed was elected by the Transitional Federal Parliament to the position of President of Somalia. Ahmed got 189 votes from the TFG Parliament, while the closest contender got 79 votes.

As President, he pledged to promote reconciliation and to set about rebuilding the country. However, his government was plagued by internal disagreements and contentions with other power-holders in Somalia. For example, he was at loggerheads with some warlords and government members over where the administration should be based. The president and prime minister opposed a move to Mogadishu, citing security reasons. He helped to relocate the Transitional Federal Institutions (TFIs) along with his Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Ghedi and the Speaker of the Parliament Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden from Nairobi to the cities of Jowhar and mainly Baidoa, where the TFG resided until the government took control of Mogadishu.

The make up of a possible foreign peacekeeping force – in particular the inclusion of Ethiopian troops – was another bone of contention. Ethiopia has been accused of backing rival Somali warlords in order to keep the country weak. The African Union Mission to Somalia (IGASOM) mission therefore excludes countries neighboring Somalia from participating in peacekeeping.

In May 2006, the Second Battle of Mogadishu started and CNN reported that there were Transitional government forces in action, but Ahmed told the BBC the alliance of warlords were not fighting on behalf of the government and threatened to fire them. Indeed, members of the government who were part of the warring Alliance for the Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism (ARPCT) were sacked. Others left the government in disaffection after the victories of the Islamic Courts Union.

On September 18, 2006, a suicide car bomber smashed his vehicle into Ahmed's convoy outside the National Parliament in Baidoa. The attack killed four of Ahmed's bodyguards, as well as Ahmed's brother. Six attackers were also killed in the subsequent gun battle. Ahmed's life was most likely saved by the fact that he travelled in the second vehicle in the convoy rather than the front one, a decoy. The Islamic Court's Union, which had recently taken control of much of the country, was blamed for the attack.

After the beginning of the War in Somalia on December 21, 2006, with the help of Ethiopia, the TFG forces took control of Somalia and the capital, Mogadishu, from the hands of the Islamic Courts Union. By 28 December, the Transitional Federal Government captured Mogadishu as the ICU forces fled.

On January 8, 2007, as the Battle of Ras Kamboni raged, TFG President Ahmed entered Mogadishu for the first time since being elected. It was announced the government would be relocated to Villa Somalia, in Mogadishu, from its interim location at Baidoa. This marks the first time since the fall of the Siad Barre regime in 1991 that with the help of the Ethiopian troops, a Somali government controlled the most of the country. However, it wasn't to last. The Islamists regrouped and took back most of their territories. If the Ethiopian troops withdrew, the Somali government would collapse because its national army is not well trained.

Yusuf underwent a liver transplant in the 1990s. In early December 2007 he was admitted to a hospital in Nairobi for treatment of what his spokesman described as bronchitis, and on January 4, 2008 he collapsed in Baidoa and was taken to Ethiopia for treatment. Two days later, he was rushed to London for tests. He returned to Mogadishu on February 16, 2008; rebels promptly fired mortars at the presidential compound, reportedly wounding at least five people.

In the second half of 2008, Yusuf had been at loggerheads with then Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein over a proposed new cabinet, the latter of which Yusuf characterized as nothing more than a "clan deal".

On December 14, 2008, Yusuf announced that he had dismissed Hussein and his government, citing corruption, inefficiency, treason and failure to bring peace to the war-torn country as reasons for the dismissal. Earlier in the year, Hussein had survived a vote of no confidence after having been accused by some lawmakers of embezzling state funds.

Hussein said that Yusuf did not have the power to fire him without parliamentary approval, while Yusuf asserted that he believed Parliament would endorse the dismissal. Parliament supported Hussein in a vote on December 15, but Yusuf nevertheless appointed Mohamoud Mohamed Guled as Prime Minister to replace Hussein on December 16.

Following Guled's resignation, Abdirashid Sed, who was close to Yusuf, said that Yusuf would announce his resignation and retirement from politics at a special session of Parliament on December 29. According to Sed, Yusuf made this decision "because he does not want to be seen as an obstacle to peace in Somalia".

On December 29, 2008, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed announced before a united parliament in Baidoa his resignation as President of Somalia. In his speech, which was broadcast on national radio, Yusuf expressed regret at failing to end the country's 17 year conflict as his government had mandated to do.

He also blamed the international community for its failure to support the government, and said that the speaker of parliament, Aden "Madobe" Mohamed, would succeed him in office per the Transitional Federal Government's Charter.

While a few observers have opined that Yusuf's resignation adds chaos to the country's political landscape as Ethiopia withdraws its troops, some diplomats have suggested that it might improve the prospects of striking a deal with the more moderate Islamist insurgents.

Yusuf was initially reported to have flown out of Baidoa back to his native Puntland, a semi-autonomous region in northern Somalia. He then arrived in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen, on January 20, along with his wife and 17 family members and guards. A Yemeni government official said that Yusuf expressed a desire to live in Yemen, but no political asylum has been discussed yet. The official added that he thought Yusuf wanted to live in Yemen for a short period before perhaps seeking medical treatment in the United Kingdom.

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Somalia

Somalia (Somali: Soomaaliya; Arabic: الصومال‎ transliteration: aṣ-Ṣūmāl), officially the Federal Republic of Somalia (Somali: Jamhuuriyadda Federaalka Soomaaliya, Arabic: جمهورية الصومال‎ transliteration: Jumhūriyyat aṣ-Ṣūmāl) and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, the Gulf of Aden with Yemen to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Ethiopia to the west.

Italian Somaliland gained its independence from Italy on 1 July 1960. On the same day, it united with British Somaliland, which gained independence on 26 June 1960, to form the Somali republic. The Somali state currently exists largely in a de jure capacity; Somalia has a weak but largely recognised central government authority, the Transitional Federal Government (TFG), but this is only the latest in a string of ineffectual, externally recognized governing authorities.

De facto control of the north of the country resides in the regional authorities. Of these, Puntland, Northland State, Maakhir, Galmudug, acknowledge the authority of the TFG and maintain their declaration of autonomy within a federated Somalia, while Central, Southern Somalia, and Kismayo the third largest city in Somalia, are in the control of the Islamic Courts Union and Al-Shabab. Baidoa is currently the seat of the TFG, and Somalia's commercial centre. On the other hand, the Somaliland region in the north, with its capital in Hargeisa, has declared independence and does not recognise the TFG as governing authority. Its self-declared independence is unrecognized internationally due in part to opposition from the TFG and other countries, such as neighboring Ethiopia, which fear ensuing secessionist movements.

The area has been continuously inhabited for the last 2,500 years by numerous and varied ethnic groups, some Afar or other Cushitic-speaking populations, and the majority Somalis. From the 1st century numerous ports including Hafun and Mosylon-Bandar Gori were trading with Roman and Greek sailors.

The northwest was part of the Aksumite Empire from about the 3rd century to the 7th but between 700 CE and 1200 CE, Islam became firmly established, especially with the founding of Mogadishu in 900. The period following, 1200 CE to 1500 CE, saw the rise of numerous Somali city-states and kingdoms. In northwestern Somalia, the Sultanate of Adal (a multi-ethnic state populated by Somalis, Afars, and Hararis) with Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi as their leader in 1520, successfully conquered three-quarters of Ethiopia before being defeated by a joint Ethiopian-Portuguese force at the Battle of Wayna Daga on 21 February 1543.

The Ajuuraan Sultanate flourished from the 14th to the 17th centuries. Following the collapse of Adal and Ajuuraan in the 17th century, the region saw the emergence of new city states such as the Sultanates of eastern Sanaag, of Bari, of Geledi-Afgoye, of Gasar Gudde-Lugh Ganane, of Mogadishu and the Benadir coast, and of Hobyo.

Competition between the Somali clans that lived in these states persisted through the colonial period, when various parts of the region were colonised by Britain and Italy. This era began in the year 1884, the end of a long period of comparative peace. At the Berlin Conference of 1884, the scramble for Africa started the long and bloody process of the imperial partition of Somali lands. The French, British, and Italians came to Somalia in the late 19th century.

The British signed treaties with the clans in what was known after as British Somaliland which was a protectorate in 1886 after the withdrawal of Egypt. Egypt sought to prevent European colonial expansion in Northeast Africa. The southern area, colonised by Italy in 1889, became known as Italian Somaliland. In 1940, there were 22,000 Italians in Somalia, of whom 10,000 in the capital Mogadishu.

Mohammed Abdullah Hassan (Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan, Sayyid), born in the north of the Somali peninsula, was a religious, nationalist and controversial leader. Known to the British as the "Mad Mullah", he spent 20 years leading armed resistance against the British, Italian, and Ethiopian forces in Somalia. Born into the Ogaden sub-clan of the Darod, Hassan grew up in among the Dhulbahante pastoralists who were good herdsmen and warriors and who used camels as well as horses. Young Hassan's hero was his maternal grandfather Sade Mogan who was a great warrior chief.

Between 1900 and 1907, the Italian leaders tried several times to negotiate a land deal with the Geledi Sultan based in Afgoye and his Biyo-maal and Digil warriors. In 1905 more than 1,000 Biyo-maal and Tunni warriors, along with a large number of Italians, were killed when the Italian army attacked in an attempt to gain their objectives. Though many Somali warriors were killed during the war, they still defeated the enemy and succeeded in protecting the Benadir coast. After a long and bloody battle, the Italian leaders allied with other Somali clans and their combined strength finally destroyed the Sultan's forces.

Sheikh Uways al-Barawi of the Tunni sub-clan of the Rahanweyn (Digil and Mirifle) in Barawa, lived at the same time as Hassan and led the Qadiriyyah sect. He resisted the Italian occupation in a non-violent method. He was murdered in Biyoley, in today's Bakool region, by the Dervish in 1920 as Hassan was seeking to recruit forces from Italian Somaliland. This was after the British used aircraft to destroy Hassan's base in Taleex. Sheikh Aweys rejected violence and Hassan's ways were based on violent resistance.

As a result of Hassan and his followers being chased by the followers of Sheikh al-Barawi, Hassan had to escape through the thick forest along the Jubba River until he reached Imi, Ethiopia, where he died of influenza, and, reportedly, wounds inflicted on him during his escape.

To this day the annual pilgrimage to Sheikh al-Barawi's grave in Biyoley is held where people of the Qadiriyyah sect and admirers of al-Barawi attend.

Sheikh Hassan Barsane of the Gaal Jecel, a sub-clan of the Hawiye,was another Somali religious leader who resisted the Italian rule in a non-violent manner. He, like al-Barawi, rejected Hassan's approaches.

Fascist Italy, under Benito Mussolini, attacked Abyssinia (now Ethiopia) in 1935, with an aim to colonize it. The invasion was condemned by the League of Nations, but little was done to stop it or to liberate occupied Ethiopia.

On August 3, 1940, Italian troops, including Somali colonial units, crossed from Ethiopia to invade British Somalia and by August 14 succeeded in taking Berbera from the British.

A British force, including Somali troops, launched a campaign in January 1941 from Kenya to liberate British Somaliland and Italian-occupied Ethiopia and conquer Italian Somaliland. By February, most of Italian Somaliland was captured and in March, British Somaliland was retaken from the sea. The British Empire forces operating in Somaliland comprised three divisions of South African, West and East African troops. They were assisted by Somali forces led by Abdulahi Hassan with Somalis of the Isaaq, Dhulbahante, and Warsangali clans.

Following World War II, although Somalis aided the Allied powers in their struggle against the Axis powers, Britain retained control of both British Somaliland and Italian Somaliland as protectorates. In November 1949, the United Nations granted Italy trusteeship of Italian Somaliland, but only under close supervision and on the condition—first proposed by the Somali Youth League (SYL) and other nascent Somali political organizations, such as Hizbia Digil Mirifle Somali (HDMS) (which later became Hizbia Dastur Mustaqbal Somali HDMS) and the Somali National League (SNL), that were then agitating for independence—that Somalia achieve independence within ten years. British Somaliland remained a protectorate of Britain until 1960.

Meanwhile, in 1948, under pressure from their World War II allies and to the dismay of the Somalis, the British "returned" the Hawd (an important Somali grazing area that was presumably 'protected' by British treaties with the Somalis in 1884 and 1886) and the Ogaden to Ethiopia, based on a treaty they signed in 1897 in which the British ceded Somali territory to the Ethiopian Emperor Menelik in exchange for his help against plundering by Somali clans. Britain included the proviso that the Somali nomads would retain their autonomy, but Ethiopia immediately claimed sovereignty over them. This prompted an unsuccessful bid by Britain in 1956 to buy back the Somali lands it had turned over.

A referendum was held in neighbouring Djibouti (then known as French Somaliland) in 1958, on the eve of Somalia's independence in 1960, to decide whether or not to join the Somali Republic or to remain with France. The referendum turned out in favor of a continued association with France, largely due to a combined yes vote by the sizable Afar ethnic group and resident Europeans. However, the majority of those who voted no were Somalis who were strongly in favor of joining a united Somalia as had been proposed by Mahmoud Harbi, Vice President of the Government Council. Harbi was killed in a plane crash two years later. Djibouti finally gained its independence from France in 1977 and Hassan Gouled Aptidon, a French-groomed Somali who campaigned for a yes vote in the referendum of 1958, eventually wound up as Djibouti's first president (1977–1991).

British Somaliland became independent on June 26, 1960, and the former Italian Somaliland followed suit five days later. On July 1, 1960, the two territories united to form the Somali Republic, albeit within boundaries drawn up by Italy and Britain. A government was formed by Abdullahi Issa with Aden Abdullah Osman Daar as President, and Abdirashid Ali Shermarke as Prime Minister, later to become President (from 1967–1969). On July 20, 1961 and through a popular referendum, the Somali people ratified a new constitution, which was first drafted in 1960.

However, inter-clan rivalry persisted with many clans claiming to have been forced into the state of Somalia. In 1967, Muhammad Haji Ibrahim Egal became Prime Minister, appointed by Shermarke (Egal was later to become President of the breakaway independent Somaliland).

In late 1969 following the assassination of President Shermarke, a military government assumed power in a coup d'état led by General Siad Barre and Chief of Police Jama Korshel. Barre became President and Korshel vice-president. The revolutionary army established large-scale public works programmes and successfully implemented an urban and rural literacy campaign, which helped dramatically increase the literacy rate from 5% to 55% by the mid-1980s.

However, struggles continued during Barre's rule. At one point he assassinated a major figure in his cabinet, Major General Gabiere, and two other officials.

It was in July 1976 when the real dictatorship of the Somali military commenced with the founding of the Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party (Xisbiga Hantiwadaagga Kacaanka Soomaaliyeed, XHKS). It was the single party that ruled Somalia until the fall of the military government in December 1990–January 1991. It was violently overthrown by the combined armed revolt of the Somali Salvation Democratic Front (Jabhadda Diimuqraadiga Badbaadinta Soomaaliyeed, SSDF), United Somali Congress (USC), Somali National Movement (SNM), and the Somali Patriotic Movement (SPM) together with the non-violent political oppositions of the Somali Democratic Movement (SDM), the Somali Democratic Alliance (SDA) and the Somali Manifesto Group (SMG).

In 1977 and 1978, Somalia fought with its neighbour Ethiopia in the Ogaden War, in which Somalia aimed to liberate and unite the Somali lands that had been partitioned by the former colonial powers, and to win the right of self-determination for ethnic Somalis in those territories. Somalia first engaged Kenya and Ethiopia diplomatically, but this failed. Somalia, already preparing for war, created the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF, then called the Western Somali Liberation Front, WSLF) and eventually sought to capture Ogaden. Somalia acted unilaterally without consulting the international community, which was generally opposed to redrawing colonial boundaries, while the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact countries refused to help Somalia, and instead, backed Communist Ethiopia. For most of the war, Somalia appeared to be winning in most of Ogaden, but with Somali forces at the gates of Addis Ababa, Soviet and Cuban forces and weapons came to the aid of Ethiopia. The Somali Army was decimated and Somalia sought the help of the United States. Although the Carter Administration originally expressed interest in helping Somalia he later declined, as did American allies in the Middle East and Asia. The Americans perhaps did not want to engage the Soviets in this period of détente.

By 1978, the moral authority of the Somali government had collapsed. Many Somalis had become disillusioned with life under military dictatorship and the regime was weakened further in the 1980s as the Cold War drew to a close and Somalia's strategic importance was diminished. The government became increasingly totalitarian, and resistance movements, encouraged by Ethiopia, sprang up across the country, eventually leading to the Somali Civil War.

During 1990, in the capital city of Mogadishu, the residents were prohibited from gathering publicly in groups greater than three or four. Fuel shortages caused long lines of cars at petrol stations. Inflation had driven the price of pasta, (ordinary dry Italian noodles, a staple at that time), to five U.S. dollars per kilogram. The price of khat, imported daily from Kenya, was also five U.S. dollars per standard bunch. Paper currency notes were of such low value that several bundles were needed to pay for simple restaurant meals. Coins were scattered on the ground throughout the city being too low in value to be used. A thriving black market existed in the center of the city as banks experienced shortages of local currency for exchange. At night, the city of Mogadishu lay in darkness. The generators used to provide electricity to the city had been sold off by the government. Close monitoring of all visiting foreigners was in effect. Records of foreign currency brought into the country and exchanged while in Somalia were mandatory, with severe penalties, including imprisonment, for any discrepancy. The use or exchange of foreign currency was restricted to either official banks, or one of three government operated hotels. Although no travel restrictions were placed on foreigners, photographing many locations was banned. During the day in Mogadishu, the appearance of any government military force was extremely rare. Late-night operations by government authorities, however, included 'disappearances' of individuals from their homes.

1991 saw great changes in Somalia. President Barre was ousted by a combined northern and southern clan based forces all of whom were backed and armed by Ethiopia. And following a meeting of the Somali National Movement and northern clans' elders, the northern former British portion of the country declared its independence as Somaliland in May 1991; although de facto independent and relatively stable compared to the tumultuous south, it has not been recognised by any foreign government.

In January 1991, President Ali Mahdi Muhammad was selected by the manisfesto group as an interim president for the whole of Somalia until a conference between all stakeholders to be held in Djibouti in February of the same year to select a national leader. However, United Somali Congress military leader General Mohamed Farrah Aidid, the Somali National Movement leader Abdirahman Toor and the Somali Patriotic Movement leader Col Jess refused to recognize Mahdi as president. This caused a split between the SNM, USC and SPM and the armed groups Manifesto, Somali Democratic Movement (SDM) and Somali National Alliance (SNA) on the one hand and within the USC forces. This led efforts to remove Barre who still claimed to be the legitimate president of Somalia. He and his armed supporters remained in the south of the country until mid 1992, causing further escalation in violence, especially in the Gedo, Bay, Bakool, Lower Shabelle, Lower Juba, and Middle Juba regions. The armed conflict within the USC devastated the Mogadishu area.

The civil war disrupted agriculture and food distribution in southern Somalia. The basis of most of the conflicts was clan allegiances and competition for resources between the warring clans. James Bishop, the United States last ambassador to Somalia, explained that there is "competition for water, pasturage, and... cattle. It is a competition that used to be fought out with arrows and sabers... Now it is fought out with AK-47s." The resulting famine caused the United Nations Security Council in 1992 to authorize the limited peacekeeping operation United Nations Operation in Somalia I (UNOSOM I). UNOSOM's use of force was limited to self-defence and it was soon disregarded by the warring factions. In reaction to the continued violence and the humanitarian disaster, the United States organised a military coalition with the purpose of creating a secure environment in southern Somalia for the conduct of humanitarian operations. This coalition, (Unified Task Force or UNITAF) entered Somalia in December 1992 on Operation Restore Hope and was successful in restoring order and alleviating the famine. In May 1993, most of the United States troops withdrew and UNITAF was replaced by the United Nations Operation in Somalia II (UNOSOM II). However, Aidid saw UNOSOM II as a threat to his power and in June 1993 his militia attacked Pakistan Army troops, attached to UNOSOM II, (see Somalia (March 1992 to February 1996)) in Mogadishu inflicting over 80 casualties. Fighting escalated until 18 American troops and more than 1,000 Somalis were killed in a raid in Mogadishu during October 1993. The UN withdrew Operation United Shield in 3 March 1995, having suffered significant casualties, and with the rule of government still not restored. In June 1996, Mohamed Farrah Aidid was killed in Mogadishu.

Following the civil war the Harti and Tanade clans declared a self-governing state in the northeast, which took the name Puntland, but maintained that it would participate in any Somali reconciliation to form a new central government. Then in 2002, Southwestern Somalia, comprising Bay, Bakool, Jubbada Dhexe (Middle Juba), Gedo, Shabeellaha Hoose (Lower Shabele) and Jubbada Hoose (Lower Juba) regions of Somalia declared itself autonomous. Although initially the instigators of this, the Rahanweyn Resistance Army, which had been established in 1995, was only in full control of Bay, Bakool and parts of Gedo and Jubbada Dhexe, they quickly established the de facto autonomy of Southwestern Somalia. Although conflict between Hasan Muhammad Nur Shatigadud and his two deputies weakened the Rahanweyn militarily from February 2006, the Southwest became central to the TFG based in the city of Baidoa. Shatigadud became Finance Minister, his first deputy Adan Mohamed Nuur Madobe became Parliamentary Speaker and his second deputy Mohamed Ibrahim Habsade became Minister of Transport. Shatigadud also held the Chairmanship of the Rahanwein Traditional Elders' Court.

In 2004, the TFG met in Nairobi, Kenya and published a charter for the government of the nation. The TFG capital is presently in Baidoa. Meanwhile Somalia was one of the many countries affected by the tsunami which struck the Indian Ocean coast following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, destroying entire villages and killing an estimated 300 people. In 2006, Somalia was deluged by torrential rains and flooding that struck the entire Horn of Africa affecting 350,000 people. The inter-clan rivalry continued in 2006 with the declaration of regional autonomy by the state of Jubaland, consisting of parts of Gedo, Jubbada Dhexe, and the whole of Jubbada Hoose. Barre Adan Shire Hiiraale, chairman of the Juba Valley Alliance, who comes from Galguduud in central Somalia is the most powerful leader there. Like Puntland this regional government did not want full statehood, but some sort of federal autonomy.

Several hundred people, mostly civilians caught in the crossfire, died during this conflict. Mogadishu residents described it as the worst fighting in more than a decade. The Islamic Courts Union accused the U.S. of funding the warlords through the Central Intelligence Agency and supplying them with arms in an effort to prevent the Islamic Courts Union from gaining power. The United States Department of State, while neither admitting nor denying this, said the U.S. had taken no action that violated the international arms embargo of Somalia. A few e-mails describing covert illegal operations by private military companies in breach of U.N. regulations have been reported by the UK Sunday newspaper The Observer. By early June 2006 the Islamic Militia had control of Mogadishu, following the Second Battle of Mogadishu, and the last A.R.P.C.T. stronghold in southern Somalia, the town of Jowhar, then fell with little resistance. The remaining A.R.P.C.T. forces fled to the east or across the border into Ethiopia and the alliance effectively collapsed.

The Ethiopian-supported Transitional Government then called for intervention by a regional East African peacekeeping force. The I.C.U. meanwhile were fiercely opposed to foreign troops — particularly Ethiopians — in Somalia. claiming that Ethiopia, with its long history as an imperial power including the occupation of Ogaden, seeks to occupy Somalia, or rule it by proxy. Meanwhile the I.C.U. and their militia took control of much of the southern half of Somalia, normally through negotiation with local clan chiefs rather than by the use of force. However, the Islamic militia stayed clear of areas close to the Ethiopian border, which had become a place of refuge for many Somalis including the Transitional Government itself, headquartered in the town of Baidoa. Ethiopia said it would protect Baidoa if threatened. On September 25, 2006, the I.C.U. moved into the southern port of Kismayo, the last remaining port held by the transitional government. Ethiopian troops entered Somalia and seized the town of Buur Hakaba on October 9, and later that day the I.C.U. issued a declaration of war against Ethiopia.

On 1 November 2006, peace talks between the Transitional Government and the ICU broke down. The international community feared an all-out civil war, with Ethiopian and rival Eritrean forces backing opposing sides in the power-struggle. Fighting erupted once again on 21 December 2006 when the leader of ICU, Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys said: "Somalia is in a state of war, and all Somalis should take part in this struggle against Ethiopia", and heavy fighting broke out between the Islamic militia on one side and the Somali Transitional Government allied with Ethiopian forces on the other.

In late December 2006, Ethiopia launched airstrikes against Islamic troops and strong points across Somalia. Ethiopian Information Minister Berhan Hailu stated that targets included the town of Buurhakaba, near the Transitional Government base in Baidoa. An Ethiopian jet fighter strafed Mogadishu International Airport (now Aden Adde International Airport), without apparently causing serious damage but prompting the airport to be shut down. Other Ethiopian jet fighters attacked a military airport west of Mogadishu. Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi then announced that his country was waging war against the ICU to protect his country's sovereignty. "Ethiopian defence forces were forced to enter into war to the protect the sovereignty of the nation and to blunt repeated attacks by Islamic courts terrorists and anti-Ethiopian elements they are supporting," he said.

Days of heavy fighting followed as Ethiopian and government troops backed by tanks and jets pushed against Islamic forces between Baidoa and Mogadishu. Both sides claimed to have inflicted hundreds of casualties, but the Islamic infantry and vehicle artillery were badly beaten and forced to retreat toward Mogadishu. On 28 December 2006, the allies entered Mogadishu after Islamic fighters fled the city. Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Ghedi declared that Mogadishu had been secured, after meeting with local clan leaders to discuss the peaceful hand-over of the city. Yet as of April 2008, the Transitional Federal Government and its Ethiopian allies still face frequent attacks from an Islamic insurgency.

The Islamists retreated south, towards their stronghold in Kismayo, fighting rearguard actions in several towns. They abandoned Kismayo, too, without a fight, claiming that their flight was a strategic withdrawal to avoid civilian casualties, and entrenched around the small town of Ras Kamboni, at the southernmost tip of Somalia and on the border with Kenya. In early January, the Ethiopians and the Somali government attacked, resulting in the Battle of Ras Kamboni, and capturing the Islamic positions and driving the surviving fighters into the hills and forests after several days of combat. On January 9, 2007, the United States openly intervened in Somalia by sending Lockheed AC-130 gunships to attack Islamic positions in Ras Kamboni. Dozens were killed and by then the ICU were largely defeated. During 2007 and 2008, new Islamic militant groups organized, and continued to fight against transitional government Somali and Ethiopian official troops. They recovered effective control of large portions of the country. Ethiopian forces retreated in 2009. The ICU no longer exists as an organized political group.

On December 29, 2008, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed announced before a united parliament in Baidoa his resignation as President of Somalia. In his speech, which was broadcast on national radio, Yusuf expressed regret at failing to end the country's seventeen year conflict as his government had mandated to do. He also blamed the international community for its failure to support the government, and said that the speaker of parliament, Aden "Madobe" Mohamed, would succeed him in office per the charter of the Transitional Federal Government.

Former Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein of the Transitional Federal Government and Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed of the opposition group Alliance for the Re-Liberation of Somalia (ARS) signed a power sharing deal in Djibouti that was brokered by the United Nations. According to the deal, Ethiopian troops were to withdraw from Somalia, giving their bases to the transitional government, African Union (AU) peacekeepers and moderate Islamist groups led by the ARS. Following the Ethiopian withdrawal, the transitional government expanded its parliament to include the opposition and elected Sheikh Ahmed as its new president on January 31, 2009. Sheikh Ahmed then appointed Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, the son of slain former President Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, as the nation's new Prime Minister.

The internationally recognized Transitional Federal Government controls only parts of Southern Somalia from its base in the town of Baidoa. On October 14, 2004, the Somali Transitional Federal Parliament elected Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, previously president of Puntland, to be president of Somalia. Because of the situation in Mogadishu, the election was held in a sports centre in Nairobi, Kenya. Yusuf was elected with 189 of the 275 votes from members of parliament.

Many other small political organisations exist, some clan-based, others seeking a Somalia free from clan-based politics. Many of them have come into existence since the civil war. The political situation thus remains unstable; for example, on September 18, 2006, Abdullahi Yusuf barely survived a suicide attack on his convoy in Baidoa, although twelve other people were killed.

In the northwest is the secessionist region of Somaliland, with its capital in Hargeisa, that declared its independence in 1991. This Isaaq-dominated governing zone is not recognized by any major international organization or country, although it has remained more stable and certainly more peaceful than the rest of Somalia, neighboring Puntland notwithstanding.

Puntland in the northeast also remains autonomous but supports the Transitional Government and, unlike Somaliland, still considers itself a part of the Somali Republic.

In Sanaag Region and some parts of Bari region there is newly declared state called Maakhir, which is a self-proclaimed autonomous state within Somalia on an area disputed by Somaliland and Puntland. Declared in July 1, 2007, it remains unrecognized by the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia.

Maakhir is mainly inhabited by the Warsangali clan, a member of the Harti confederation of clans (along with the Dhulbahante and Majeerteen) and a clan of the Darod clan.

In the southwestern interior, and areas dominated by Marehan of Sade, a Darod subclan, areas such as Jubaland and Southwestern Somalia or Gedo have all recognised the TFG and local leaders are part of the government.

The southern half of the country, with the bulk of the population, as of November 2007, is unstable, following the 2006 Civil War between the Transitional Government and the Islamic Courts Union.

Westerners and those working for western organisations continue to be targets of the violence. Two aid workers, one British and the other Kenyan, were abducted in Puntland on 8 May 2007 and a western nurse and her escort were shot dead in Mogadishu on 17 September 2006.

The inhabitants of Sool, Sanaag and Cayn regions of Northern Somalia have announced the formation of a new political party – Northern Somali Unionist Movement (NSUM), a grass roots Somali organization whose members and supporters hail from Sool, Sanaag and Cayn regions in the Northern regions of Somalia (formerly British Somaliland) and whose clan in these regions do not identify with the Somaliland secession. NSUM stands for the promotion of peace and unity among all people of Somalia.

In late February, 2009, fighting between Islamists & AU peacekeepers resulted in 69 dead .

Mogadishu is the capital of Somalia. However, during the conflict in 2006, Mogadishu became part of the territory controlled by the Islamic Courts Union, while the Transitional Federal Government had its seat in Baidoa. The Government returned to Mogadishu in December 2006 with the help of Ethiopian troops.

Somalia is located in the Horn of Africa with the Gulf of Aden to the north and the Indian Ocean to the east. It is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on the continent. Its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains, and highlands. In the far north, however, the rugged east-west ranges of the Karkaar Mountains lie at varying distances from the Gulf of Aden coast.

Major climatic factors are a year-round hot climate, seasonal monsoon winds, and irregular rainfall with recurring droughts. Mean daily maximum temperatures range from 30 °C to 40 °C (85–105 °F), except at higher elevations and along the east coast. Mean daily minimums usually vary from about 15 °C to 30 °C (60–85 °F). The southwest monsoon, a sea breeze, makes the period from about May to October the mildest season at Mogadishu. The December-February period of the northeast monsoon is also relatively mild, although prevailing climatic conditions in Mogadishu are rarely pleasant. The "tangambili" periods that intervene between the two monsoons (October–November and March–May) are hot and humid.

On a de facto basis, northern Somalia is now divided up among the quasi-independent states of Puntland, Somaliland, Galmudug and Maakhir. The south is at least nominally controlled by the Transitional Federal Government, although it is in fact controlled by Islamic groups outside Baidoa and Mogadishu. Under the de facto arrangements there are now 27 regions.

Somalia has one of the lowest HIV infection rates in all of Africa. This is attributed to the Muslim nature of Somali society and adherence of Somalis to Islamic morals.

The breadth of the AIDS pandemic has led to the idea in the West that the entire continent is ravaged by the disease. But Somalia — isolated for 14 years since the civil war began and populated by devout Muslims — has an infection rate of perhaps only 1.5 or 2 per cent of the adult population.

With the collapse of the central government in 1991, the education system is now private. Primary schools have risen from 600 before the civil war to 1,172 schools today, with an increase of 28% in primary school enrollment over the last 3 years. In 2006, Puntland, an autonomous state, was the second in Somalia (after Somaliland) to introduce free primary schools with teachers now receiving their salaries from the Puntland administration. In Mogadishu, the Benadir University, the Somalia National University, and the Mogadishu University, Kismayo University, University of Gedo are five of the eight functioning universities that teach Higher education in Southern Somalia. The Somali National University and all of its campuses in Lafole, SNU or Jaamacada Ummada, Medicine, and Gaheyr have been left unsafe for holding classes in any of its facilities since 1991. In Puntland, higher education is provided by the Puntland State University and East Africa University. In Somaliland, it is provided by Amoud University, University of Hargeisa, Somaliland University of Technology and Burao University. Three Somali universities are currently ranked in the top 100 of Africa. Qur'anic schools (also known as duqsis) remain the basic system of religious instruction in Somalia. They provide Islamic education for children, thereby filling a clear religious and social role in the country. Known as the most stable local and non-formal education providing basic religious and moral instruction, their strength rests on community support and in their use of locally made and widely available teaching materials.

The Qur'anic system, which teaches the greatest number of students relative to the other education sub-sectors, is the only system accessible to nomadic Somalis compared to the urban Somalis who have easier access to education. In 1993, a survey by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) was conducted in which it found, among other things, that about 40% of pupils in Qur'anic schools were girls.

Since the collapse of the state, Somalia has transformed from what Siad Barre referred to as "Scientific Socialism" to a free market economy.

Agriculture is the most important sector, with livestock accounting for about 40% of GDP and about 65% of export earnings. Nomads and semi-nomads, who are dependent upon livestock for their livelihood, make up a large portion of the population.

After livestock, bananas are the principal export; sugar, sorghum, maize, and fish are products for the domestic market.

The small industrial sector, based on the processing of agricultural products, accounts for 10% of GDP.

American and Chinese oil companies are also excited about the prospect of oil and other natural resources in Somalia. An oil group listed in Sydney, Range Resources, anticipates that the Puntland province in the north has the potential to produce 5 billion to 10 billion barrels of oil.

While millions of Somalis receive food aid, according to a study by the UNDP and the European Commission, it is estimated that as much as $1 billion USD is annually remitted to Somalia by Somalis in the diaspora via money transfer companies—far more than the amount of development funding flowing into the country.

Somalia's public telecommunications system has been almost completely destroyed or dismantled. However, private wireless companies thrive in most major cities and actually provide better services than in neighbouring countries. Wireless service and Internet cafés are available. Somalia was the last country in Africa to access the Internet in August 2000, with only 57 web sites known as of 2003. Internet usage in Somalia increased 44,900% from 2000 to 2007, registering the highest growth rate in Africa. Somalia has the cheapest cellular calling rates on the continent, with some companies charging less than a cent per minute. Competing phone companies have agreed on interconnection standards, which were brokered by the United Nations funded Somali Telecom Association.

Somalia is a semi-arid country with about 2% arable land. The civil war had a huge impact on the country’s tropical forests by facilitating the production of charcoal with ever present, recurring, but damaging droughts. Somali environmentalist and Goldman Environmental Prize winner, Fatima Jibrell, became the first Somali to step in and do a much-needed effort to save the rest of the environment through local initiatives that organised local communities to protect the rural and coastal habitat. Jibrell trained a team of young people to organise awareness campaigns about the irreversible damage of unrestricted charcoal production. Jibrell also joined the Buran rural institute that formed and organised the Camel Caravan program in which young people loaded tents and equipment on camels to walk for three weeks through a nomadic locale and educate the people about the careful use of fragile resources, health care, livestock management and peace.

Fatima Jibrell has consistently fought against the burning of charcoal, logging and other man-induced environmental degradation. Her efforts have born fruits to the local communities across Somalia and international recognition when she won the prestigious Environmental Goldman award from San Francisco. Jibrell is also the executive director of Horn Relief and Development Organisation.

Following the massive tsunami of December 2004, there have also emerged allegations that after the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in the late 1980s, Somalia's long, remote shoreline was used as a dump site for the disposal of toxic waste. The huge waves which battered northern Somalia after the tsunami are believed to have stirred up tonnes of nuclear and toxic waste that was illegally dumped in the country by several European firms. The European Green Party followed up these revelations by presenting before the press and the European Parliament in Strasbourg copies of contracts signed by two European companies -- the Italian Swiss firm, Achair Partners, and an Italian waste broker, Progresso -- and representatives of the then "President" of Somalia, the faction leader Ali Mahdi Mohamed, to accept 10 million tonnes of toxic waste in exchange for $80 million (then about £60 million). According to reports by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the waste has resulted in far higher than normal cases of respiratory infections, mouth ulcers and bleeding, abdominal haemorrhages and unusual skin infections among many inhabitants of the areas around the northeastern towns of Hobbio and Benadir on the Indian Ocean coast -- diseases consistent with radiation sickness. UNEP continues that the current situation along the Somali coastline poses a very serious environmental hazard not only in Somalia but also in the eastern Africa sub-region.

Somalia has a population of around 10.7 million according to U.N. estimates in 2003, 85% of which constitute ethnic Somalis.

There is little reliable statistical information on urbanisation in Somalia. However, rough estimates have been made indicating an urbanization of 5% and 8% per annum with many towns rapidly growing into cities. Currently, 34% of the Somali population live in towns and cities with the percentage rapidly increasing.

Because of the civil war, the country has a large diaspora community, one of the largest of the whole continent. Millions of Somalis live abroad, and this excludes those who inhabit Yemen, northeastern Kenya, and Djibouti.

Somali is the national language of the Somali people and is used virtually everywhere by almost all ethnic Somalis as well as a few minority groups. Minority languages do exist, such as Af-Maay, which is spoken in areas in South-Central Somalia mainly by the Rahanweyn. Variants of Swahili (Barawe) are also spoken along the coast by Arabs and some Bantus (Jareer).

Many Somalis speak Arabic due to close ties with the Arab World, the far-reaching influence of the Arabic media, and religious education. English is also widely used and taught. Italian used to be a major language but now because of the civil war and lack of education, it is most frequently heard among older generations.

To a first approximation, the Somalis are entirely Sunni Muslims.

Christianity's influence was significantly reduced in the 1970s when church-run schools were closed and missionaries sent home. There has been no Archbishop of the Catholic cathedral in the country since 1989; the cathedral in Mogadishu was severely damaged in the civil war of January-February 1992.

The Somali constitution discourages the promotion and propagation of any religion other than Islam. This sets Somalis apart from their immediate African neighbours, many of whom are either Christians (particularly the Amhara and others of Ethiopia) or adherents of indigenous faiths.

The cuisine of Somalia varies from region to region and it encompasses different styles of cooking. One thing that unites the Somali food is its being Halal. Therefore, there are no pork dishes, alcohol is not served, nothing that died on its own is eaten and no blood is incorporated. Somali people serve dinner as late as 9 pm. During Ramadan, it is often eaten after Tarawih prayers – sometimes as late as 11 pm. Cambuulo is one of Somalia's most popular dishes and is enjoyed throughout the country as a dinner meal. The dish is made out of well-cooked azuki beans, mixed with butter and sugar. The beans, which by themselves are called digir, are often left on the stove for as many as five hours, on low heat, to achieve the most desired taste.

Somalia produced a large amount of literature through Islamic poetry and Hadith from Somali scholars of the last centuries. With the adoption of the Latin alphabet in 1973 numerous Somali authors have released books over the years which received widespread success, Nuruddin Farah being one of them. Novels like From a Crooked Rib and Links are considered important literary achievements which earned him the 1998 Neustadt International Prize for Literature.

Somalia has the distinction of being one of only a handful of African countries that are composed almost entirely of one ethnic group, the Somalis. Traditional bands like Waaberi Horseed have gained a small following outside the country. Others, like Maryam Mursal, have fused Somali traditional music with rock, bossa nova, hip hop, and jazz influences. Most Somali music is love oriented.

Toronto, where a sizable Somali community exists, replaced Mogadishu (because of the instability) as the centre of the Somali music industry, which is also present in London, Minneapolis, and Columbus. One popular musician from the Somali diaspora is K'naan, a young rapper from Toronto, whose songs talk about the struggles of life in Somalia during the outbreak of the civil war.

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History of the Transitional Federal Government of the Republic of Somalia

The Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of the Republic of Somalia has had a tumultuous history. It is the most recent attempt to restore national institutions to Somalia after the 1991 downfall of Siad Barre. The country has been run for more than a decade by tribal factions and warlords.

The TNG was opposed by a rival pan-Somali governmental movement, known as the Somalia Reconciliation and Restoration Council (SRRC). Eventually the factions of the TNG and the SRRC were reconciled, and a new united movement subsequently developed, dubbed the Transitional Federal Government (TFG).

Officially dubbed the Somalia National Peace Conference (SNPC), and sometimes called the Djibouti conference, this was a series of meetings held in Arta, Djibouti, on April 20 - May 5, 2000. The conference was aimed at bringing together representatives of the warring factions of Somalia to end the civil war that had claimed over 300,000 lives. The name Transitional National Government (TNG) was selected for the movement at this time.

In May 6, 2001, an effort to create a 25-member working body, dubbed the National Commission for Reconciliation and Property Settlement (NCRPS), was damaged when Abdirizak Haji Hussein, former Prime Minister, was named as its head. The Somalia Reconciliation and Restoration Council (SRRC) and Puntland leadership objected strongly. Hussein later resigned on July 25, 2001.

Held in Eldoret, Kenya, this conference was attended by most TFG supporters. However, at the time, the Rahanweyn Resistance Army (RRA) was still hotly contending with other factions, including warlord Adan Madobe, who captured Baidoa. The RRA accused the Juba Valley Alliance of assisting the warlord, an accusation denied by the JVA leader Barre Adan Shire Hiiraale.

In February 2004, at Nairobi, Kenya, the government endorses the Transitional Federal Charter of the Somali Republic.

On October 10, 2004 Somali Transitional Federal Parliament MPs elected warlord Abdullahi Yusuf, previously president of Puntland, to be the next transitional President. He won 189 of the 275 votes from members of parliament. He was sworn in on October 14. Because of the situation in Mogadishu, the election was held in a sports centre in Nairobi, Kenya. The session of Parliament was also held in neighbouring Kenya. The TFG government was recognized by most western nations as legitimate, although their actual authority was questionable.

After his election, Yusuf formed the first Transitional Federal Government (TFG) by appointing cabinet ministers in November 2004. One of his key appointments was Ali Mohammed Ghedi as Prime Minister.

Following the success of the Supreme Islamic Courts Council in taking Mogadishu, and the alleged entry of Ethiopian troops into Somalia, members of the transitional government started to resign. Before the resignations started, the government consisted of 42 full ministers and a further 60 assistant ministers. The government would have to resign if more than 50% — 22 — of the full ministers resigned.

Ghedi survived a no-confidence vote on 30 July when his opponents failed to obtain the two-thirds majority required to dismiss him.

By August 2, twenty-nine ministers had resigned including eleven full ministers.

On Monday August 7 the three top TFG leaders - Prime Minister Ghedi, President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed and parliamentary speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden reportedly reached an agreement on talks with the Islamic Militia and the formation of a new government. The President announced the dissolution of the present cabinet and Ghedi was asked to propose a new cabinet, with only 31 full ministers, within a week.

On August 21 Prime Minister Gedi appointed a new reduced cabinet of 31 ministers. It included new Ministers for national security, defence, finance and foreign-affairs but retained former warlord Hussein Mohamed Aidid as Interior Minister. 44 deputy ministers will also be appointed in the coming days. The Assembly was due to vote on approving the cabinet on 2006-08-26 but this vote was delayed amid fears that the new government wouldn't be approved.

The government faced off against the ICU between June and December 2006, as the Islamists spread out from Mogadishu. Troops from Ethiopia protected the government position in Baidoa. Ethiopia claimed until recently the troops only numbered in the hundreds, comprising trainers and advisors for the federal government's army. The opposition Islamic Courts Union (ICU) claimed they numberered in the tens of thousands.

On December 15, 2006, sixty government members, including Member of Parliament Omar Hashii, gathered in Mogadishu to protest the presence of the foreign troops.

Late in December, the government won a series of victories at the battles of Baidoa, Bandiradley, Beledweyne, Jowhar and Jilib. At the end of the year the TFG took possession of Mogadishu and on New Year's Day, 2007, Kismayo.

On January 1, 2007, Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed declared a new administrator for Hiiran region, replacing Dabageed. Hussein Mohamud Moalim was named as new administrator, and Saleyman Ahmed Hilawle was nominated as assistant administrator.

He said all civilian groups and businesses would have three days to disarm and turn their weapons in to the government. Technicals were to be brought to the old port in Mogadishu. All collected arms would be registered at Villa Somalia. An amnesty to Islamists was also extended.

On January 17, 2007, the parliament removed the Speaker, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, by a vote of 183 in favor of removal to 8 against and one abstention. The Speaker had been accused of being absent from Parliamentary sessions for months, and for being supportive of the Islamic Courts Union. The parliament met in a converted grain warehouse in Baidoa. Parliament planned to replace the Speaker within two weeks.

On January 31, 2007, Sheikh Adan Madobe was elected as the new Speaker by the Parliament, receiving 154 of the 275 votes. The runner up was Ibrahim Adan Hassan, with 54 votes.

On February 7, 2007, Prime Minister Ghedi announced that he was dismissing three ministers: Health Minister Abdiaziz Sheikh Yusuf, Higher Education and Culture Minister Hussein Mohamud Sheikh Hussein, both for failing to carry out duties and misappropriating funds, and Mineral and Water Resources Minister Mohamud Salad Nuur for failing to be sworn in after his appointment. Interior Minister Hussein Aidid was also transferred to the less prestigious position of Public Works and Housing. A total of 10 cabinet positions were reassigned in the reorganization.

On January 29, Islamists took the capital of Baidoa, resulting in the remaining government officials fleeing to Djibouti.

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Puntland

Puntland (Somali: Puntlaand, Arabic: أرض البنط‎) is a region in northeastern Somalia, centered on Garowe (Nugaal region), whose leaders declared it an autonomous state in 1998. A third of the Somali people live in the province. The city of Boosaaso in the heart of Puntland has more than a million people, overtaking Mogadishu as the most populous city in Somalia following the civil war. Unlike neighbouring Somaliland, Puntland does not seek outright independence from Somalia. The name "Puntland" is derived from the Land of Punt mentioned by ancient Egyptian sources, an area which is believed to have been most likely located in present day Somalia.

Puntland considers itself an autonomous region within Somalia. In 1969, when Somalia's government was toppled in a coup d'état, years of war and chaos followed. An unsuccessful invasion of Ethiopia followed the Soviet Union's change of support from Somalia to Ethiopia, caused by the rise of a pro-Soviet government in Ethiopia. Left without Soviet support, Somalia turned to the United States, which allowed Somalia's self-proclaimed president, Siad Barre, to stay in power through the end of the Cold War in 1991. When the Soviet Union collapsed, the Americans withdrew their support of the Somali government, and Barre was overthrown.

Following these events, Somalis remained without a strong government, with constant wars ravaging the southern part of Somalia. These events led to the 1991 de facto secession of the Somaliland region of Somalia, which in 1960 had enjoyed a few days of independence. Violence continued throughout the country, prompting a United Nations peacekeeping force to be sent to war-torn Somalia. The relief effort ended however on March 3, 1995, almost two years after the Battle of Mogadishu when two American MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters were shot down and 19 soldiers were killed.

Somalia remained unstable, and Puntland declared its autonomy in 1998. Although it is a tribal-based separation under the presidency of Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed (deputy president of the Somali Salvation Democratic Front), Puntland is a region with clan confederation as one of its top priorities. Since 1998 Puntland has also been in territorial disputes with Somaliland over the Sool and Sanaag regions. Yusuf was an army major when he sought political asylum in Ethiopia. He led the first group of resistance fighters belonging to Majeerteen clan, whose ultimate goal was to free Somalia from dictatorship.

Unlike the secessionist region of Somaliland, Puntland is not trying to obtain international recognition as a separate nation. It considers itself a federal division within a united Somalia that is a federal republic. But the two so-called "lands" have one thing in common: they both base their support upon clan elders and their way of organization along lines based on clan relationships and kinship. There is also an increasing public support for independent Puntland. Puntland Diaspora led by influential members of society, academics and intellectuals are discussing possible declaration of independence and mimimize its support for southern Somalia.

The Somali capital Mogadishu, and other southern cities, are said to have developed much less than cities in Puntland and Somaliland (e.g. Bosaso, Hargeisa, Las Anod, Garowe, etc.) These two self-declared independent regions obtain their economic and political support from Ethiopia, historically an adversary of Somalia.

Puntland began experiencing political unrest in 2001 when President Ahmed wanted his term to be lengthened. Ahmed and Jama Ali Jama fought for control of the region, which Ahmed won in 2002. Ahmed served as president until October 2004 when he was elected President of Somalia. He was succeeded by Muhammad Abdi Hashi who served until January 2005 when he was defeated for re-election by Parliament, which elected General Mohamud Muse Hersi ("Adde"). In December 2004, Puntland sustained serious damage during the tsunami following the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake.

In November 2006, the Union of Islamic Courts reportedly captured Bandiiradley, a strategically located settlement near Puntland's border with Mudug. However, a spokesman for local warlord Abdi Hassan Awale Qeybdiid claimed that his troops had only made a tactical retreat from the area. Mohamed Mohamud Jama, a Mudug-based spokesman for the Islamic Courts, announced the courts' intention to march on Gaalkacyo, part of which is claimed by Puntland. Heretofore, the courts had avoided making incursions into Puntland. That same month, General Adde announced that he would rule according to Islamic law but in a different way from that of the Islamic Courts in order to avoid "politicising religion." Adde then announced that Puntland would resist any attack made by the Islamic Courts.

Tensions between Puntland and Somaliland heightened to a violent clash in October, 2007.

Former President Mohamed Musa Hersi dismissed the parliament of Puntland on December 9, 2007, and effectively ruled by decree. This followed a year of defections and secessions from Puntland over the increasingly autocratic governing style of the president sparked initially by a demand earlier in 2007 for an audit of the budget. Fallout from this political crisis include the defection of Ahmed Abdi Xabsade to Somaliland and the invasion of Sool by Somaliland and his supporters, the secession of Puntland-controlled Sanaag and subsequent creation of the state of Maakhir, and recently the defection of the commander of Puntland military forces in Sool to Somaliland.

The newly elected President of Puntland is Abdirahman Mohamud Farole, 63, a former PhD student in the history department at La Trobe University in Melbourne, Australia. After having repeatedly turned down requests from his fellow countrymen to run for office and with the assurance of support from various political factions, Farole finally gave in and returned to Somalia to present himself as a candidate in the Puntland region's 2008-2009 presidential elections. In January 2009, he defeated all comers to become the fourth president of Puntland. In his election victory speech, Farole vowed to tackle head-on the pervasive piracy problem off of the Somali coast, including cracking down on local authorities who have reportedly corroborated with pirates in return for a share of the profits.

Dr Farole left Puntland in 2006 after falling out with former president Mohamud "Adde" Muse Hersi over a deal with Australian company Range Resources.

Puntland has 1600km of coastline, which is abundant with fish and other natural marine resources. However, after the collapse of the Somali central government in 1991, the coast was left unguarded against foreign intruders. As a result, many ships equipped with heavy trawls and other unlawful fishing equipment have worked in Puntland's territorial waters. These ships violate catch regulations, including some which keep their catch alive and stock them in waters where fishing has been depleted. Puntland's coastal authorities continue to receive complaints from local fishermen about the damage being done by these outsiders.

Puntland exports great quantities of seafood such as lobsters, dried fish, shark vines, and tuna. Sea salt is also produced.

Other economic products and activities of Puntland include livestock, frankincense, gum arabic, manufacturing and agriculture.

In Lasqorey district there is a medium size fish processing plant that produces and processes great quantities of tuna fish. The products of Lasqorey fish factory reach commercial level, and its tuna are found throughout Puntland and also outside the region. A fish processing plant is also being constructed in Habo, which locals hope will reduce poverty and unemployment and improve the economy of the area.

Piracy threatens shipping near the Puntland coast, with pirate crews operating out of ports on the coastline. The pirates actually have an income of $30m per year, $10m greater than that of Puntland as a whole. In a December 2008 report, the United Nations estimated that Somali pirates, mostly based in Puntland, had collected at least $120 million in the past year and still held at least 17 foreign ships. The report also claimed accused the Puntland government of being complicit in piracy.

The regions of Sool and Sanaag are in dispute, as these territories were claimed by the secessionist northwestern Somaliland macro region of Somalia. Beginning in 2003, Puntland troops entered and occupied the eastern parts of the Sool region. Fighting between the two forces led to casualties and captured prisoners, who were later exchanged.

Both the Sool and Sanaag regions have declared themselves autonomous parts of Somalia, as Northland State (2008) and Maakhir State (2007) respectively.

As of October 20, 2007, Puntland controls no territory in either Sool or Sanaag.

Puntland signed a deal with Consort Private Ltd for exclusive oil exploration rights in Puntland, interpreted in the original agreement as including Bari, Nugaal and Puntland's Mudug, Sool, Sanaag and Cayn regions. Consort then sold a controlling share (50.1%) to Range Resources of Perth, Western Australia to carry out the actual exploration.

Canmex Minerals of Canada signed an agreement with Range Resources for Canmex to open oil production on 80% of any oil discovered. In return, Canmex will foot the bill for exploration, amounting to up to ~$70 million, plus a $5 million signing bonus for Range. On August 23rd, 2006, Canmex changed its name to Africa Oil Corp. The company continues to be based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

The manner in which Puntland and their partners (Range Resources LTD, Canmex/African Oil Corp and other linked parties) have explored for minerals, oil and gas in the Dharoor and Nugaal valley has drawn criticism both within Puntland, Somalia and in the diaspora. Somalia is a patchwork of overlapping administrations, clans and traditional authorities, which in Puntland includes the Transitional Government, the Puntland Government, various traditional Harti clan leaders, and individual loyalties to a particular warlord or business leader. The President of Puntland has chosen to place himself above all these other authorities within Puntland, and the oil, mineral and gas exploration in Puntland has become an engine empowering conflict and war in northern Somalia. Since exploration began, this has spawned Puntland's war with Somaliland, Maakhir's break with Puntland, Somaliland's war with Maakhir, gun-battles outside of the Puntland State legislature, and a great deal of political uncertainty.

The Northern Somali Unionist Movement is a Somali organization of unknown size or influence that claims members and supporters from Sool, Sanaag and Cayn regions in the northern regions of Somalia in which some promising geological formations lie. They have issued a warning to mineral and oil prospectors companies claiming that they view their agreement with the Puntland and TFG governments regarding the SSC region as illegitimate and non-binding without the prior sanction and agreement of the traditional leaders and the civil society organizations of the area.

Established in 2004, Radio Garowe is a community radio station based in Garowe, the capital of Puntland. The station broadcasts daily from Somalia on shortwave 89.8 FM, covering all the latest headlines in Somali news, politics and society. It also broadcasts other special programming on Garowe Online, its online sister website.

Radio Gaalkacyo is the state radio station formerly called Radio Free Somalia. XargagaOnline is the main news portal (mostly in Somali) for current events from the Sool, Sanaag and Cayn regions of Somalia.

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