Somaliland leader urges ceasefire after deadly clan clashes in Sool

The leaders of the breakaway Somaliland have called for an urgent peace deal following deadly clashes between two sub-clans in Sool region.

Somaliland state minister for development, Abdirashid Hussein said he was concerned over renewal clashes in the region.

“First, we want to suggest that both warring clans stop the ongoing bloodshed, and we also call on the regional administrations of Sool to mediate with the clans to resolve their disputes over wells,

The clashes between the nomadic clans came over access to water reservoirs – a long-standing source of conflict in a nation hit by regular cyclical drought.

the fighting claimed 30 fighters from the opposing sub-clans in the village of Dharkeyn-Genyo, 70km west of Sool regional capital of Lasanod.

Fighting clan militias have been at loggerheads over a land dispute, while the local elders been able to mediate between the groups, a lasting ceasefire has never been achieved.

Arguments over land use, boreholes and pasture have perennially contributed to fighting among Somali clans who are largely pastoralists.