Saturday December 24, 2022
Mogadishu (HOL) - Somalia's Lower House Speaker, Sheikh Adan Mohamed Noor Madobobe, said that Friday’s violent clash in Baidoa was intended to derail a reconciliation meeting scheduled for early January.
The Speaker of Somalia’s Parliament issued a press release on Friday evening calling for an immediate end to the bloody conflict and for both sides to settle their differences through dialogue.
At least ten people were killed in a gun battle between South West State forces and militias loyal to opposition candidates in Baidoa early Friday morning.
Local journalists in Baidoa reported that while the situation is still tense, a sense of calm returned to Baidoa on Saturday.
Sheikh Adan Madobe, who hails from Southwest State, added that anyone involved in escalating the conflict would be held accountable.
Recently, a political firestorm has been brewing in Baidoa between the incumbent President Abdiaziz Laftagareen and opposition candidates.
In 2019, Southwest parliament extended President Abdiaziz Laftagaren's term for one year, pushing his mandate expiry to December 19, 2023. However, the opposition opposed the President's term extension.
The Federal government of Somalia said it regrets the violent confrontation in Baidoa; and urged the political sides to resolve their differences through dialogue to avoid further bloodshed.
The federal government said it is also investigating what caused the clash in Baidoa on Friday.
Laftagareen, who celebrated his 4th year in office earlier this week with an elaborate ceremony in Baidoa, also called for peace. He said anyone with grievances towards the regional government should attend the Southwest reconciliation conference, which will begin in Baidoa early in the New Year.
President Laftagareen held back from blaming anyone specifically for the violence and said that he regretted that the armed forces were fighting among themselves rather than fighting Al Shabab.