SUMMARY
The non-state conflict between the Republic of Somaliland and the autonomous region of Puntland State of Somalia is in essence territorial in nature, but also has national overtones. The Republic of Somaliland, self-proclaimed as independent in 1991, lays claim to all of the territory that had been part of the British protectorate of Somaliland between 1884 and 1960. This claim includes the regions of Sool and Sanaag; two regions that were included in the territory of Somaliland when it was first given independence by the British in 1960. Five days after independence in 1960 Somaliland however joined the rest of Somalia to form a united country. The regions of Sool and Sanaag are, however, also claimed by the autonomous administration of Puntland State of Somalia, formed in 1998. Puntland lays claim to these areas on demographic grounds, with Sool and Sanaag having large populations of Warsangeli and Dhulbahante clan members within their borders. Puntland is governed by the Harti branch of the Darod clan, of which the Warsangeli and Dhulbahante clans are also part. Somaliland is in turn dominated by the Isaaq clan, with which the Warsangeli and Dhulbahante clans have only minor bonds. The relative peace and prosperity experienced in Somaliland and the clan ties to the Puntland administration have left the Warsangeli and Dhulbahante in Sool and Sanaag divided in terms of loyalties whilst the two rivaling administrations have been jockeying for control over the areas. Insecurity over who controls the area, and where the inhabitants’ loyalties lie, have also yielded parallel rump-administrations throughout the area, representing both Somaliland and Puntland.
The conflict also contains a twist of national issues, namely the territorial integrity of Somalia. Somaliland, as has been mentioned above, has declared itself independent, whilst Puntland upholds an autonomous status with no outspoken wish to secede from the Somali union. When Puntland President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed left his seat in 2004 to become President of the TFG (Transitional Federal Government), which aspires to control the entirety of Somali territory, close bonds were tied between the Puntland administration and the fledgling transitional government. Puntland employed soldiers in support of the TFG’s battle with the SICS (Supreme Islamic Council of Somalia) and in general supported the TFG’s wish for a united Somalia in which there will be no room for secessionism. The issue of territorial control and sovereignty has been further aggravated by the TFG’s decision to grant mineral exploration rights in Sool and Sanaag to international companies; something which Somaliland naturally opposed.
Armed hostilities between the two administrations began to flare in 2002, but did not reach the level of a non-state conflict until 2004. In December 2003 soldiers from Puntland State of Somalia took control of the town of Las Anod (also referred to as Laascanood), drove off the Somaliland administration, and began expanding its own administration throughout 2004. Somaliland forces soon reacted to this infringement upon the territory it claims and clashes flared throughout the year reaching the level of an armed non-state conflict.
Clashes continued in the years that followed in 2004, but did not cross the 25 battle-related deaths threshold. Somaliland forces have since 2004 sporadically advanced on Las Anod, but have not re-established authority over the areas that are dominated by the Warsangeli and Dhulbahante clans. Clan elders and other traditional authorities have also mediated in the conflict and succeeded, at times, in reducing tensions. The conflict issue itself has, however, not been resolved.
Fighting between Puntland State of Somalia and the Republic of Somaliland forces have been concentrated solely to the Sool and Sanaag regions, with the town of Las Anod in Sool being the focal point. The fighters typically clash with small-arms, rocket-launchers, and anti-aircraft guns mounted on technicals (battlewagons).
The non-state conflict between Puntland State of Somalia and the Republic of Somaliland is first included in UCDP data in 2004. In October that year heavy fighting outside the village of Adi-Addeye (near Las Anod) pushed the death toll above the 25 battle-related deaths threshold. On 1 August 2012, Puntland officially became a member state of the Federal Republic of Somalia and is since then seen as the Government of Somalia. Thus, the conflict continued as a state-based conflict from that date ( see Government of Somalia - Republic of Somaliland.
