Opposition fighters withdrew from the Somali capital on Friday, ending a tense standoff with pro-government troops after a dispute over delayed elections triggered the country s worst political violence in years.
Hundreds of heavily-armed gunmen pulled out of strongholds in Mogadishu they had occupied since late April when a long-running political crisis turned deadly with clashes erupting between rival factions of the security forces.
Under a deal reached by the warring sides this week, opposition troops began leaving their positions in the capital, and key roads sealed off with sandbags and machine guns were opened once more. We are sending our forces back to the frontline position to defend the country and its people, said Mahad Salad, an opposition lawmaker, at a camp outside Mogadishu where troops assembled after pulling out of the city.
(Bloomberg) Somalia will expedite elections in a bid to quell instability and coax donors into releasing funds needed to pay the nation’s security forces and other state employees, Foreign Minister Mohamed Abdirizak said.
Reversing a Controversial Law Wonât End Somalia s Political Crisis MIN READMay 4, 2021 | 20:14 GMT
A member of parliament gestures in response to the president’s request to annul a law extending his term in Mogadishu, Somalia, on May 1, 2021.
(AFP via Getty Images)
A decision not to extend Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamedâs mandate will alleviate the immediate security crisis in Mogadishu, but continued political turmoil will disrupt the implementation of security and economic reforms needed to stabilize the country. On May 1, Mohamed and the lower house of parliament formally annulled a controversial law that would have extended his term by two years after clashes in Mogadishu sparked concern that Somalia could return violence along clan lines. The decision will restore an agreement that Somali leaders reached in September to hold the countryâs delayed presidential election under an indirect system. Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble has since invi