MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Intense clashes erupted between Somalia’s army and Jubaland’s Darwish forces in Raskamboni, located on the southern edge of Somalia’s border with Kenya, just hours after the federal government airlifted seven planeloads of troops to the strategic town on Tuesday, as tensions with Jubaland’s leadership escalated to a critical level, Caasimada Online news website reported.
According to local sources, the two rival forces, which had been amassing troops for the past 24 hours, clashed for the first time, triggering a long-anticipated conflict that has loomed over the region since Ahmed Madobe’s controversial declaration to hold a unilateral indirect election—opposed by the federal government—culminating in his victory for a third term on Monday.
Casualties on both sides have not been immediately known.
A brief statement from media outlets affiliated with Jubaland claimed that the fighting erupted when Somali government troops launched an assault on the positions of regional Darwish forces, although this assertion has yet to be independently verified.
“The militias deployed by the federal government over the past two days to Raskamboni in Badhadhe district, driven by political motives, launched an attack on Jubaland troops stationed in the area,” the statement reads.
“The valiant Jubaland forces, who are simultaneously combating the Khawarij group [Al-Shabaab], successfully repelled the militias brought in from Mogadishu, aimed at undermining the security and stability enjoyed by the people of Jubaland.”
The fighting comes as the Somali federal government seeks to assert control over all towns under Jubaland’s administration, excluding Kismayo, where long-time leader Ahmed Madobe’s entrenched power remains unshakable, while attempting to provoke defections within the Jubaland Darwish forces and deploying thousands of troops on two fronts—Elwak and Raskamboni—in a bid to weaken Madobe’s position and force him to either capitulate or face isolation in his power base. read more
