MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has appointed a new task force responsible for defending the Horn of Africa country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity as neighboring Ethiopia considers the implementation of a sea access deal with the break-away region of Somaliland, Caasimada Online news website reported on Monday.
Mohamud said the decision came after he had considered the need for a national task force to coordinate efforts to defend Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The President appointed former Minister of Planning Abdirahman Sh. Yusuf Aynte as the coordinator of the task force, whose members are former speaker of parliament Mohamed Osman Jawari, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Yusuf Garad Omar, ex-Minister of Women Maryan Qasim Ahmed, Abdikarim Hassan Jama, Ali Haji Warsame, Ayub Ismael Yusuf, Jama Mohamed Askar, Iid Mohamed Bedel and Faysal Abdi Roble.
The move comes days after Somaliland authorities said they will go ahead with the implementation of the memorandum of understanding inked with Ethiopia in January that gives Addis Ababa an access to a leased land along the Red Sea in exchange for recognizing Hargeisa.
Somali government protested the deal and described it as an “illegal infringement upon” the country’s sovereignty. Mogadishu has since insisted that there would be no room for talks until Addis Ababa canceled the deal despite attempts by Djibouti and Kenya to bring an end to the diplomatic row.
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