The chairman of the Wabari political organization, Abdirisaaq Ibrahin Ataash, has announced his complete withdrawal from Somaliland politics and supported the decisions made by the traditional conference in Las Anod town.
In an interview on Monday with freelance journalist Abdirisak Atosh, Ataash urged the Somaliland administration to respect the traditional elders’ decision and withdraw its army from the Sool region.
“It appears to me that their decisions should be respected, and I agree that they should be respected; it was deserved, and it is now deserved,” said Ataash.
He added that the will of the people of Sool could not be stopped by force, and another way to reach a solution is required, but the troops must be removed from the region immediately.
“My reasons are clear, and I want the fighting to end immediately. I propose that troops be sent to the city of Oog,” Ataash stated.
Ataash, who hails from the Sool region, is the second chairman of political organizations in Somaliland to leave politics since the crisis began in Las Anod.
Last week, the Somaliland People’s Party (SPP) chairman, Suleiman Haglotosiye said his party was withdrawing from Somaliland politics due to the ongoing violence in Las Anod.
He said that the Somaliland government had violated human rights in the town. Therefore they cannot be part of the Somaliland system.
“I am a politician for my people, and I cannot be a politician in a place where my people are being massacred. So I am clearly declaring here that we have left Somaliland politics entirely after witnessing the brutality and cruelty,” Haglotosiye stated.
The violence, which began on December 28, 2022, has displaced more than 185,000 people and damaged hospitals, hindering access to medical care for the wounded. The fighting has killed at least 80 people and injured 451 others, including medical personnel, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) Human Rights and Protection Group and Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
