Clashes threaten to destroy peaceful region

Nairobi: The northeastern tip of Somalia has been a peaceful haven in an often violent nation, but a powerful warlord and a series of recent clashes are threatening to open a new zone of lawlessness.

Militants loyal to warlord Mohammad Said Atom have repeatedly clashed with government forces in recent weeks, and Atom told a local radio station that his men have retreated to their mountain hideout in Gal Gala to plan guerrilla attacks.

A UN report in March said officials had credible information that Atom has delivered arms sent by Eritrea to Al Shabab forces in southern Somalia. Al Shabab is Somalia's dominant insurgent group and its members have ties with Al Qaida.

Semi-autonomous

Al Shabab has so far distanced itself from activities in Puntland, a semi-autonomous region that set up its own administration in 1998. But fears are rising that the militant group could expand into the north if local authorities fail to address grievances that feed Atom's ambitions.

The warlord wants the administration to dismantle the US-backed Puntland Intelligence Service and to apply Islamic law in the region.

"Puntland is a very weak administration and if it loses the military initiative, there is a strong fear that it will have a southern-like scenario," said Rashid Abdi, a Somali expert with the International Crisis Group. "Its forces are better organised than those of the Transitional Federal Government in Mogadishu. But they can't withstand alone a determined insurgency for a long time."

Clashes between Atom's fighters and government forces began in late July, when the militants attacked Puntland forces near Atom's home base, a rugged and mountainous area 30km outside of the region's commercial capital, Bossaso.

Puntland's security minister said his forces had killed more than 30 militants since the fighting started, a claim denied by Atom.

The March report by the UN's Monitoring Group said Atom was importing arms from Yemen and receiving consignments from Eritrea, including mortars, for delivery to southern Somalia.

Atom's "activities pose a growing threat to peace and security in both Puntland and Somaliland," said the report, noting that "Atom appears to be preparing to confront both the Puntland and the Somaliland authorities more directly."

Until recently Puntland was spared by the large-scale violence that has been plaguing much of Somalia's southern and central regions, where militants are trying to topple the weak, UN-backed government in Mogadishu.