MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Jubaland forces on Friday launched anti-aircraft fire at a plane transporting logistics for Somalia’s government troops in Raskamboni, narrowly missing their target, as escalating tensions push both sides toward the brink of full-scale conflict, with each side seemingly determined to dismantle the other’s efforts.
“At 5:20 pm, Jubaland forces opened fire with anti-aircraft weapons at an aircraft transporting logistical supplies for the militias airlifted to Raskamboni,” Jubaland authorities said in a statement published on the website of the region’s TV.
“The plane diverted from its original landing approach, touching down on the opposite side near the Kenyan border, and when it took off from Raskamboni, it once again narrowly escaped the gunfire unleashed by Jubaland forces,” the statement added.
The regional authorities announced the establishment of a military base near the Raskamboni airstrip, asserting their resolve to “eradicate the militias deployed from Mogadishu by air to destabilize security in Jubaland towns.”
The unconfirmed claim by the federal government follows a warning from Jubaland authorities just days earlier, instructing civilian planes carrying weapons and troops for the Somali army not to land in Raskamboni, with a threat of retaliation; however, when airlines complied with the order, the Somali government responded on Friday by grounding all local flights, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at Mogadishu airport.
Opposition leaders Abdirahman Abdishakur and Hassan Ali Khaire condemned the move, asserting that it is illegal for civilian planes to transport troops and weapons, and that any forced compliance is even more egregious, emphasizing that the right to travel is a fundamental citizen’s right that cannot be revoked, while urging Mogadishu to desist from such actions.
On Friday, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared that Jubaland President Ahmed Madobe, whose re-election last month irked his government, will not remain in office, as both sides edge closer to a military confrontation, the outcome of which remains unpredictable.
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