MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s most prominent religious scholar, Sheikh Mustafe Hajji Ismail Harun, has warned that Somaliland would gain no benefit from engagement with Israel, which he described as the world’s current biggest aggressor, with consequences extending to both this life and the hereafter.
Speaking in Somaliland, Sheikh Mustafe said Israel had killed and wounded 200,000 Muslims, destroyed more than a thousand mosques and starved two million people. He said it was deeply unfortunate that Somaliland sought recognition from a state he said had fresh Muslim blood on its hands. He argued that such a move would morally implicate Somaliland in the suffering of Palestinians, whom he said had been invaded, displaced from their land and subjected to ongoing occupation and daily killings.
To illustrate his point, the scholar drew a parallel with Somaliland’s own recent history. He recalled the 1988 military crackdown by the Siad Barre regime, which forced residents of Hargeisa and Burao to flee to Ethiopia. He said that if others had settled those towns during the displacement and a separate entity had later recognised them, Somalilanders would view that recognition as deception and injustice. He said this, in his view, mirrored how Palestinians would perceive Somaliland’s position today.
Sheikh Mustafe added that even Siad Barre, widely regarded in Somaliland as the worst aggressor and symbol of brutality, had never sided with occupation, instead aligning himself with Nelson Mandela and the struggle against apartheid in South Africa.
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