MOGADISHU: The Somali state of Puntland on Monday said it was “handing over responsibility” to Turkiye for a cargo ship carrying military equipment that it seized last month, provoking the federal government.
The oil-rich area declared its autonomy in 1998, and the region has had tense relations with the central government in Mogadishu.
Puntland forces intercepted the Comoros-flagged vessel, saying it had been observed “loitering” near the coast and could pose a security risk.
Mogadishu protested the move, calling it “an act of piracy,” and said the ship was carrying equipment for a Turkish military base in the country as well as goods for Somali traders.
In a statement on Monday Puntland government said a Turkish delegation led by its ambassador to Somalia held a meeting in the region and provided “proof that all the property belongs to the Turkish government.”
“Puntland government decided to hand over the responsibility of the vessel and the shipment it is carrying to the Turkish government,” it said in the statement.
The semi-autonomous region said it had wanted to “ensure that the military equipment does not fall into hands that might threaten Somalia’s security and stability.”
Puntland launched an offensive in December against Islamic State forces present in the region.
Somalia’s Puntland releases arms cargo ship to Turkiye
https://arab.news/yvsb6
Somalia’s Puntland releases arms cargo ship to Turkiye
- Puntland forces intercepted the Comoros-flagged vessel, saying it had been observed ‘loitering’ near the coast and could pose a security risk
- Mogadishu protested the move, calling it ‘an act of piracy,’ and said the ship was carrying equipment for a Turkish military base in the country as well as goods for Somali traders
Trump insists he struck Iran on his own terms
- “We are now a nation divided between those who want to fight wars for Israel and those who just want peace and to be able to afford their bills and health insurance,” Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X.
- Rubio himself doubled down on Tuesday after meeting with US House and Senate members, while insisting that “No, I told you this had to happen anyway”
WASHINGTON, United States: President Donald Trump and his team scrambled Tuesday to reclaim the narrative on why he decided to attack Iran, after his top diplomat suggested the US struck only after learning of an imminent Israeli strike.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio alarmed Democrats — who say only Congress can declare war — as well as many of Trump’s MAGA supporters on Monday when he said: “We knew that there was going to be an Israeli action.”
“We knew that that would precipitate an attack against American forces, and we knew that if we didn’t pre-emptively go after them before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties,” Rubio told reporters.
Administration officials quickly backpedalled, insisting Trump authorized the strikes because Tehran was not seriously negotiating an accord on limiting its nuclear ambitions, and the United States needed to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities.
“No, Marco Rubio Didn’t Claim That Israel Dragged Trump into War with Iran,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted Tuesday on X.
At an Oval Office meeting later with Germany’s chancellor, Trump went further, saying that “Based on the way the negotiation was going, I think they (Iran) were going to attack first. And I didn’t want that to happen.”
“So, if anything, I might have forced Israel’s hand.”
- Had to happen? -
Rubio himself doubled down on Tuesday after meeting with US House and Senate members, while insisting that “No, I told you this had to happen anyway.”
“The president made a decision. The decision he made was that Iran was not going to be allowed to hide... behind this ability to conduct an attack.”
Critics seized on the muddied messaging to accuse Trump of precipitating the country into a war without a clear rationale, without informing Congress — and without a clear idea of how it might end.
They noted that just two weeks ago, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pressed Trump again in Washington to take a hard line, in their seventh meeting since Trump’s return to power last year.
Some Republican allies rallied behind the president, with Senator Tom Cotton, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, insisting that “No one pushes or drags Donald Trump anywhere.”
“He acts in the vital national security interest of the United States,” Cotton told the “Fox & Friends” morning show.
But as crucial US midterm elections approach that could see Republicans lose their congressional majority, Trump risks shedding supporters who had welcomed his pledge to end foreign military interventions.
“We are now a nation divided between those who want to fight wars for Israel and those who just want peace and to be able to afford their bills and health insurance,” Marjorie Taylor Greene, a top former Trump ally and a major figure in the populist and isolationist hard right, posted on X.
