ANKARA: Somalia’s president is to visit close ally Turkiye on Tuesday following Israel’s recognition of the breakaway territory of Somaliland, Turkiye’s presidency said.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud will hold talks “on the current situation in Somalia in the fight against terrorism, measures taken by the federal Somali government toward national unity and regional developments,” Burhanettin Duran, head of the Turkish presidency’s communications directorate, said on X.
Turkiye on Friday denounced Israel’s recognition of Somaliland, a self-proclaimed republic, calling it “overt interference in Somalia’s domestic affairs.”
Ankara, a close ally of Somalia, provides military and economic assistance to the country that has been devastated by civil war since the early 1990s.
Turkiye is helping to rebuild its army and infrastructure while ensuring its presence in east Africa, including at sea.
Somaliland declared independence in 1991, as Somalia was plunged into chaos following the fall of dictator Siad Barre.
The region has operated autonomously since then and possesses its own currency, army and police force.
It has generally experienced greater stability than Somalia, where Al-Shabab militants periodically mount attacks in the capital Mogadishu.
Diplomatic isolation has been the norm — until Israel’s move to recognize it as a sovereign nation, which has been criticized by the African Union, Egypt, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council and the Saudi-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
The European Union has insisted Somalia’s sovereignty should be respected.
The recognition is the latest move by Israel that has angered Turkiye, with relations souring between the two countries in recent years.
Ankara has strongly condemned Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip, and Israel has opposed Turkiye’s participation in a future stabilization force in the Palestinian territory.
Somali president to visit Turkiye after Israeli recognition of Somaliland
https://arab.news/jm9ta
Somali president to visit Turkiye after Israeli recognition of Somaliland
- Ankara, a close ally of Somalia, provides military and economic assistance to the country that has been devastated by civil war since the early 1990s
- Somaliland declared independence in 1991, as Somalia was plunged into chaos following the fall of dictator Siad Barre
UN: 119,000 people flee Aleppo after days of intense fighting
DUBAI: United Nations spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said Tuesday that recent clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters in Aleppo, northern Syria, have displaced around 119,000 people, Al Arabiya News Channel reported.
He also noted that the UNHCR is working to provide assistance to all displaced families in shelters and host communities.
“As of yesterday, some 119,000 people have been displaced since the resumption of hostilities in Aleppo. The UNHCR and other partners on the ground are providing assistance to displaced families in temporary shelters and host communities. This support includes the distribution of blankets, mattresses, and essential winter clothing,” the channel quoted the spokesperson as saying.
Hundreds of displaced residents began returning on Monday to an Aleppo neighborhood in northern Syria after days of intense fighting.
The clashes, which killed at least 23 people and displaced tens of thousands, broke out on Jan. 6 in the predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods of Achrafieh, Sheikh Maqsoud and Bani Zeid after the government and the Syrian Democratic Forces, the main Kurdish-led force in the country, failed to make progress on implementation of a deal that would merge the SDF into the national army. Security forces captured the three neighborhoods.
On Monday, armed security forces stood guard as traffic flowed normally through the streets of Achrafieh, while buses carried displaced families back to the neighborhood. Many shops had reopened, although residents complained about electricity cuts.
