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Aircraft from SA held in Somaliland

Mogadishu - The authorities of the northern Somali region of Somaliland on Friday seized a plane carrying military supplies to Puntland, a neighbouring and rival self-proclaimed state, officials said.

Somaliland's interior minister, Mohamed Abdi Gabose, told reporters in the regional capital Hargeysa that the cargo plane was in violation of the international arms embargo on Somalia.

"The aircraft was originally coming from South Africa and Kampala. They asked for permission to land at our airport after experiencing a fuel shortage," Gabose said.

"But it landed before we officially gave the green light and we have seized the plane," he said, adding that the six crew members were arrested.

"This aircraft was heading to Puntland and carried military uniforms as well as other supplies for the newly recruited militiamen," the minister said.

Puntland, on whose shoreline are most of the main bases for the pirates marauding on the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, has enlisted private security company Saracen International to train a dedicated anti-piracy force.

The move sparked criticism from the Pentagon, which said it was concerned at the lack of transparency regarding the programme's funding.

Tensions also run high between Somaliland and Puntland, which are separated by a disputed territory where armed clashes sporadically break out.

Anyone know anything more? This is not a good place to be held and besides, who is looking for fuel in Somalia????

Quote:

The move sparked criticism from the Pentagon, which said it was concerned at the lack of transparency regarding the programme's funding.

Coming from the most transparent administration in recent history. Why do they think they should have ANY say in this matter? Let alone criticize them for what they themselves are most criticized for at home?

Planecrazi, You say "this is not a good place to be held" - I'm not sure you're on the right track here. That sounds rather like the usual pavlovian media assumptions about "Somalia" and hostages, also that article is not written in a way that reads very authoratatively to me.

Firstly, the event has occurred, as stated, in Hargeisa, which is the capital of Somaliland. This is NOT Somalia as most peole assume it to be. Somaliland has for a couple of decades now declared itself indepandant from the awful mess of the rest of Somalia and has managed to make a pretty good job of developing some credible law and order and government out of the wreckage of the 1990(?) Ethiopian war and the downfall of the Siad Barre regime. The'd have got a whole lot further if the international community had the guts to recognise their claim to idependance, but sadly they remain unrecognised as a bona-fide nation which seems a huge missed opportunity as Somaliland is a little beacon of hope in an otherwise disastrous region. Puntland is a former administrative region of Somalia (joke, No administration in Somalia beyond rule 7.62) and the whole place is worse than a basket case with no government to speak of, basically tribal anarchy. That Somaliland was once British Somaliland and hasgone back to the old Colonial name is not a coincidence. The benefits of the stability and law and order of the Colonial years are still widely appreciated there and they are making great strides to regain that stability. That Hargeisa manages to keep the only fuel supply in the region, plus the fact that Puntland and the rest of Somalia was previously under an Italian administration adds somewhat to the overall picture too...

Somaliland will be sensitive to any threats both political and physical from the lawlessness of Puntland and I'm gratified to see that they are taking action to prevent the depredations of their wild cousins to the south and east, so the detention of an arms flight is to be applauded. This sort of demonstration of commitment to their international responsibilities is a breath of fresh air in that region. I am pretty sure that the crew will not be mistreated there, Somaliland can't afford to behave badly towards other nationalities if it is ever to attain its goal of international recognition. Far from it, despite being the lowest scum of the earth, ie arms smugglers I suspect they will actually be well looked after.

Why this report is said to originate from Mogadishu and not Hargeisa is a puzzle though, as Mog especially doesn't recognise the existance of Somaliland, and I'm surprised is minded to put out press releases even acknowledging its existance.

IMHO, Bravo Zulu Somaliland.

Nicely put Agaricus.

There's a world of difference between Somalia and Somaliland.

Agaricus Bisporus your final salute to Somaliland gives away your naval background!

Yes... nicely put, Agaricus.

Hargeisa... my favorite place... I been there so many times on UN runs. Used to sleep at Ambassador Hotel..

I like the harmless gentlemen hanging around the airport totting rusty AK47's.

Jockey, do you by chance work for 748 AS? I'd heard they were doing UN work in Somaliland. Can you give any opinions on 748s operation? Good, bad, indifferent?