Puntland leader’s house attacked

At least three guards were wounded on Monday when gunmen fired at the residence of Yusuf Haji Nur, the “acting president” of the self-declared autonomous region of Puntland, northeastern Somalia, a local journalist told IRIN. Adan Abdirahman Dolar, editor of the Garowe-based ‘Nugal Times’, said that at least seven gunmen opened fire on the residence at around 1800 local time.

Yusuf Haji was not at the residence during the attack, but three of his personal guards were wounded in the ensuing firefight, said Dolar. The attackers were former members of the president’s guard detail who had been sacked for misconduct. Two of them had been arrested on Tuesday morning, and the rest “are being hunted by police with the help of their clans”, Dolar said.

Meanwhile, the conference of the representatives of Puntland’s constituent regions was proceeding smoothly, with no more delays, Dolar told IRIN. The organising committee, which had been chairing the conference, transferred the chairmanship to Islan Muhammad Islan Muse of the Ise Mahmud subclan of the Majerten, who was elected unanimously by the delegates. Islan Muhammad was also the chairman of the 1998 conference, which established Puntland as an autonomous region, he said.