Gunfire near Hargeisa municipal headquarters intensifies tensions over claims of a government-backed campaign to unseat elected officials.
Political tensions in Somaliland escalated sharply Tuesday night after gunfire erupted near the Hargeisa Local Council headquarters and several district administration offices, amid accusations that government-aligned actors are attempting to orchestrate a political takeover of the capital’s municipal leadership.
No casualties were reported, but heavily armed police units were deployed across major Hargeisa streets following the shooting. Witnesses described scenes of panic as gunfire echoed near municipal buildings during a period of deepening political confrontation within the local council.
“The streets were suddenly filled with police vehicles and armed officers after the shooting,” a resident near the municipal headquarters said. “People are worried the political tensions are entering a dangerous phase.”
Authorities had not issued an official statement by late Tuesday, and the circumstances surrounding the shooting remained unclear.
The armed incident occurred amid an intensifying dispute over the future leadership of the Hargeisa Local Council, where opposition figures and several council members accuse senior government officials of supporting a coordinated campaign to remove current municipal leaders and install figures loyal to the administration.
At the center of the controversy are Mayor Abdikareem Ahmed Mooge and Deputy Mayor Khadar Ahmed Omar, whose leadership has become the focus of mounting political maneuvering within the council.
An extraordinary council session was scheduled for Tuesday morning following a formal motion supported by eight councilors seeking the dismissal of both officials under Article 51 of Somaliland’s Governance and Districts Law (Lr. 23/2019).
The motion was formally acknowledged in a May 11 letter from the Ministry of Local Government and Urban Development, confirming that council members would convene to debate the proposed removals.
Councilors supporting the motion argued that the current leadership had failed to contain escalating divisions within the council and accused municipal officials of contributing to growing political fragmentation in the capital.
“The situation within the council has become untenable and requires urgent legal action,” a council member supporting the motion said, according to individuals familiar with internal discussions.
Councilors supporting the motion included:
* Abdi Mohamed Farah
* Adan Jama Hadi
* Faisal Abdirahman Hersi
* Muhumed Mohamed Abdi
* Hussein Ibrahim Adan
* Yasin Omar Abdi
* Abdifatah Hassan
* Aidarus Osman Mohamud
Critics, however, describe the effort as a politically engineered attempt to reshape the balance of power in Hargeisa before broader national political negotiations.
“This is not an ordinary political disagreement,” a council member said anonymously due to security concerns. “There is a coordinated campaign to remove the current leadership and install individuals viewed as politically loyal to the government.”
Opposition figures and independent council members further allege that pressure campaigns targeting elected officials have intensified through political intimidation, closed-door negotiations, and efforts to mobilize clan loyalties within the council.
Analysts warn that the growing use of clan rhetoric in municipal politics risks destabilizing the capital and undermining Somaliland’s democratic image.
“Hargeisa is not just another cityit is the political heart of Somaliland,” a political analyst based in the capital said. “Any attempt to reshape the council through clan mobilization risks creating deeper instability.”
The political confrontation has also revived scrutiny over the management of reconstruction funds allocated for a commercial hub devastated by a catastrophic fire in April 2022.
Council member Siciid Cudhay recently questioned the handling of approximately $23 million reportedly raised for reconstruction efforts and called for greater transparency regarding fund management.
“There is still no clear explanation regarding how the funds were spent, while the market reconstruction remains incomplete,” Cudhay said.
The allegations have added another layer of tension to an already volatile political climate within the council, where rival factions are increasingly divided over governance, municipal finances, and future leadership arrangements.
Supporters of Deputy Mayor Khadar Ahmed Omar argue that continuity in municipal leadership is essential as Hargeisa navigates major urban development and infrastructure projects.
“He understands the municipality’s internal operations and ongoing development priorities,” Cudhay said. “The remaining term is relatively short, and bringing in entirely new leadership could slow implementation of existing projects.”
Government-aligned figures have rejected accusations of orchestrating a political coup, insisting that any leadership changes would occur strictly through constitutional and legal mechanisms available to elected councils.
“There is no conspiracy,” one government supporter said. “Political disagreements inside elected councils are normal. Any leadership decision must follow institutional mechanisms.”
Civil society groups and political observers warned that the convergence of armed unrest and escalating political hostility could damage public confidence in democratic governance and local institutions across Somaliland.
“The situation requires calm leadership and respect for democratic norms,” one civic activist said. “Political disputes should never create insecurity for ordinary residents.”
Following the gunfire, police patrols and security checkpoints were deployed across several districts of Hargeisa, including roads surrounding municipal buildings and government offices. Residents reported heightened security activity late into the night as tensions continued to simmer across the capital.
Analysts say prolonged instability within the Hargeisa Local Council could disrupt critical urban development projects, delay reconstruction initiatives, and deepen political fractures at a sensitive moment for Somaliland, which has increasingly sought to project democratic credibility and institutional stability amid growing geopolitical attention on the Horn of Africa and Red Sea corridor.
For now, uncertainty continues to surround both the armed incident and the political maneuvering behind efforts to reshape the leadership of Somaliland’s capital.
As councilors prepared for Tuesday morning’s extraordinary session, political tensions across the capital remained high, with critics warning that the unfolding process could amount to a “soft coup” inside the Hargeisa Municipal Council. Rival political factions were meanwhile expected to push for the election of a new mayor and deputy mayor should the motion against the current leadership succeed, raising fears of a deeper political rupture within Somaliland’s capital administration.