MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th May, 2021) Pro-opposition forces controlling parts of the Somali capital of Mogadishu left the city and returned to their bases following the signing of a demilitarization agreement with the country's leaders, media reported on Friday.
On Wednesday, the Somali authorities and opposition leaders reached an agreement on the demilitarization of the capital. According to the Somali Guardian news portal, the opposition was expected to withdraw its troops from Mogadishu within 48 hours after the treaty entered into force.
On Saturday, Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble ordered the national army to leave the capital and return to their regional bases. The country's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, in turn, reportedly ordered troops from several regions to move to Mogadishu to fight the pro-opposition forces controlling the capital.
End of April, Somalian armed forces supporting the opposition seized several key areas in Mogadishu. The assault was triggered by President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed's decision to grant himself two more years in office after his term expired in February.
Roble urged the president to cancel the extension and called for a dialogue amid growing unrest. On April 28, Mohamed agreed with the requests and tasked the prime minister with organizing the elections.
According to the UN, the violent clashes between troops loyal to the president and the opposition forced between 60,000 to 100,000 people to flee their homes.
Somalia is one of the poorest countries in the world and is considered to be a "failed state." The country has been divided into several parts since 1991. The official Federal government, recognized by the international community, controls the capital and several other areas. The rest of the country is controlled by quasi-state entities such as Somaliland, Puntland and terrorist groups.
