Armed factions in Somalia’s semi-autonomous state of Puntland have agreed to a ceasefire, a local leader told Reuters news agency on Wednesday, a day after at least 26 people were killed and 30 injured in clashes over proposed changes to the region’s voting system.
Regional forces and fighters loyal to the opposition fought fierce street battles in Garowe, the Puntland capital, on Tuesday as the local parliament debated constitutional changes that include the introduction of one-man-one-vote elections.
A group of traditional elders said they helped negotiate a pause in the fighting on Wednesday. Local residents said the sound of gunfire had stopped, fighters had left the streets and shops reopened.
Opposition groups in Puntland, which lies along the country’s northeast Indian Ocean coast, accuse the region’s leader Said Abdullahi Deni of seeking to extend his term in office beyond January next year, or help tip the ballot in his favour. Deni has not commented publicly on the allegations.
