Capture of Borama (1991)
| Battle of Borama | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Somaliland War of Independence | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Somali National Movement | |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Abdirahman Aw Ali |
 Mohamed Hanfidhe | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| unknown | unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Minimum | 200-300 killed [1] | ||||||||
The Battle of Borama was a battle during the Somaliland War of Independence. It was the second and last battle between the Somali National Movement and the Gadabursi and Oromo militia of the Somali Democratic Alliance.
background
Throughout the Somaliland War of Independence, the Gadabursi clan in the western Awdal region of Somaliland had been fighting on Barre's side against the SNM, with the Barre regime arming them and encouraging them to undertake reprisals against the Isaaq. [2] Therefore, when the SNM reached Awdal in early 1991, local civilians were concerned that the Gadabursi and the Issa would be fighting the neighbouring Jibril Abokor sub-division of the Sa'ad Musa/Habr Awal, and that they wanted revenge.
In January 1991, in one of the final acts of the war, the 99th division of the SNM led by Colonel Ibrahim Koodbuur had pursued government forces that fled from Hargeisa to the town of Dilla. After a ferocious battle, the SNM captured the town and then continued into the main Gadabursi town of Borama.
Battle
The SNM encountered minimum resistance from the local inhabitants. After a short battle outside the city the SNM captured Borama. However, because the SNM leadership believed that the Gadabursi wished to seek peace, they withdrew their units after a mere 24 hours to allow discussions to take place without the shadow of occupation. This was eased by the fact that a highranking commander of the SNM present in Awdal, Abdirahman Aw Ali (nicknamed Tolwaa), was Gadabursi himself, of the Rer Jibril Yunis subclan. [3]
Aftermath
Borama was exacerbated by hunger and food shortages. When Abdirahman Aw Ali entered his hometown of Borama, the people saw the SNM forces as the best solution to the unbearable situation in the town. As part of alleviating the food shortage in Borama, Abdirahman Aw Ali Farrah, in collaboration with clan elders, ordered that the shopkeepers reopen their stores and sell their commodities at an affordable price. Before, they had closed in the hope of raising the prices of the dry rations. [4] Most locals in Borama were armed and ready to fight, including members of the pro-Barre Gadabursi militant group, the Somali Democratic Alliance (or SDA for short), armed Oromos, and several Gadabursi subclans. The confidence of the SNM however was rewarded when a brief initial meeting in mid-February in Tulli, just outside Borama, agreed that Gadabursi delegates would attend a larger peace conference in Berbera and then resume bilateral talks immediately after that meeting had finished, this time in Borama itself. [5][6]
References
- ↑ Africa Contemporary Record: Annual Survey and Documents. Africana Publishing Company. 1995. ISBN 9780841912229.
- ↑ Walls, Michael J. (2011). State Formation in Somaliland (PDF) (Thesis). UCL (University College London).
- ↑ Prunier, Gérard (2021). The country that does not exist a history of Somaliland. London. ISBN 978-1-78738-529-0. OCLC 1242464786.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ↑ Prunier, Gérard (2021). The country that does not exist a history of Somaliland. London. ISBN 978-1-78738-529-0. OCLC 1242464786.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ↑ Prunier, Gérard (2021). The country that does not exist a history of Somaliland. London. ISBN 978-1-78738-529-0. OCLC 1242464786.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ↑ Walls, Michael J. (2011). State Formation in Somaliland (PDF) (Thesis). UCL (University College London).