Beled-Hawo, Gedo Region – The border town of Beled-Hawo is limping into a tense and uneasy calm this morning, just hours after intense fighting erupted yesterday between Somali Federal Government forces and troops loyal to the Jubbaland administration, led by the controversial security chief, Abdirashid Janan.
Despite the current lull in gunfire, fear still hangs thick in the air.
Communication in and out of the city has been cut off for nearly a week, and reliable information has been scarce. But eyewitness reports paint a grim picture of deteriorating humanitarian conditions — with shortages of food, clean water, and basic services pushing residents to the brink.
Local sources confirm fresh waves of displacement. Hundreds of families have fled their homes, seeking safety on the outskirts of Beled-Xaawo and along the porous borders with Kenya and Ethiopia, desperate to escape the spiraling violence.
Military positions remain unchanged this morning:
- Federal troops are entrenched in the UK base outside the town,
- While Jubbaland forces still hold ground inside Beled-Hawo.
Observers on the ground say the mood is anxious, with both sides still within striking distance and no clear mechanism for de-escalation in sight.
The Somali Federal Government and Jubbaland administration continue to trade blame over who instigated the latest round of violence — a familiar cycle that has left the Gedo region in political limbo and simmering conflict for years.
Beled-Hawo has long been a flashpoint in the power struggle between Mogadishu and Kismayo. At the heart of it is a contest over territorial control, loyalty, and deeper questions about Somalia’s federalism and fragile political settlements.
This isn’t the first time blood has been shed in this strategic town near the Kenya border — and tragically, if diplomacy fails again, it likely won’t be the last.