UK sees 'specific' threat in Somaliland
Source: Agencies |
January 28, 2013, Monday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
BRITISH citizens should immediately leave the Somaliland region of Somalia because of a specific threat to Westerners, Britain said yesterday.
In a statement e-mailed to reporters, Britain's Foreign Office did not go into any further detail about the nature of the threat but noted that "kidnapping for financial or political gain, motivated by criminality or terrorism" is an issue throughout the country.
The new warning was issued only days after Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and Canada urged their citizens in the Libyan city of Benghazi to evacuate in response to what was then described as an imminent threat to Westerners. European officials said at the time that schools were thought to be among the potential targets.
The exact reason for the warnings remains unclear, but they come at a time of heightened tension across north Africa. French and African land forces are battling al-Qaida-linked Islamists in northern Mali, while a renewed bout of unrest has gripped Egypt following the two-year anniversary of the revolution that toppled strongman Hosni Mubarak.
A January 16 attack on the Ain Amenas natural gas plant in the Sahara ignited a four-day siege by Algerian forces in which at least 37 hostages and 29 militants died. An al-Qaida-affiliated group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Libya also remains unstable after the overthrow of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
It was unclear if any of those factors played a role in Britain's latest warning.
Somaliland, a former British colony, declared independence in 1991 when Somalia's government in Mogadishu collapsed. The world does not recognize Somaliland as a separate country.
In a statement e-mailed to reporters, Britain's Foreign Office did not go into any further detail about the nature of the threat but noted that "kidnapping for financial or political gain, motivated by criminality or terrorism" is an issue throughout the country.
The new warning was issued only days after Britain, Germany, the Netherlands and Canada urged their citizens in the Libyan city of Benghazi to evacuate in response to what was then described as an imminent threat to Westerners. European officials said at the time that schools were thought to be among the potential targets.
The exact reason for the warnings remains unclear, but they come at a time of heightened tension across north Africa. French and African land forces are battling al-Qaida-linked Islamists in northern Mali, while a renewed bout of unrest has gripped Egypt following the two-year anniversary of the revolution that toppled strongman Hosni Mubarak.
A January 16 attack on the Ain Amenas natural gas plant in the Sahara ignited a four-day siege by Algerian forces in which at least 37 hostages and 29 militants died. An al-Qaida-affiliated group has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Libya also remains unstable after the overthrow of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi.
It was unclear if any of those factors played a role in Britain's latest warning.
Somaliland, a former British colony, declared independence in 1991 when Somalia's government in Mogadishu collapsed. The world does not recognize Somaliland as a separate country.
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