South West fighting worsens tensions between Somalia and Kenya
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Caasimada Online
Fighting in Somalia’s South West state is worsening tensions between Mogadishu and Nairobi, which is accused of hosting former regional leader Cabdicasiis Xasan Maxamed Laftagareen. Somalia’s Parliament is seeking diplomatic explanations, while financial sanctions imposed on Laftagareen and nine others remain at the heart of the dispute, Caasimada reports, citing The Standard.
Fighting in Somalia’s South West state is worsening tensions between Mogadishu and Nairobi, with the Somali federal government accusing Kenya of hosting officials suspected of fuelling the conflict. The dispute notably concerns the former president of South West state, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, who is based in Kenya, while his forces are fighting the federal army and those of the administration led by Sheikh Adan Mohamed Nur, known as Aadan Madoobe, according to Caasimada Online and Kenyan daily The Standard.
The speaker of the House of the People, Abdulqadir Mohamed Nur, called on the federal government to seek explanations from Nairobi through diplomatic channels about the role it attributes to Kenya in the fighting around Baydhaba. The Standard estimates that the crisis could affect security cooperation, diplomatic relations and trade between the two countries, particularly Kenyan khat exports to Somalia.
Mogadishu placed Laftagareen and nine other people on its national financial sanctions list on 13 October, accusing them of links to Al-Shabaab and financing terrorism. Those concerned reject the accusations and blame the war on the federal government. Allegations of Kenyan support for their camp and Emirati funding transiting through Kenya have not been independently verified, Caasimada Online reports.
The crisis stems from the breakdown of the political alliance between Laftagareen and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, amid disagreements over the Constitution, elections and the division of powers. South West suspended its cooperation with Mogadishu on 17 March 2026, before Laftagareen resigned from a leadership position within the Justice and Reconciliation party the following day.
