Opinion | Will the Sun of Unity Rise Again from Las Anod?

The unease surrounding developments in Las Anod has likely not been confined to advocates of secession alone. It has also reached actors long accustomed to a pattern of relations between the center and the regions built on an undeclared, de facto autonomy. According to basic principles of political science, keeping the peripheries in a constant state of tension and governing national space through imposed realities inevitably produces a fragile form of unity. Yet Somalia’s current experience appears to be unfolding along a path that defies these conventional rules.

Seen through this lens, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s visit to Las Anod was more than a routine appearance at the inauguration of a regional leader. It resembled a serious attempt to reassure the state itself that it still exists. Until recently, the city was embedded in the secessionist Somaliland project. Following the battles of 2023, it exited that framework and re-entered official discourse as the “capital of a federal state”—a compressed linguistic and political transformation spanning just two years.

The struggle over Las Anod was not merely a contest of maps, but a battle over meaning: is this territory secession-prone, or an integral part of a unified state? The answer came in practical terms with the declaration of the North Eastern State of Somalia. This entity did not settle for theoretical existence; it formally declared its accession to the federal state. The move seemed to signal that the Somali state—despite persistent doubts about its capacity—still retains the ability to remind geography who holds the final word.

The inauguration ceremony itself was strikingly well organized, presenting a scene that embodied state presence through institutions and symbolism. The president, Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, senior ministers, security officials, and foreign ambassadors were all in attendance. It was a complete tableau, missing only one essential element: a shared conviction that this presence represents a lasting policy rather than a temporary exception.

In his speech, the president left little room for ambiguity. He affirmed that the North Eastern State of Somalia is a full federal member state—neither a provisional arrangement nor a special case. The message was clear and unequivocal: this is a state, that is a country, and everything else is detail.

On the regional front, the president renewed his rejection of any external attempt to revive the secession project, particularly narratives linked to Israel. This stance was accompanied by a moral and political reminder: actors facing international isolation due to violent policies are hardly in a position to issue “certificates of independence” to others. He also firmly closed the door—decisively—on any discussion of relocating Gaza’s population to Somaliland, stressing that Somalia is already struggling to manage its own crises and has no intention of importing new ones.

As is often the case, however, the picture was incomplete. The absence of four federal member state leaders—Puntland, Jubaland, South West, and Hirshabelle—served as a reminder that Somali federalism remains more a contested project than a settled system. Their absence raises a familiar question: are these transient political disagreements, or a deeply rooted Somali practice of signaling positions through absence?