Somaliland seizes Eritrean missile launchers in Hargeisa- official

January 23, 2008 (ADDIS ABABA) — Local authorities in the self-declared enclave of Somaliland said they seized 10 anti-aircraft missile launchers in the capital, Hargeisa adding they were brought from Eritrea.

The interior minister, Abdullahi Ismail Irro stated today that police caught two men in a house where are stored 10 small one-time use anti-aircraft missile launchers. He added the origin of the weapons is Eritrea and they were convoyed through, Galgadud, the central Somali region.

The Somaliland official added that investigations are going on with the two arrested men but he didn’t provide further details about who is behind this smuggling or its purpose.

However the Somaliland, which has good ties with Ethiopia, witnessed last October a series of car bomb attacks. The local government accused the Eritrean government backed Islamists of Al-Shebab of killing the 24 victims of these blasts.

The landlocked Ethiopia, wihich has an office in Hargeisa, use the Red Sea port of Berbera in the self-declared Republic of Somaliland to import fuel and goods.

Somaliland, which covers the northwest of Somalia, declared independence from the rest of the Horn of Africa country in 1991 but is not internationally recognized.

(ST)