Djiboutian government takes steps to resolve conflict between kenya and somalia

The government of Djibouti has sent a fact-finding mission to the border towns of Beledhawo and Mandera to quell the escalation of diplomatic tensions between Somalia and Kenya.

The move follows an IGAD summit in Djibouti on Monday, which saw President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo and his Kenyan counterpart, Uhuru Kenyatta, meet.

The Somali federal government, which has acknowledged pressure to accept the resettlement of the crisis, said it has demanded that a fact-finding commission be sent to the border, following reports that troops under the Jubbaland administration have been mobilized from within. Kenya, and are on the Mandera border on the other side.

Djiboutian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf told reporters that a Djiboutian delegation – consisting of diplomats and military officials – had been sent to the border between Beledhawo and Mandera to monitor the situation.

The group is expected to return to Djibouti, where it will move on to the next phase.

Recently, the minister said his government was tasked with calming tensions between the two neighboring countries.

“We believe that Djibouti plays a role in peace and stability in the region. At the last IGAD Summit in Djibouti, this issue was discussed and agreed upon. “We will continue to defuse tensions in the region,” he said.

The dispute between the two neighboring countries is expected to eventually be resolved as planned by IGAD member states.

IGAD leaders, comprising Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda and Eritrea (currently non-existent), agreed on Monday to resolve the Somalia-Kenya issue within IGAD.

In recent days, there have been growing concerns that Somali and Kenyan forces are fighting along the border between Beledhawo and Mandera.

The Federal Government of Somalia has reportedly deployed troops in Beledhawo, while forces under the control of the Jubbaland administration have also been on the other side, with the support of the Kenyan military.

On the 21st of this month, a peaceful demonstration took place in Mandera town demanding that there be no violence in the area, as the local community expressed strong fears.