Somaliland Armed Forces
| Somaliland Armed Forces Ciidanka Qaranka | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Service branches |
Army Air Defense Forces Navy |
| Headquarters |
Hargeisa Berbera |
| Leadership | |
| Minister of Defense | Ahmed Haji Abdi Adami |
| Chief of staff | Isma'il Mohamed Hassan Shaqale |
| Manpower | |
| Military age | 18-49 |
| Active personnel | 60,000[1] |
The Somaliland Armed Forces (Somali: Ciidanka Qaranka) are the main military forces in the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared republic that is internationally recognized as an autonomous region of Somalia. They are composed of two active military branches: the army and the navy. There is no air force.[2] The Somaliland Police Force is also a part of the internal security forces and is subordinate to the military. The Somaliland Minister of Defence Ahmed Haji Abdi Adami currently oversees the armed forces.
Somaliland spends more on its armed forces than any other item, allocating 30%[1] of revenues to the military. Due to Somaliland's lack of international recognition, the region is not allowed to procure weapons.[1]
Commanders
| No. | Name | Took office | Left office | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Nuh Ismail Tani[1] | 2003 | 11 December 2011 | Dismissed |
Army
Personnel
The Somaliland Army has long operated without a formal rank structure. However, in December 2012, the regional defense ministry announced that a chain of command had been developed and would be implemented by January 2013.[2]
Equipment
Due to a United Nations arms embargo on Somalia, which the semi-autonomous Somaliland region is internationally recognized as being a part of, the territory is not allowed to purchase weapons. Consequently, military officials from the region rely on repairing and modifying old equipment. Some also claim that weapons are at times delivered from Ethiopia and Yemen via the port of Berbera, usually during the night.[1]
Regular Somaliland soldiers have been seen with SKS carbines and various versions of the AK-47.[3]
Additionally, the Somaliland army operates an unknown number of the following equipment:[1]
- BM-21 mobile rocket launchers
- BGM-71 TOW anti-tank guided missiles
- BTR-50 tracked armored personnel carriers
- T-34 medium tank
- T-55 Main Battle tank
Navy
The Somaliland navy (Somali: Ciidanka Bada ee Somaliland) was formed in 2009.[1] The headquarters is located in the coastal town of Berbera; a diving center run by foreign divers who train the Somaliland navy is also located there. The Navy operates with small speedboats mounted with guns.[1] Much of this equipment was provided by the United Kingdom, in an effort to combat piracy.[2]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hussein, Abdi "Somalilands Military Is A Shadow of the Past" SomaliaReport, August 13, 2011, accessed August 13, 2011
- 1 2 3 Hasan, Yusuf M. "Somaliland: After Two Decades the Armed Forces Come to Age" indepthafrica.com November 27, 2012. Retrieved February 12, 2013.
- ↑ Forberg, Ekkehard and Ulf Terlinden. "Small Arms in Somaliland: Their Role and Diffusion" Berlin Information-centre for Transatlantic Study (BITS). March 1999. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
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