Puntland,(insidesomalia.org)- In an October surprise, terrorists strike against five targets, three in Hargaisa, Somaliland and two in Bossaso, Puntland in a bothersome expansion of the never-ending Somalia conflict.  The five attacks targeted a U.N. compound, the Ethiopian consulate and the presidential palace in Somaliland's capital, Hargaisa with approximately twenty one fatalities. Prior to these attacks, both regions have largely been peaceful and, unlike the rest of Somalia, free of violence.

The official U.S. State Department statement,which  condemned the attacks, saying " the actions of a small minority of violent extremists bent on continued chaos and destruction will not be allowed to defeat the desire and aspirations of the Somali people for lasting peace and stability,” is a welcome message.

Having the trade mark of Al-Qada actions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, these latest strikes against civilian targets, the presidential offices and the UNDP in Somaliland, inter alia, as well as other targets in the only two peaceful regions in Somalia, have several imports:

1. Given the targets as well as how well-organized the strikes appear, particularly those in Hargaisa, none of the regional and local administrations in stateless Somalia has the capacity or the military muscle to root out the ever-expanding terrorist networks.  With an impoverished one hundred percent Muslim populace, largely forgotten and ignored by the rest of the world, Somalia today represents a safe haven for organizing and establishing terrorist infrastructure, whose future impacts, if not quickly arrested, could most likely destabilize the entire horn of Africa region.

2. Unlike conventional beliefs, terrorist networks in Somalia exist beyond the shores of Mogadishu. The well-coordinated October surprise in Hargaisa and Bossaso, a metaphor for the often talked American October surprise - usually marked by strikes at the command of an out-going president, as Bush did against Syria last week, - represents a clear defiance of religious groups.

3. The growing muscle of terrorist in hitherto peaceful regions (Hargaisa and Bossaso) may port well for the not well liked rulers of Somaliland, President Rayale Kahin, and Puntland’s inept president, Cadde Musa. Both of the leaders may either call off the expected elections or use this recent terrorist strikes to extend their rule, even possibly limit civil rights in their respective regions

4.  Somali terrorism has today a wider reach and broader Social network than two years ago, mainly as a result of the Ethio-US adventurism mission of invading Somalia and violently stamping out moderate religious Mullahs who were in the process of meticulously reestablishing the defunct Somali state.  In light of the waning Ethiopian grip on Somalia and the growing infrastructure of terrorist groups in Somalia, the West, Washington in particular, must reassess its policy towards Somalia and terrorism in the region.

The latest deadly strikes at key targets in Hargaisa have shown us what terrorists have in store for the Somali society.  Indiscriminate killings and denying all Somalis any hope for a peaceful life is all that they can offer!

Despite all the political squabbles raging in all corners of the Somali society, there is one small yet well deserved thing that the residents of Somaliland and Puntland had until these latest terrorist actions:  Peace and thriving commerce, where all Somalis traded regardless of one’s clan origin, were positive attributes of these two regions until this latest strikes 

Whether the October terrorist surprise in Hargaisa and Bosaaso would erode the small glimmer of hope that the Hargaisa and Bossaso experiments so far affords us remains to be seen.    

We at WardheerNews condemn violence actions against innocent civilians such as the horrendous one that shook Hargeysa and Bossaso on October 29. We extend our condolence to families who lost loved ones in the cowardly terrorist acts.