Puntland State of Somalia Faces Disinformation Campaign After Sudan Drone Strikes

[Deeq A.]

Abdiwahab(left), Aidid (middle) and Puntland State President Said Abdullahi Deni (right).

Garowe (PP Commentary) — Since the drone attacks on Port Sudan, some Sudanese bloggers and social media personalities have spread baseless rumours that the UAE uses Bosaso to launch strikes on Port Sudan. Why Puntland State of Somalia was singled out for this canard when UAE’s parastatal, DP World, operates in Berbera is unfathomable. It is worth noting that the UAE was given the approval  to establish a base in Berbera several years ago. It remains unclear whether that base operates or if the UAE shelved the plan.

Several factors make the Puntland State of Somalia vulnerable to disinformation campaigns. Firstly, there is an inadequate communication strategy to counter baseless reports in established media outlets to tarnish the image of Puntland State. In July 2025, Africa Intelligence, a Paris-based publication, misleadingly reported: “Embroiled in the Sudanese civil war, Abu Dhabi has established an airlift to supply the RSF with weapons and paramilitaries. Bosaso, in the northwest of Puntland, is a central link in this logistics operation…”

Neither the Puntland State government nor the Federal National Security Office in Mogadishu refuted this allegation. The UAE Air Force contributed to counterterrorism operations in the Calmiskaad mountain range,  an involvement impossible without Federal Government approval. There is a possibility Mogadishu shared classified information with the Sudanese delegation led by the Intelligence Service director last week, who might have been influenced by the torrent of anti-Puntland disinformation linking Somalia’s founding Federal Member State with the civil war in Sudan.

Puntland State of Somalia had  to respond to allegations made by Abdiwahab Abdisamad in an interview on Universal TV, where he repeated claims published by Africa Intelligence nearly two months earlier. Puntland’s Information Minister, Mohamud Aidid, asserted that Abdiwahab “is a spokesman for Daesh.” Abdiwahab replied on Twitter to Aidid’s remarks. “You have deliberately and foolishly twisted my statement on Universal TV regarding Puntland’s war against ISIS. I never belittled the sacrifice of Somali soldiers. My question was simple: Why are you prolonging a war against a thousand-strong ISIS force, confined to a specific area, that could be eliminated in weeks, if not days?” Abdiwahab tweeted

Calmiskaad is not only vast but also mountainous and treacherous. Given the years ISIS operated there, most Puntland casualties and injuries resulted from landmines, booby traps and unforeseen ambushes by Daesh. Calmiskaad contains not only hideouts but also foxholes inaccessible to helicopters sent to evacuate wounded soldiers.

Puntland should challenge media outlets that publish or broadcast baseless allegations aimed to boost the morale of terror groups and their sympathisers.

 © Puntland Post, 2025

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