Somalia orders the main UN envoy to leave

The Somali government ordered the top UN envoy in the troubled country to leave, accusing him of "deliberately interfering with the sovereignty of the country".

The order comes a few days after the official, Nicholas Haysom, has expressed concern over the action of Somali security services backed by the UN during recent violence that has resulted in several deaths.

"The UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Somalia, Nicholas Haysom, is no longer welcome in Somalia and can no longer operate in the country," Foreign Ministry and Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday. a statement.

The UN mission in Somalia has not reacted immediately.

Somali security forces used force to crack down on three days of demonstrations in the southeastern city of Baidoa on 13 and 15 December, killing at least 15 people and arresting 300 people, according to the UN.

The protesters were angry after the arrest of Muktar Robow, a former Islamist leader who was fighting over the post of president of the region.

Robow, who left the jihadist Al-Shabaab movement in 2017, was arrested by the government, accused of "undermining stability," and went to the capital, Mogadishu.

Robow's presidential race has highlighted tensions between Somali federal states, who want greater autonomy from a national administration concerned with protecting its central powers.

The UN mission in Somalia is responsible for supporting peace efforts and strengthening of government institutions in the country of Horn of Africa, which has been ruined by decades of civil war.

In this context, the UN supports police officers, including through the payment of salaries, logistics, uniforms and training.

Haysom wrote to the Somali government on December 30 asking for clarification on the legal basis for Robow's arrest, as well as for inquiring into the deaths in the demonstrations that followed his detention.

The UN mission in Somalia faces frequent attacks.

On Tuesday, three people were injured, including two UN personnel, when gunmen fired a mortar barrage on the main UN base in Mogadishu.

Shabaab, affiliated with al Qaeda fighting for the overthrow of the government backed by the international community, have claimed responsibility for the attack.

Haysom, a South African lawyer and experienced diplomat who was previously the UN special envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, was appointed to the post in Somalia in September 2018.