Tigray leaders congratulate President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on election victory
Monday May 16, 2022
Mogadishu (HOL) – A caretaker administration for the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) congratulated Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Monday for his successful reelection campaign.
Mohamud was voted out by lawmakers in 2017 in favour of Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo but emerged victorious on Sunday, securing 65% of the votes in the second round.
In a letter addressed to the new President, The Government of the National Regional State of Tigray said that Mohamud's removal as president over five years ago "regrettably created a negative externality in the overall instability of the Horn of Africa."
"The historic comeback of H.E President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, with landslide support, is a testament to the aspiration of the people of Somalia in reversing the downward trend and repositioning the Federal Republic of Somalia to a sustainable and inclusive future."
‎The TPLF also said they have complete confidence in the new Somali president and are ready to cooperate in regional security.
The Transitional Government of Tigray on 7 November 2020 after Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched military operations in Tigray. Abiy Ahmed accused leaders from the TPLF of orchestrating an attack on the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) Northern Command headquarters in Tigray's Mekelle region and attempting to loot military hardware.
Prior to Abiy Ahmed's ascension to Prime Minister in April 2018, the TPLF dominated the four ethnically-based parties that made up the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) since its founding following the end of the Ethiopian Civil War in 1991.
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's predecessor, former President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, was a close regional ally to the Ethiopian Prime Minister. Together with Eritrea's Isaias Afwerki, the three formed a Horn of Africa tripartite agreement, which promised to build "close political, economic, social, cultural and security ties" between them.
During his term, Farmajo was dogged by accusations of sending hundreds of Somali recruits to Eritrea. The families of children taken to Eritrea in 2018 have pleaded with the Somali government for an answer.
Earlier this year, a Canadian newspaper reported that it had obtained eyewitness accounts of war crimes committed in Ethiopia by Somali troops.
Although details were scant, the United Nations and U.S. officials said they received information that Somali troops were present in Tigray.
Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea have officially denied any alliance or cooperation in the Tigray conflict.