"Turkey is looting Somalia": Somali MP in an extraordinary attack on Erdogan's takeover of the country
In a conversation with N12, Somali MP Abdullahi Hashi Abib tells about the immense influence of Turkey in Somalia, which has become a scene of friction between Israel and Turkey.
Over the last two years, Turkey has deepened its influence in Somalia, taking control of many aspects of the country. An MP told N12: "They want to take over Somalia." Experts explain that Somalia is of great strategic importance and is used by Turkey to realize its ambitions to become a middle power. Israel also entered the arena in the last year, with the recognition of Somaliland and the growing tension with Turkey.
"The Turks are looting Somalia," says Somali MP Abdullahi Hashi Abib to N12, who has become in recent years the face of the Somali struggle against the growing Turkish involvement. In a conversation with us, Abib describes the Turkish takeover of Somali politics and central industries as part of a broader move to strengthen Turkey's status as a middle power. "They have taken over our entire fishing industry, they control the seaports and the airport, they train our security personnel, control the maritime spaces, place their satellites here and try to establish another base in Somalia. We are in a strategic location, and they want to take over Somalia," says the opposition MP.
Shiri Pine-Grossman, CEO of the Institute for Israel-Africa Relations, emphasizes that Abib is not a lone voice in Somalia, and that there is a stream in the country that opposes the Turkish presence and the agreements that grant Turkey control over many natural resources. She adds that Abib is a prominent and serious voice against Turkish involvement, and that the stream he represents has become a sharp critic of Turkish influence, which he claims does not deliver results.
Omar Mahmoud, an expert on Somalia and the Horn of Africa at the International Crisis Group (ICG), explains that Turkey began to be significantly involved in Somalia in 2011, when it provided humanitarian aid against the backdrop of a severe famine. Shortly after, Turkey obtained contracts to manage the port and airport in Mogadishu, and later was involved in rehabilitating the Somali army—collaborations that continue to this day, Mahmoud told N12. According to him, Turkey chose to invest in Somalia despite the risks because it identified potential in the country.
The expert explains that in the last two years there has been a further deepening of Turkish involvement. Mogadishu turned to its allies in an attempt to block the independence initiative of Somaliland and allowed Turkey to gain a significant foothold in the oil and fishing industries, alongside the approval of projects in the fields of security and space. "Somalia is important for Turkey's broader ambitions to become a middle power, and perhaps even more than that," says Mahmoud. According to him, Somalia may serve as a springboard for Turkey to deepen its involvement throughout the African continent and in the Indian Ocean arena.
Somali MP Abdullahi Hashi Abib claims that in the past he was offered money to help promote various demands of Turkey, but he refused. According to him, many MPs take bribes from Turkey, so there is no possibility to pass legislation that will reduce Ankara's involvement. Mahmoud emphasizes that corruption is a huge problem in Somalia, but says he is not specifically familiar with the claims raised by Abib.
Israel and Turkey are fighting for a presence in the Red Sea. Somalia has become a scene of friction between Israel and Turkey, which have been in extraordinary tension in recent months. The Israeli recognition of Somaliland, a region that aspires to sovereignty within the territory of Somalia, angered the Somali government. The Israeli move provided Jerusalem with a foothold in a particularly strategic area, close to the Red Sea and the Houthis in Yemen. Pine-Grossman emphasizes the strategic importance of the entire region, and says that Israel and Turkey are fighting for a presence in the Red Sea. According to reports, Israel deployed forces in the African country during the campaign against Iran. Abib, who strongly opposed the Israeli recognition, says he is trying to convince the American administration and the Somali public to act against the Turkish intervention, and that he hopes Israel will do so as well. According to him, the very fact of his call for cooperation with Israel reflects "how much we hate Turkey and what it is doing to us."
