Puntland Forces Take Control of Former PSF Base in Bosaso

Puntland’s security forces took full control on Thursday of a headquarters in the port city of Bosaso that had previously been occupied by an armed group formerly known as the Puntland Security Force (PSF), according to AllAfrica, citing reporting by Shabelle. The regional authorities said facilities at the site were also now under their command.

The takeover follows a security operation in Galkayo, the contested administrative capital that Puntland shares with the neighbouring Galmudug state. According to AllAfrica, the regional administration framed the move in Bosaso as part of a broader effort to bring paramilitary units that have operated outside the regular security forces back under unified command.

Background on the PSF

The Puntland Security Force was a paramilitary unit that at various points served alongside Puntland’s regular Darwish military and police forces. Over the years, parts of the unit were absorbed into formal security structures, while other factions drifted toward local strongmen or clan-based militias, a pattern Shabelle and other Somali outlets have documented in Bari and Mudug regions.

Puntland, which declared autonomy from the federal government in Mogadishu in 1998, has long maintained its own security apparatus under the regional administration based in Garowe. Bosaso, the region’s commercial hub on the Gulf of Aden, hosts one of Puntland’s main military installations and serves as a launch point for counter-insurgency operations against Al-Shabaab affiliates active in the Golis Mountains to the south.

The Galkayo context

The reference to a Galkayo operation underscores the fragile security situation in Mudug region, where the city has been administratively divided between Puntland and Galmudug since the early 2010s. The arrangement has produced recurrent tensions, including armed clashes between the two regional forces, and remains one of the most sensitive fault lines in Somalia’s federal political map.

Sources

This report was written from coverage published by the following news organisations. Follow the links for the original reporting.

• AllAfrica — Somalia: Puntland Forces Take Control of Former Psf Base in Bosaso After Galkayo Security Operation
• Shabelle Media Network — Puntland forces take control of former PSF base in Bosaso after Galkayo security operation
• The Independent — Nigeria security forces free over 300 abducted people in largest-ever rescue operation