News | Military

Somali army takes over key city in Southwest as state leader resigns

Somalia’s federal government hails Baidoa’s transition, urging peace and unity amid political changes and rising tensions.

Somalia’s national army has taken control of the biggest city in Southwest state, prompting the ⁠regional leader to resign two weeks after his administration said it was severing ties with the federal government.

The strategic city of ⁠Baidoa, the largest in Southwest state, is home to international peacekeepers and humanitarian agencies in an area affected by drought, conflict and displacement.

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“I, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, effective today, 30 March 2026, have resigned from the position of President of Southwest State,” Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen said in a post on Facebook on Monday.

He had been in office for more than seven years. His resignation comes days after he was re-elected for another five-year term, an election the federal government said was illegal.

Earlier on Monday, Somalia’s federal forces entered Baidoa, which is about 245 km (150 miles) northwest of the country’s capital, Mogadishu, taking full control of the city and marking the start of a political transition.

“Federal forces have taken over Baidoa … it is now calm … but ‌it looks like a ghost town,” local elder Adan Hussein told the Reuters news agency.