BOSSASO, Somalia Mar 6 (Garowe Online) - A bloody clan battle in Somalia's self-governing State of Puntland last Monday was triggered by aspirations to find oil, Radio Garowe reports.

At least five militiamen were killed and 15 others were wounded in the hours-long battle in Ufayn district, located 90km east of the port city of Bossaso in Bari region.Puntland security forces tightened checkpoints in and out of Bossaso, as the government dispatched Security Minister Abdullahi Said Samatar and Interior Minister Gen. Abdullahi Ahmed "Ilkajir" to Ufayn to help diffuse the situation.

Traditional elders accompanied the government ministers and troops in efforts to make peace among the two feuding sub-clans, both of which belong to the Majerteen clan (Darod).The violence has subsided and emerging reports indicate that peace talks among clan militias are going well.The fighting was deeply rooted in a months-long disagreement over the ownership of a piece of parched land, inside sources said.

The disagreement worsened when one sub-clan that does not traditionally inhabit the area mobilized militias into Ufayn, building a waterhole and a small mosque, the sources added.The incoming sub-clan was ordered to leave the area by the Puntland government and other local clans to avoid bloodshed, but both feuding clans poured loyal militiamen into the area in a build-up to war.Local elders who spoke with Radio Garowe admitted that the two sub-clans have never fought each other before.The remote district of Ufayn entered Puntland media reports in 2008, after Canada-based Africa Oil Corp. contracted an agency named IMC to conduct oil exploration activities in that area.

Africa Oil has a controversial exploration contract in Puntland, after signing a joint-venture deal with Australian mining firm Range Resources, Ltd., in January 2007.Dr. Abdirahman Farole, Puntland's current ruler, became opposition leader in 2005 after rejecting former Puntland President Adde Muse's unilateral deal with Consort Private, Ltd., a small virtually unknown front company based in Maldives.The Consort Private deal, which led to Range Resources and Africa Oil, has been the source of international media scrutiny and led to deadly clashes in Sanaag region in April 2006 between Puntland security forces and Warsangeli clan militias.President Farole has said that the Puntland-Consort Private deal is "under review" to ensure the maximum benefit for the people of Puntland and of all Somalia.

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 7 June 2008:    Foreign Oil Workers Evacuated from Puntland Exploration Site

A group of foreigners working in Somalia's Puntland regions have been evacuated from an oil exploration site set up last month, informed sources tell Garowe Online.Six to eight foreign workers were secretly transported Friday night from the operations camp in Ufayn town, which is located 90km east of the port city of Bossaso, the northeastern region's economic hub.The workers are currently staying at an undisclosed location inside Bossaso, the sources added.

Somali news agency Garowe Online conducted an independent inquiry into the evacuation and its causes, with emerging reports indicating that the foreign workers were evacuated for security-related reasons.Earlier this week, clan elders in Ufayn town informed senior government officials in Puntland that they could not guarantee the personal safety of the foreigners - who are contracted by Canada-based Africa Oil Corp.Secret talks have been taking place in Bossaso and Ufayn all week, as Puntland officials and local elders tried to reach a settlement.

According to insiders, elders representing the dominant clan in Ufayn have demanded that they receive the original contract signed between the Puntland government and Africa Oil.

In response, Puntland President Adde Muse dispatched Liban Muse Bogor to Ufayn to convince the clan elders to support the ongoing exploration project.But local elders rejected Mr. Bogor's mediation efforts, with some elders openly questioning his role due to his position on the board of directors of Australian mining firm Range Resources, Ltd., Africa Oil's joint partner in the Puntland exploration project.The Puntland leader has not yet addressed these new developments, but confidential sources said the clan elders have pledged to protect vehicles, tents and other equipment at the exploration site in the mean time.Currently, clan militias under the order of the elders are standing guard at the operations camp in Ufayn, locals reported.

Since mid-2005, Puntland leaders have been trying to explore for oil in Somalia, a Horn of Africa country mired in 18 years of political anarchy.Many armed clans in Puntland have opposed the exploration project from the onset, citing the lack of a strong national government in Somalia and the lack of legality and transparency in the ongoing push for exploration.