The development follows heavy fighting on August 5 between forces loyal to the Puntland administration and PSF-associated personnel at a military installation near Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed Airport in northern Galkayo.

Independent reporting confirms that Puntland forces launched an operation against the installation and eventually took control of the compound after exchanges involving heavy weapons and mortars. Casualties were reported, including civilian harm.

Reports following the confrontation also indicated that weapons, ammunition and military vehicles at or associated with the installation were seized or looted. Puntland authorities separately reported confiscating substantial quantities of weapons and military equipment during the operation.

Alleged Al-Shabaab Connection

According to information received by SOLDA Safety Network, part of the weapons removed from the Galkayo installation has now allegedly been sold or transferred to individuals associated with Al-Shabaab.

If independently corroborated through weapons tracing, intelligence information, witness evidence or other documentation, the diversion would transform what began as an internal security confrontation into a potentially significant counter-terrorism incident.

Suna Times has not independently verified the alleged transfer to Al-Shabaab, and publicly available reporting reviewed at the time of publication does not yet provide independent confirmation of the claim.

The possibility that military weapons could enter an Al-Shabaab supply network is nevertheless particularly serious given the continuing insurgent threat in Somalia.

Questions Over Weapons Accountability

The incident is expected to raise questions over who assumed responsibility for securing the weapons depot and military materiel immediately after Puntland forces took control of the installation.

A separate report said weapons and combat vehicles abandoned at the Galkayo base were looted following the takeover. Other reporting confirms that Puntland forces seized weapons, ammunition, vehicles and other military equipment during the operation.

The circumstances therefore warrant a comprehensive inventory identifying which weapons were recovered by Puntland authorities, which remained at the compound, whether any disappeared during or after the fighting, and who subsequently possessed them.

Any weapons suspected of reaching unauthorized armed actors should be traced through serial numbers and other available identification records.

Counter-Terrorism Concerns

The PSF has historically been associated with counter-terrorism operations in Puntland. The Galkayo confrontation has therefore generated broader concern that political and security disputes between Somali authorities could undermine forces and resources intended to combat extremist organizations.

SOLDA Safety Network assesses any verified diversion of military weapons to Al-Shabaab as a potentially high-level counter-terrorism and civilian-protection threat.

The organization is calling for an urgent independent investigation into the whereabouts of weapons and ammunition removed from the Galkayo installation and the identification of individuals involved in any unauthorized sale, transfer or distribution.

The investigation should also establish whether internationally supplied equipment was among the materiel affected.

Deni Defends Puntland Operation

Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni has defended the operation as a security measure against armed forces his administration says were operating outside Puntland's authority and receiving support from Somalia's Federal Government.

Other accounts have characterized the forces targeted in Galkayo as federal-aligned personnel. The dispute comes amid heightened political tensions between Puntland and the Federal Government.

Whatever the political dispute surrounding the Galkayo confrontation, the potential disappearance and illicit circulation of weapons creates a separate national-security issue requiring investigation.

Suna Times / Investigative Desk

This article distinguishes independently reported facts from allegations currently undergoing verification. The allegation concerning the transfer or sale of weapons to Al-Shabaab has not yet been independently corroborated by Suna Times through publicly available sources.