Medeshi Jan 8, 2009
Abdurahman Farole Elected New President Of Somalia's Puntland
Somalia (AFP)--Puntland's parliament on Thursday elected Abdurahman Mohamed Farole as the new president of the semi-autonomous northern region of Somalia.
Farole, who received 49 votes in the 66-member house, replaces Adde Musa Hirsi, who was ousted in the first round of voting.
He becomes the third president of Puntland, a region which declared its autonomy in 1998. Puntland's first president, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, resigned as Somali president late last month.
Farole held the finance portfolio under Yusuf and was one of the main opposition leaders during Adde Musa's tenure.
The coast of Puntland is a major hub for pirates who have turned the Gulf of Aden into the world's most dangerous waters, wreaking panic in the world's shipping industry.
Puntland's security apparatus was depleted by Yusuf's Ethiopia-backed war effort against the Islamists and has become largely lawless. Several foreign reporters and aid workers were kidnapped there in recent months. (END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-08-090517ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Abdurahman Farole Elected New President Of Somalia's Puntland
Somalia (AFP)--Puntland's parliament on Thursday elected Abdurahman Mohamed Farole as the new president of the semi-autonomous northern region of Somalia.
Farole, who received 49 votes in the 66-member house, replaces Adde Musa Hirsi, who was ousted in the first round of voting.
He becomes the third president of Puntland, a region which declared its autonomy in 1998. Puntland's first president, Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, resigned as Somali president late last month.
Farole held the finance portfolio under Yusuf and was one of the main opposition leaders during Adde Musa's tenure.
The coast of Puntland is a major hub for pirates who have turned the Gulf of Aden into the world's most dangerous waters, wreaking panic in the world's shipping industry.
Puntland's security apparatus was depleted by Yusuf's Ethiopia-backed war effort against the Islamists and has become largely lawless. Several foreign reporters and aid workers were kidnapped there in recent months. (END) Dow Jones Newswires
01-08-090517ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
