By: Yusuf M Hasan
HARGEISA (Somalilandsun) – The government has revealed the return of three boats among five confiscated by Djibouti.
The revelation was made by the minister of fisheries and marine resources Hon Abdilahi Jama Geeljire during a press conference in his Hargeisa offices where he also infirmed that the three were fishing boats while the remaining were cargo carriers.
According to the fisheries minister the boats were impounded by Djibouti Coast guards on various days’ between10th and 13th March as they conveyed goods to the port of Sayla while the fishing trawlers were conducting their activities in national waters.
Minister Geeljire informed that the remaining vessels are expected to be released in the earliest possible time as per his discussions with his Djiboutian counterpart who had promised to exp
edite the dispatch of the ships back to Somaliland.
In an earlier press conference in which the boats seizure was announced minister Geeljire had termed the Djibouti coast guard act as illegal in view of the fact the guards from the neighbouring country were not only holding Somaliland vessels but had crossed its waters thus the confiscations in the island of Ebaad.
This is the first incident of its nature to occur between the countries that share common land and sea boundaries and are known to have good bi-lateral relations.
