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Under the leadership of Sayid [[Mohammed Abdullah Hassan]], the Dhulbahante [[Dervish State|Dervishes]] waged war against [[United Kingdom|Britain]] and [[Ethiopia]] for over twenty years, which ended with the British Royal Air Force bombing their command center in [[Taleex]] in 1920.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.civicwebs.com/cwvlib/africa/somalia/1994/dawn_of_civilization/chapter_10.htm|title=Dawn of Civilization|publisher=Civicwebs.com|deadurl=yes|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215152954/http://www.civicwebs.com/cwvlib/africa/somalia/1994/dawn_of_civilization/chapter_10.htm|archivedate=2007-12-15|df=}}</ref>
Under the leadership of Sayid [[Mohammed Abdullah Hassan]], the Dhulbahante [[Dervish State|Dervishes]] waged war against [[United Kingdom|Britain]] and [[Ethiopia]] for over twenty years, which ended with the British Royal Air Force bombing their command center in [[Taleex]] in 1920.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.civicwebs.com/cwvlib/africa/somalia/1994/dawn_of_civilization/chapter_10.htm|title=Dawn of Civilization|publisher=Civicwebs.com|deadurl=yes|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215152954/http://www.civicwebs.com/cwvlib/africa/somalia/1994/dawn_of_civilization/chapter_10.htm|archivedate=2007-12-15|df=}}</ref>


In 1899 after winning the support of the eastern [[Habr Yunis]] clans, Aden Madobe of the [[Isaaq|Habar Jeclo]], and sections of the Dhulbahanta, the Dervish leaders Hassan and [[Nur Ahmed Aman|Sultan Nur]] then sent a delegation to the Chief of the Dhulbahanta clan, Garad Ali Garad Mahamud, enjoining him and his clan to participate in the rebellion against the British. The Garaad did not wish to go against the British and to be under the authority of the Dervish, instead wanting to retain his autonomy as clan chief. After meeting with Hassan and his dervish council a heated debate ensued and before leaving the Garaad concluded by saying ''" I am the Ruler of [[Nugaal]] and its people, their management is mine and i expect everybody to respect it''". This enraged Hassan and so he sent a team of assassins to kill the Garaad. News of the assassination spread and outraged sections of the Dhulbahante who subsequently left the Dervish, leaving only Hassan's maternal clan, the Ali Geri as his only Dhulbahante supporters.<ref> The Collapse of the Somali state, P.29-30</ref><ref>Official History of the Operation Volume 1, p.49</ref>
In 1899 after winning the support of the eastern [[Habr Yunis]] clans, Aden Madobe of the [[Isaaq|Habar Jeclo]], and sections of the Dhulbahanta, the Dervish leaders Hassan and [[Nur Ahmed Aman|Sultan Nur]] then sent a delegation to the Chief of the Dhulbahante clan, Garad Ali Garad Mahamud, enjoining him and his clan to participate in the rebellion against the British. The Garaad did not wish to go against the British and to be under the authority of the Dervish, instead wanting to retain his autonomy as clan chief. After meeting with Hassan and his dervish council a heated debate ensued and before leaving the Garaad concluded by saying ''" I am the Ruler of [[Nugaal]] and its people, their management is mine and i expect everybody to respect it''". Garad Ali also sent a letter reassuring the Consul-General of [[British Somaliland]] of his loyalty. This enraged Hassan and so he sent a team of assassins to kill the Garaad and 12 prominent Dhulbahante Sheikhs who also refused to join the Dervish state. News of the assassination spread and outraged sections of the Dhulbahante who subsequently left the Dervish and threatened to attack Hassan, leaving only Hassan's maternal clan, the Ali Geri as his only Dhulbahante allies.<ref> The Collapse of the Somali state, P.29-30</ref><ref>Official History of the Operation Volume 1, p.49</ref><ref> The Mad Mullah of Somaliland, by Douglas Jardine, p.44</ref>

On July 1901 the British received an intelligence report indicating that the Dervish were camped at Ferdidin. Immediately the Somaliland Camel Corps supported by 350 Dhulbahante Horsemen were sent to attack. [[Eric John Eagles Swayne]] commanding the attack noted that the Dervish forces had a considerable number of [[Majeerteen]] Riflemen armed with [[Martini-Henry]] guns. Swayne's forces had managed to scatter and drive the Dervish deep into Italian Territory. Hassan's cattle and Sultan Nur's Camels were looted by the Dhulbahante during the battle. The Dervish lost many soldiers, Hassan's brother-in-law Gaibdeed and [[Haji Sudi]]'s Brother both died in battle.<ref>Command Papers volume 69 1902. p. 15.</ref>


Hassan went on to wage war on the Dhulbahanta clans that refused his call to resist the British. In 1904 Hassan attacked and punished the British allied Jama Siad clan. The London Gazette reported "On the 7th February, the Mullah had despatched another raiding force against our Jama Siad friendly tribes, 100 miles to the east of the scene of his raid of the 13th February, and here again our tribes suffered heavily. Burao and Berbera became filled with destitute refugees and 2000 persons were fed daily at Burao alone.<ref>''The London Gazette'', September 2, 1904.</ref><ref>The dervish were brutal in their sudden attacks on the tribes , sparing not women and children and it has become a mark of their 20-year-long campaign [Cd. 1394] Africa. No. 1 (1903). Correspondence respecting the rising of the Mullah Muhammed Abdullah in Somaliland and consequent military operations, 1901-1902. pp. 7–9</ref>
Hassan went on to wage war on the Dhulbahanta clans that refused his call to resist the British. In 1904 Hassan attacked and punished the British allied Jama Siad clan. The London Gazette reported "On the 7th February, the Mullah had despatched another raiding force against our Jama Siad friendly tribes, 100 miles to the east of the scene of his raid of the 13th February, and here again our tribes suffered heavily. Burao and Berbera became filled with destitute refugees and 2000 persons were fed daily at Burao alone.<ref>''The London Gazette'', September 2, 1904.</ref><ref>The dervish were brutal in their sudden attacks on the tribes , sparing not women and children and it has become a mark of their 20-year-long campaign [Cd. 1394] Africa. No. 1 (1903). Correspondence respecting the rising of the Mullah Muhammed Abdullah in Somaliland and consequent military operations, 1901-1902. pp. 7–9</ref>

Revision as of 09:40, 13 May 2018

Dhulbahante
البهانتة
Regions with significant populations
Languages
Somali and Arabic
Religion
Islam
Related ethnic groups
Majeerteen, Dishiishe, Warsangali and other Harti and Darod groups.

The Dhulbahante (Somali: Dhulbahante, Arabic: البهانتة) is a Somali clan, part of the larger Harti Darod clan. Members primarily inhabit the regions of Sool, Sanaag and Ayn.[1] They also live some parts of Nugaal and the southern Hawd.

Overview

Currently, there are 13 active Garaads (clan chiefs). The most senior Garaad of the traditional Dhulbahante leaders is Garad Jama Garad Ali.[2][3] Politically, most of the clan chiefs are anti-Somaliland while others support the presences of Somaliland in their territory.[4]

Distribution

The Dhulbahante inhabit huge expanse of territory where they setle in 4 regions in northern Somalia. While they make a large percentage of the population in Togdheer and Sanaag regions, they also settle in some parts of the Nugaal region.[5][6][7]


History

Dervish Period

Under the leadership of Sayid Mohammed Abdullah Hassan, the Dhulbahante Dervishes waged war against Britain and Ethiopia for over twenty years, which ended with the British Royal Air Force bombing their command center in Taleex in 1920.[8]

In 1899 after winning the support of the eastern Habr Yunis clans, Aden Madobe of the Habar Jeclo, and sections of the Dhulbahanta, the Dervish leaders Hassan and Sultan Nur then sent a delegation to the Chief of the Dhulbahante clan, Garad Ali Garad Mahamud, enjoining him and his clan to participate in the rebellion against the British. The Garaad did not wish to go against the British and to be under the authority of the Dervish, instead wanting to retain his autonomy as clan chief. After meeting with Hassan and his dervish council a heated debate ensued and before leaving the Garaad concluded by saying " I am the Ruler of Nugaal and its people, their management is mine and i expect everybody to respect it". Garad Ali also sent a letter reassuring the Consul-General of British Somaliland of his loyalty. This enraged Hassan and so he sent a team of assassins to kill the Garaad and 12 prominent Dhulbahante Sheikhs who also refused to join the Dervish state. News of the assassination spread and outraged sections of the Dhulbahante who subsequently left the Dervish and threatened to attack Hassan, leaving only Hassan's maternal clan, the Ali Geri as his only Dhulbahante allies.[9][10][11]

On July 1901 the British received an intelligence report indicating that the Dervish were camped at Ferdidin. Immediately the Somaliland Camel Corps supported by 350 Dhulbahante Horsemen were sent to attack. Eric John Eagles Swayne commanding the attack noted that the Dervish forces had a considerable number of Majeerteen Riflemen armed with Martini-Henry guns. Swayne's forces had managed to scatter and drive the Dervish deep into Italian Territory. Hassan's cattle and Sultan Nur's Camels were looted by the Dhulbahante during the battle. The Dervish lost many soldiers, Hassan's brother-in-law Gaibdeed and Haji Sudi's Brother both died in battle.[12]

Hassan went on to wage war on the Dhulbahanta clans that refused his call to resist the British. In 1904 Hassan attacked and punished the British allied Jama Siad clan. The London Gazette reported "On the 7th February, the Mullah had despatched another raiding force against our Jama Siad friendly tribes, 100 miles to the east of the scene of his raid of the 13th February, and here again our tribes suffered heavily. Burao and Berbera became filled with destitute refugees and 2000 persons were fed daily at Burao alone.[13][14]

Somaliland Camel Corps

1912 was a tumultuous year for the Dhulbahanta clans inhabiting Bohotle and the Ain valley. The clans of Bohotle being allies of the British, were set upon and attacked by Hassan and his Dervish forces and had evacuated and sought refuge in Burao, Berbera and Haud among the Isaaq clans. British colonial governor Horace Byatt in his report says 800 dhulbahanta refugees arrived in Berbera, but feared that they could not be protected nor fed properly, stating that only 300 native infantry and 200 King's African Rifles were in Berbera and insufficient to hold off a Dervish attack. Byatt also raised concerns for the Dhulbahanta refugees en route to British controlled territory and the possibility of them being looted by hostile clans, particularly the Habr Yunis.[15]

Bristish colonial administrator Sir Douglas Jardine describing the plight of the Dhulbahanta writes :

The most pitiful lot of all fell to certain sections of the Dolbahanta. Ousted from their ancestral grazing grounds by the Mullah's advance and bereft of all their stock, the remnants wandered like veritable Ishmaelites in the Ishaak country, deprived of Asylum and almost all access to the coast.[16]

In 1913 the Dervish raided and looted herds from the Dhulbahanta. In order to get back their herds, 300 Dhulbahante warriors along with the Somaliland Camel Corps commanded by Richard Corfield pursued and attacked the Dervish at Dul Madoba. They failed to regain their livestock and Corfeild was killed in battle.[17]

Aerial bombardment of Dervish forts in Taleh

After the 1920 Bombing campaign of the Taleh fort and the Dervish retreat into Ethiopia, Tribal Chief Haji Mohammad Bullaleh (Haji the Hyena), commanded a 3000 strong army that consisted of Dhulbahante (Rer Hagar), Habr Yoonis and Habar Jeclo horsemen and pursued the fleeing Dervishes. They attacked Muhammad Abdallah Hassan and his army in the Ogaden region and swiftly defeated them, causing Muhammad to flee to the town of Imi. Haji and his army looted 60,000 livestock and 700 rifles from the dervishes, which dealt a severe blow to them economically, a blow from which they did not recover. [18]

Dulbahante traditional clan chiefs declaration

An historic summit was convened in Boocame from November 15 – November 23 of 2007, by the traditional leaders of the Dulbahante (Dhulbahante) sub-clan of the Darod clan in Somalia. The Dulbahante traditional chiefs issued an official communiqué on October 15, 2007 regarding the secessionist Somaliland region's militias’ aggression and occupation of Laascaanood (LasAnod), the regional capital of Sool, Sanaag and Cayn regions of Somalia.[19][20][21]

All 14 major traditional chiefs of the Dulbahante clan attended this summit. In addition to the traditional chiefs, there were many intellectuals (women & men), students and civic organizations from outside and inside of the country attending the summit. All chiefs unanimously signed declaration communiqué on November 22, 2007.

The communiqué states that the Dulbahante clan is not part of (and was never part of) and does not recognize the administration that calls itself "Somaliland" and that there are no agreements between Dulbahante clan and "Somaliland", in the past or the present. The communiqué also calls for an immediate end of hostility, return of customary peaceful co-existences among clans and an unconditional removal of the Somaliland militia from their territory. Finally, chiefs declared that the Dulbahante clan stands for the Somali unity.

In the anniversary of their historic summit in Boocame in November 2007, the Dulbahante Traditional Chiefs (SSC Traditional Leaders Council) reiterated their previous declaration (above) that they are not part of the Somaliland separatist movement. The council sent its pronouncement to the European Union, United Nations Agencies and all NGOs that operate within Somalia.

Clan tree

There is no clear agreement on the clan and sub-clan structures and many lineages are omitted. Within the Dhulbahante clan, according to the researches of I.M. Lewis, the Dhulbahante are divided into 50 groups which pay diyya (or blood money for their members. These are gathered into four lineages of unequal size: the Muuse Si'iid, who made up the majority of the clan circa 1960, and in turn is highly segmented into numerous lineages; the Ahmad Si'iid, (also known as the Hayaag), which Lewis estimated to number 1,000 male members at the time but now estimated at 7,500 male members; and the Malbammad Si'iid, and the Yuunis Si'iid, which he described as "small, insignificant, and incapable of independent political action."[22] The following listing is taken from the World Bank's Conflict in Somalia: Drivers and Dynamics from 2005 and the United Kingdom's Home Office publication, Somalia Assessment 2001.[23][24]


Notable Dhulbahante people

References

  1. ^ Lund, Christian; Eilenberg, Michael (2017-05-04). Rule and Rupture: State Formation Through the Production of Property and Citizenship. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781119384809.
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2012-06-12. Retrieved 2010-12-24. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-24. Retrieved 2010-12-24. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) convention was called for by Garad Jama Garad Ali, the highest-ranking traditional elder of the Dhulbahante clan. Garad Jama reportedly told local media that the Bo'ame conference will be "independent of [both] Somaliland and Puntland."
  4. ^ "Somalia: The Bo'ame Declaration of Dhulbahante Clan Elders". GaroweOnline.com. 2007-11-22. Archived from the original on 2011-12-19. Retrieved 2010-11-24. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ Hoehne, Markus V. Borders & Borderlands as resources in the Horn of Africa. p. 113. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  6. ^ Gebrewold, Belachew. Anatomy of Violence: Understanding the systems of conflict and violence in Africa. Ashgate Publishing Ltd. p. 130. Retrieved 14 November 2017.
  7. ^ "EASO Country of Origin Information Report Somalia Security Situation" (PDF).
  8. ^ "Dawn of Civilization". Civicwebs.com. Archived from the original on 2007-12-15. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ The Collapse of the Somali state, P.29-30
  10. ^ Official History of the Operation Volume 1, p.49
  11. ^ The Mad Mullah of Somaliland, by Douglas Jardine, p.44
  12. ^ Command Papers volume 69 1902. p. 15.
  13. ^ The London Gazette, September 2, 1904.
  14. ^ The dervish were brutal in their sudden attacks on the tribes , sparing not women and children and it has become a mark of their 20-year-long campaign [Cd. 1394] Africa. No. 1 (1903). Correspondence respecting the rising of the Mullah Muhammed Abdullah in Somaliland and consequent military operations, 1901-1902. pp. 7–9
  15. ^ "Churchill and the Mad Mullah of Somaliland: Betrayal and Redemption 1899-1921 p.147".
  16. ^ The Mad mullah of Somaliland, p.158
  17. ^ "Churchill and the Mad Mullah of Somaliland: Betrayal and Redemption 1899-1921 p.156".
  18. ^ "Churchill and the Mad Mullah of Somaliland, p. 209".
  19. ^ "The Declaration of Clan Elders from Sool, Sanaag and Cayn Regions (North Somalia)" (Press release). Declaration of Dulbahante Traditional clan chiefs. November 23, 2007. Archived from the original on November 28, 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-23. {{cite press release}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ "SSC TRADITIONAL LEADERS COUNCIL (Sool, Sanaag and Cayn Regions of Northern Somalia Tribal chiefs)" (PDF) (Press release). Declaration of Dulbahante Traditional clan chiefs. November 28, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-28.[permanent dead link]
  21. ^ "Declaration of the Consultative Conference of the Dhulbahante in the Diaspora -- Guiding Principles" (Press release). Declaration of the Consultative Conference of the Dhulbahante in the Diaspora. April 24, 2011. Archived from the original on May 3, 2012. Retrieved 2011-04-24. {{cite press release}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  22. ^ Lewis, "Force and Fission in Northern Somali Lineage Structure", American Anthropologist, New Series, 63 (1961), p. 100
  23. ^ Worldbank, Conflict in Somalia: Drivers and Dynamics, January 2005, Appendix 2, Lineage Charts, p.55
  24. ^ Country Information and Policy Unit, Home Office, Great Britain, Somalia Assessment 2001, Annex B: Somali Clan Structure Archived 2011-07-16 at the Wayback Machine, p. 43
  25. ^ Lewis, I.M. 1988. A Modern History of Somalia. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. Cited (no page reference) by Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, "Somalia: Information on Ali Garad Jama, a king of the Dhulbante clan, and on any positions held by him in the Somali government before or after Barre's 1969 coup", 1 January 1996, SOM22804.E, available at: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/3ae6ab9d58.html. Accessed 5 January 2011.
  26. ^ http://somaliswisstv.com/2009/01/17/golihii-wasiirada-ee-dowlad-goboleedka-puntland-oo-uu-caawa-la-ansixiyay-laguna-dhawaaqay/
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