Mohammed El-Amine Souef, a former minister of foreign affairs for the Union of the Comoros, has been appointed as the new envoy to Somalia and commander of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) by African Union Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat.
Mohammed El-Amine Souef, a recently appointed envoy, takes Francisco Madeira’s place, who had held this position since 2015 for Mozambique.
On April 6, Madeira was banished from Somalia as a persona non grata by Mohamed Hussein Roble, the country’s former prime minister, in response to a recorded Madeiran voice discussing elections and Somalia’s politics. Madiera was ordered to leave Somalia within 48 hours after Prime Minister Roble accused him of acting in a manner inconsistent with his position.
But Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo, the former president of Somalia, immediately opposed Madeira’s dismissal. Farmaajo stated in a statement that he had not approved any action against Madeira and that the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had not informed him of any allegations that Madeira had violated the country’s sovereignty.
Former President Farmaajo said the decision to expel Madeira was issued by an office that didn’t have sole responsibility for making such a crucial decision. Farmaajo instructs the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to convey Somalia’s apologies to the African Union for the illegitimate and reckless decision from what he called “an unauthorised office”.