Oog is a town in the Sool region of

Somaliland Somaliland, officially the Republic of Somaliland, is an List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country in the Horn of Africa. It is located in the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, E ...

, situated in the Aynaba district. It is located between Aynaba and

Las Anod Las Anod (; ) is the administrative capital of the Sool region, currently controlled by Khatumo State forces aligned with Somalia. Territorial dispute The city is disputed by Puntland and Somaliland. The former bases its claim due to the kins ...

Overview

Oog acts as the junction of the road connecting the regional capitals of

Burao Burao, also spelt Bur'o or Bur'ao (; , , ), is the capital of the Togdheer region and the second largest city in Somaliland. Burao was the site of the Somaliland Declaration of Independence, declaration of an independent Somaliland on 18 May 19 ...

and Erigavo. Oog is situated on Somaliland's main road connecting towns and cities like

Borama Borama (, ) is the largest city of the northwestern Awdal region of Somaliland. The commercial seat of the province, it is situated near the border with Ethiopia. During the Middle Ages, Borama was ruled by the Adal Sultanate. It later formed a ...

Hargeisa Hargeisa ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Somaliland, a ''List of states with limited recognition, de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still considered internationally to be part of Somalia. It is also th ...

Berbera Berbera (; , ) is the capital of the Sahil, Somaliland, Sahil region of Somaliland and is the main sea port of the country, located approximately 160 km from the national capital, Hargeisa. Berbera is a coastal city and was the former capital of t ...

and

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

. Oog is located from Burao, from Las Anod, and from Erigavo. north of Oog is the nearby town of Badweyn, home to a substantial mosque and a multiple-trunked tree that stands alongside the main road. South of Oog, in the

Haud The Haud (also Hawd) (, ), formerly known as the Hawd Reserve Area, is a plateau situated in the Horn of Africa consisting of thorn-bush and grasslands. The region includes the southern part of Somaliland as well as the northern and eastern part ...

, the rare collared lark can be found as well as the native

dibatag The dibatag (''Ammodorcas clarkei''), or Clarke's gazelle, is a medium-sized slender antelope native to Ethiopia and Somalia. Though not a true gazelle, it is similarly marked, with long legs and neck. It is often confused with the gerenuk du ...

antelope The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do ...

. Oog is home to a Somaliland National Army base.

Demographics

A 1951 British survey lists Oog as the home well of the

Musa Abokor The Musa Abokor (, full name:'' Mūsa ibn Abū Bakr ibn Jibrīl ibn Abū Bakr ibn Mūsa ibn ash-Shaykh Isḥāq ibn Aḥmad'') is a Somali clan, and a 2 major sub-division of the muuse sh isxaaq clan of the Isaaq clan-family. The Musa Abokor ar ...

branch of the

Habr Je'lo The Habr Je'lo (), , Full Name: ''Mūsa ibn ash-Shaykh Isḥāq ibn Aḥmad,'' historically known as the Habr Toljaala () is a major Northern Somali clan of the wider Isaaq family. Its members form the Habr Habusheed () confederation along with t ...

Isaaq The Isaaq (, , ''Banu Ishaq'') is a major Somali clans, Somali clan. It is one of the largest Somali clan families in the Horn of Africa, with a large and densely populated traditional territory. The Isaaq people claim in a traditional legend ...

clan.

History

Before Independence

Oog is written as "Ok" in a book published in England in 1951 as the coordinate . In February 1919, Oog was attacked by

Mullah Mullah () is an honorific title for Islam, Muslim clergy and mosque Imam, leaders. The term is widely used in Iran and Afghanistan and is also used for a person who has higher education in Islamic theology and Sharia, sharia law. The title h ...

's forces.

Around the declaration of independence of Somaliland

On 2 February 1991, the SNM and a Dhulbahante delegation led by Garaad Abdiqani held a meeting in Oog, where ceasefire was agreed upon. In October 1991, Habar Yunis, Habar Je'lo, and Dhulbahante held a Peace Conference at Oog.

Recent History

In 2008, one of the diaspora returned from the U.S. and attempted to convert his grazing lands to fields in Oog, which led to serious conflict between the clans. In December 2011, a large delegation led by the Speaker of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

of Somaliland and the Chairman of the

Waddani The Somaliland National Party (), sometimes referred to as the Waddani National Party and better known by its shortened Somali form Waddani (stylised in all caps), is a political party in Somaliland. The party was founded by Abdirahman Mohamed A ...

visited Oog. In April 2012,

Somtel Somtel (, ) is a telecommunications company headquartered in Hargeisa, Somaliland. Regions Somtel provides services in both Somaliland and Somalia. Background Somtel provides mobile voice and data services to customers, including Mobile Money ...

's office was opened in Oog, and the mayor and others attended the event. In August 2013, fighting broke out between clans in the Oog region, resulting in deaths. A delegation led by the Somaliland Minister of Interior was sent to intercede. At that time, it took only three days to resolve the issue through the efforts of national elders and others. In January 2014, a murder in the Oog neighborhood led to fighting in

Gowsaweyne Gowsaweyne, also spelt Gawsa Weyne and Gosawein is a village in the Sool region of Somaliland. It is located in the Aynabo District. History The Isaaq clan expanded into traditional Dhulbahante territory to the east. This expansion was led pr ...

between Sa'ad Yonis and Jama Siyad that resulted in deaths. In November 2018, the Somaliland Water Development Agency installed new wells in the towns of Oog and

Wadamago Wadamago () is a historic town in Aynabo District, in the Sool region of Somaliland. Etymology The name Wadamago () stems from the phrase ''Wadaamo go, meaning ''wadaan breaker'' in Somali. A wadaan is a hand made bucket that is made up of ...

. In 2019, toxic

Mesquite Mesquite is a common name for some plants in the genera ''Neltuma'' and '' Strombocarpa'', which contain over 50 species of spiny, deep-rooted leguminous shrubs and small trees. They are native to dry areas in the Americas. Until 2022, these ge ...

( Prosopis juliflora) bred and damaged livestock. In April 2019, two policemen were killed on the road connecting Garadag and Oog, causing an inter-clan struggle.

References

Populated places in Sool, Somaliland {{Coord, 8, 56, N, 46, 38, E, region:SO_type:city, display=title