Qandala

Qandala (also spelled Candala; Italian: Candala) is a coastal town in northeastern Somalia, in Bari Region, within the Puntland state administration. It is the capital of Qandala District and sits on the coast of the Gulf of Aden. It lies approximately 75 kilometers from Bosaso, the largest city in the region.

The town is located where a wadi (seasonal watercourse) meets the sea, creating a natural harbor with protected anchorage. The Cal Miskaad hills, part of the Golis range, stand to the east, forming a mountainous and rugged landscape. The local economy depends on fishing, livestock herding, and frankincense trade, for which the area is known.

History

Qandala was one of the ancient ports on Somalia's northern coast, from which frankincense, textiles, and myrrh were exported. In the early modern period it became an important harbor of the Majeerteen Sultanate, engaging in trade with southern Arabia, Egypt, and India. It was among the Majeerteen ports—which included Xaafuun, Bargaal, Caluula, and Bosaso—where a fortress was built; remains of it still stand.

The 2016 Seizure

On 26 October 2016, more than 50 armed fighters belonging to a faction of the Islamic State (IS) in Somalia took control of Qandala after brief resistance from local security forces. It was the first Somali town to fall under IS control, and represented a significant though limited step for the group.

Analysis by international organizations suggested the group's success stemmed from governance gaps and clan grievances. Qandala is an area with a large Cali Saleebaan population, part of the Majeerteen clan, to which belonged Sheikh Abdulqaadir Muumin, the IS leader in Somalia. Muumin broke from Al-Shabaab in October 2015 and began recruiting and training a new faction. Later reports indicated that local support for the group eroded, including after it killed members of the same clan following its seizure of the town.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on 6 December 2016 that approximately 22,700 people had fled since the fighters arrived in Qandala in October. Displacement totaled 25,700 people, more than half the district's population of 45,300. Most moved to nearby villages, others to Bosaso; agencies delivered water, sanitation, and shelter assistance to thousands in the settlement of Buruc.

In December 2016, Puntland forces—supported by the Puntland Maritime Police Force and elements of the Somali national military—retook the town, advancing from both land and sea. The fighters fled to the interior hills.

Later Situation

After 2016, Somalia's IS faction shifted focus to the Cal Miskaad hills in Qandala and Bosaso districts, where it established hidden bases and training camps. In December 2024, Puntland forces launched a large-scale military operation called 'Hillaac', which continued into 2025. The operation included airstrikes by U.S. forces and reported air support from the United Arab Emirates. Qandala and surrounding villages were affected by the fighting.