Hargeysa: The electoral commission in Somalia’s northwestern breakaway state of Somaliland announced yesterday that a presidential election due at the end of the month had been indefinitely postponed.

The commission said the election would not be held as scheduled on September 27 and that a new date would be decided at a later stage.

“Considering the political situation in the region and the need for a broader solution, we have decided to delay the election date,” the statement said.

After much bickering, the incumbent regime of President Dahir Riyale Kahin and the two main opposition parties agreed the polls should be delayed following a mediation by the council of elders.

The election has already been delayed twice, notably over a disagreement concerning the territory’s voters’ register.