The government of Somalia's South West state suspended all cooperation and relations with the federal government, accusing it of arming local militias seeking to remove the state's president, Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, Reuters reported on March 17. This comes after clashes between local fighters opposed to Laftagreen and regional South West forces were reported on March 14 and allegedly resulted in dozens of fatalities, including civilians.

Fighters opposed to Laftagareen reportedly seized South West state's town of Qansahdhere on March 14. Laftagareen and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud have until recently been close allies, and both previously agreed on the postponement of local elections implied by Somalia's latest constitutional revision, despite significant opposition from both Puntland and Jubaland states. However, the understanding that Laftagareen and Mohamud reached regarding local elections reportedly broke down in recent weeks, which appears to be the main catalyst for the recent surge in tensions.