Landlocked Ethiopia sparked a diplomatic row with Mogadishu in January by signing a deal with Somaliland to lease 20 kilometers of its coastline, and eventually recognizing the region as an independent state.

Somalia called the deal illegal as it considers Somaliland as part of its territory even though it has had effective autonomy since 1991.

To defuse the acrimony, Kenya, in consultation with Djibouti and eastern African bloc Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), has proposed a maritime treaty to govern how landlocked states in the region can access ports on commercial terms, a senior Kenyan official said on Thursday.

Before discussing port access bilaterally, Ethiopia must annul its agreement with Somaliland, Somalia's state minister for foreign affairs Ali Omar told Reuters news.

"Somalia will never accept (a) naval base," Omar said. "Somalia is ready for commercial access in accordance with the international law of the sea."

He added that Somalia was willing to discuss proposals so long as they meet the country's interests which are to "safeguard (our) sovereignty, political independence and unity."

A spokesperson for Ethiopia's foreign ministry declined to comment.

"The plain interference of Ethiopia's government in the internal affairs of Somalia is a violation of the independence and sovereignty of Somalia," said the office of Somalia's prime minister in a statement Thursday.

The decision followed a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Hamza Barre in Mogadishu.

A separate statement by Somalia’s foreign ministry said it had ordered Ethiopian Ambassador Muktar Mohamed Ware to leave the country within 72 hours, effective Thursday.

In an interview with VOA's Somali service, Somalia’s information minister, Daud Aweis Jama, said the decision came as Ethiopia continued to interfere in Somalia’s internal affairs.

“Nowadays, Ethiopia has been repeatedly violating Somalia’s national, territorial independence. Therefore, the government has taken this decision to close two Ethiopian consulates and send [the] Ethiopian ambassador in Mogadishu and their diplomatic staff back to their country,” said Aweis.

Tension has been simmering

Tensions have been growing between Ethiopia and Somalia since January, when Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed signed “a memorandum of understanding" with Somaliland President Muse Bihi Abdi, who had been visiting Addis Ababa.

Both Ethiopia and Somaliland authorities described it as a "historic" initial agreement that would give Somaliland a path to recognition and allow landlocked Ethiopia to have access to the Red Sea.

Ethiopia said it wanted to set up a naval base there and offered possible recognition of Somaliland in exchange.

Somaliland has operated independently from Somalia since 1991 but is not recognized by any other country as a sovereign state.

The Somali government strongly rejected the memorandum of understanding and recalled its ambassador in Ethiopia in protest.

A month later, in February, Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud called the deal illegal and said that his country would “defend itself” if Ethiopia goes ahead with it.

Mohamud also said at the time that he did not plan to kick Ethiopian diplomats out of the country.

Today’s government decision, however, came a day after the semi-autonomous state of Puntland, which is also a federal member state, announced it had signed a new cooperation agreement with Addis Ababa.

Puntland, whose relationship with Mogadishu has been marred by political disputes, said days ago that it had withdrawn from the country's federal system and that it would govern itself independently, following a dispute over constitutional changes approved by Somalia’s bicameral parliament.

“Somalia’s federal government is responsible for the country’s foreign affairs, and we consider any agreement a country signs with a different side or a region a clear violation against Somali sovereignty,” said Aweis.

In response to today’s government decision, Puntland Information Minister Mohamud Aidid Dirir accused Mogadishu of trying to assert its control on “a territory it does not govern.”

“Mogadishu has failed to eradicate terrorist groups and spread governance across the country and now it is trying to impose its decisions on a peaceful region that does not run with its orders. It cannot close a consulate in Puntland,” Aidid told VOA.

In an interview with VOA's Somali service, Somaliland Deputy Foreign Minister Rhoda Jama Elmi described Mogadishu’s decision as “a mere dream.”

The “Mogadishu government had nothing to do with opening of the Ethiopian consulate in Somaliland, and its decision has nothing to do with us. It has no impact on Somaliland,” he said.

According to Reuters, Ethiopia's foreign ministry spokesperson, Nebiyu Tedla, said it did not have information on Somali government decisions.

Meanwhile, the Somali Cabinet of Ministers approved the appointment of Abdullahi Mohamed Ali Sanbaloolshe as the new director of the National Security and Intelligence Agency of Somalia (NISA) during the council's weekly meeting in Mogadishu on Thursday.

The newly appointed director has previously held the position of NISA’s director twice and has served in other roles, including minister and ambassador. Currently, he is a member of the lower house.

According to the country's constitution, the prominent member of parliament a close ally of President Mohamud, will automatically lose his parliamentary seat.

The new director will replace Mahad Mohamed Salad, who vacated the position, citing personal and future political plans. Government sources who asked for anonymity said Salad intends to run for the leadership of Galmudug regional state in an election this year.

The early-morning raid occurred in Busley, some 40 kilometers from Mogadishu, where Somali security forces have set up temporary bases for operations against Al-Shabaab dominated villages in the region, according to security sources.

Armed fighters from al Shabaab battled their way to the facility using suicide car bombs, a Somalia military officer told Reuters. He declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

"Several suicide car bombs attacked the base after fierce fighting...al Shabaab briefly captured the base," the officer said.

"Then, government reinforcement fiercely battled and drove out al Shabaab."

Seven Somalia soldiers, including the commander of the base, and 10 al Shabaab fighters were killed in the fighting, he said.

Some residents in the area told Reuters al Shabaab also burned military vehicles and took others during the assault.

Al Shabaab issued a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. It said it had killed 57 government soldiers. The group frequently gives casualty figures that are higher than those of the government.

The claims could not be independently verified and the Somali government has made no official comment on the attack, AFP reported.

The assault comes after Al-Shabaab gunmen attacked a hotel near the presidential palace in Mogadishu on March 14, killing three people and demonstrating the group's continued ability to strike despite a major military offensive against the jihadists.

The al Qaeda-allied group has been fighting for nearly two decades, aiming to topple Somalia's central government and establish its own rule based on its strict interpretation of Islamic sharia law.

Some information in this report came from Reuters and AFP

The MV Abdullah was hijacked off the coast of Somalia last week, the latest of more than 20 attacks since November by Somali pirates who had laid dormant for nearly a decade.

On Saturday, the Indian navy rescued another cargo vessel, the Maltese-flagged MV Ruen, which had been seized in December, freeing its 17 crew members, and arresting 35 pirates.

The police force from the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, a base for many pirate gangs, said it was on high alert and prepared to participate in an operation against the pirates holding the Abdullah.

"Puntland police forces are ready after they got reports that international navies are planning an attack," the police said in a statement.

India's navy, which has disrupted several other attempted hijackings, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

On Sunday, the Puntland police said they had seized a vehicle that was transporting the narcotic khat to be supplied to the pirates on board Abdullah.

At the peak of their attacks in 2011, Somali pirates cost the global economy an estimated $7 billion, including hundreds of millions of dollars in ransom payments.