Re-discovered tapes bear witness to Somaliland identity

Senior popular radio presenter and Somaliland culture expert Mohamed Hassan Ali checks old tapes containing traditional songs and poetry from Somaliland at Radio Hargeisa archive room in Hargeisa, on November 10, 2024. [AFP]

In a library in Somaliland, Hafsa Omer presses play on a small cassette player. The sound of a Somali lute interwoven with a woman's soft singing fills the room.

Tapping her keyboard, Omer bobs with the rhythm of the pentatonic melody typical in the northern region of the Horn of Africa.