Christmas Fern – Polystichum acrostichoides

Harardhere (Arabic: هرارديري, Somali: Xarardheere) is a historic town in the Mudug province of Somalia. It is situated in the autonomous Galmudug state and serves as the capital of the Harardhere District.

For most of its history, Harardhere was a historic town that was included in many Somali sultanates like the Ajuran Sultanate and Hiraab Imamate, who ruled over the town since the 13th century. After Somalia gained independence, the town developed and gave birth to many prominent Somali politicians and military officials like Abdirashid Ali Shermarke the second president of Somalia, Maj. Gen Daud Abdulle Hirsi (Abgaal Waceysle)the first Commander of the Somali Armed Forces, Maj. Gen Mohamed Abshir Muse First Commander of the Somali Police Force and Maj. Gen Salaad Gabeyre Kediye (Abgaal Waceysle). Former TNG Prime Minister Mohamed Abdi Yusuf was also born in the district with deep familial clan ties in Harardhere.

The town was controlled by the al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group al-Shabaab from at least 2012 to 2023. In 2018, a US airstrike killed 60 al-Shabaab fighters at a training camp in a rural area outside the town.^[1] On 16 January 2023, the town was recaptured by the Somali Armed Forces.

As of 2005, Harardhere had a population of around 65,543 inhabitants. As with most of Galmudug, it is primarily inhabited by Somalis from the Hiraab sub-clan of the Hawiye.^[2][3]

• Abdirashid Ali Shermarke, second president of Somalia
• Daud Abdulle Hirsi, first Somali Armed Forces commander
• Mohamed Abshir Muse, first Somali Police Force commander
• Salaad Gabeyre Kediye, former Somali senior military commander
• Ahmed Mohamed Jimale, former Chief of staff of Somalia National Army