According to a report published by Africa Watch (Jan. 1990), the word "HANGASH [is] a Somali acronym for the military police." The HANGASH's role was reportedly to watch over the military and the National State Security (NSS) but they are also reported to have acquired powers over civilians and were eventually more feared than the NSS (Ibid. 1990, 47). Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1989 (1990, 323) corroborates this information. According to this source, the following nine entities had the power to detain: "National Police, NSS, Hangaash, military police, SRSP, the militia, the Custodial Corps, regional governors, and district commissioners." Further information on this subject is currently unavailable to the IRBDC in Ottawa.

Africa Watch. January 1990. "Somalia: A Government at War With Its Own People: Testimonies About Killings and the Conflict in the North." New York: Human Rights Watch.

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1989 1990. U.S. Department of State. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office.