Axadle - Leading News from Somalia and the Horn of Africa

MOGADISHU, May 8 - Former Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo on Friday urged President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to put in place an inclusive electoral framework before his term expires next week, saying failure to reach consensus could deepen instability in the country. The appeal lands against the backdrop of an intensifying political standoff in the Horn of Africa nation, where the opposition and the federal government remain split over election procedures and proposed constitutional changes as the May 15 deadline…

South Africa’s top court has struck down Parliament’s 2022 move to halt impeachment proceedings against President Cyril Ramaphosa, ruling the decision unconstitutional in a judgment that immediately reshapes the political landscape. The Constitutional Court sided with opposition parties, which argued that lawmakers from the ruling party improperly shut down a process designed to test grave allegations against the head of state. The dispute traces back to an independent panel’s findings that the President had a case to…

A deadly hantavirus outbreak aboard a luxury expedition cruise in the Atlantic has triggered a global health response, but the World Health Organization says the episode does not signal the start of a new Covid-style emergency. "This is not the start of an epidemic. This is not the start of a pandemic," WHO epidemic and pandemic preparedness and prevention director Maria Van Kerkhove told reporters, insisting: "This is not Covid." The WHO said it expects the outbreak to remain "limited" provided countries enforce public…

Tarek ChouirefFriday May 8, 2026 Iran said early Friday that it had carried out a major missile and drone assault on US destroyers operating near the Strait of Hormuz, escalating tensions around one of the world’s most sensitive shipping lanes. In a statement, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said the operation was launched after what it called a US ceasefire violation, citing a strike on an Iranian oil tanker near Jask port and the advance of US destroyers toward the strategic waterway. The statement said Iranian…

April 2026 underscored the planet’s persistent warmth, delivering the second-highest sea surface temperatures ever recorded for oceans outside the polar regions. Across broad stretches of the tropical Pacific, sea temperatures hit record highs, driven by intense marine heatwaves. The global average surface air temperature reached 14.89°C. That placed the month 1.43°C above pre-industrial levels for April. According to the EU Copernicus Climate Change Service, that made April the joint third-warmest April recorded worldwide.…

Friday May 8, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia's federal government says it plans to construct 12,000 homes to help resettle nearly 80,000 people living in informal settlements and other locations deemed unsafe or unsuitable across the country. Announcing the initiative in Mogadishu on Friday, Minister of Public Works, Reconstruction and Housing Ayuub Ismail said the program is designed to assist families residing in high-risk areas, including flood-prone zones, government-owned land and land close to public facilities such as…

Former President Festus Mogae has died at 86, the government announced, marking the passing of the nation’s third leader in the post-independence era. Revered for championing clean governance and fiscal prudence, Mogae steered the diamond-rich economy for ten years, winning broad respect for his steady hand and reform-minded leadership.

Few voices have shaped humanity’s understanding of the living world like David Attenborough’s, and on his 100th birthday the veteran British naturalist is being celebrated as both a broadcasting icon and one of the most influential environmental campaigners of the modern era. Across more than 70 years of filmmaking, Mr Attenborough’s unmistakable narration has become inseparable from the way nature is seen, heard and understood. Even now, he remains at the forefront of the fight to protect the planet, delivering some of the…

MOGADISHU, Somalia – A fresh power struggle has broken out between Somalia’s federal authorities and the Galmudug administration after both sides issued competing orders over who should lead the region’s police force. The confrontation escalated on Thursday when the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) announced that it had removed the sitting Galmudug Police Commander, Khaliif Abdulle Maalin, better known as "Ilkacase." The federal authorities then named Colonel Mohamed Dahir Abdulle, a senior officer who previously served…

By  ADAM SCHRECK and AUDREY McAVOYFriday May 8, 2026 This locator map shows Iran and its capital, Tehran. (AP Photo) The Iran war’s fragile ceasefire came under fresh pressure Friday after the United Arab Emirates said it had responded to a missile and drone attack, just hours after the U.S. announced it had stopped attacks on three Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz and carried out retaliatory strikes on Iranian military sites. As Iranian and U.S. negotiators continue searching for a way to end the fighting, both sides have…