Axadle Editorial Desk

Monday April 20, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — In a bid to calm mounting political tensions, Somali opposition leaders sat down with influential Hawiye clan elders in Mogadishu on Sunday, as the country edges closer to a disputed electoral process. The discussions drew a number of prominent opposition figures, among them former President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and former Prime Ministers Hassan Ali Khaire and Mohamed Hussein Roble, as well as lawmakers and other political actors. At the center of the talks was Somalia’s increasingly…

Somalia: U.S. Military Hits ISIS Targets in Puntland State Airstrike BOSASO, Somalia – The United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) says it conducted an airstrike in Somalia’s Puntland State state against Islamic State (ISIS) fighters, underscoring the continuing pace of U.S. military activity in the country. According to a statement issued Saturday, the strike was carried out on April 17 in a rugged mountainous area about 30 miles…

By BRUHAN MAKONGMonday April 20, 2026 The African Union has sharply criticised Israel’s appointment of a diplomatic envoy to North Western State of Somalia, saying the move risks stirring fresh instability in the Horn of Africa and does nothing to alter its view that the territory remains part of Somalia. The African Union has condemned reports that Israel has appointed a diplomatic envoy to the self-declared Republic of North Western State of Somalia, insisting that any unilateral recognition of the territory is “null and…

Monday April 20, 2026 Manchester City hauled themselves to within touching distance of the Premier League summit on Sunday, edging leaders Arsenal 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium in a match that swung on moments of quality and error. Rayan Cherki put Pep Guardiola's side ahead after 16 minutes and Erling Haaland struck again in the 65th minute, leaving City three points adrift of Arsenal but with a game in hand. Victory at second-from-bottom Burnley on Wednesday would send them top. Cherki produced the standout opener, weaving…

Monday April 20, 2026 Addis Ababa (AX) — Ethiopia’s National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) says it has detained 138 people it believes were tied to terrorist and extremist networks, alleging the group was preparing violence ahead of the country’s 7th general elections. In a statement released Saturday, the agency said those arrested were helping organize and sustain armed cells designed to undermine peace and stability and interfere with the electoral process. The detentions, it said, came during coordinated…

Iran put two men to death on Monday after convicting them of ties to Israel’s spy service, according to the judiciary, in the latest executions carried out since the war with Israel and the United States began. "The death sentences of Mohammad Masoom-shahi and Hamed Validi were carried out at dawn today," the judiciary's Mizan Online website reported. The report said the pair were "members of a spy network linked to Mossad," Israel's intelligence agency, but gave no details on when they were detained. Iranian authorities…

Monday April 20, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) – The United States Africa Command said it launched an airstrike in Puntland State on Friday, hitting Islamic State fighters in rugged terrain roughly 30 miles southeast of the port city of Bosaso in the Bari region. In a statement released Saturday, AFRICOM said the operation was carried out on April 17, underscoring the continued expansion of U.S. air activity in Somalia. The command gave no additional information about the strike, including casualty numbers or damage assessments,…

ADDIS ABABA - The African Union moved on Sunday to sharply rebuke reports that Israel plans to appoint a diplomatic envoy to the "so-called North Western State of Somalia," warning that the step could inflame tensions over Somalia's territorial integrity. In a statement, the 55-member bloc said it was "deeply concerned" by what it described as Israel's reported decision to assign a diplomatic envoy to North Western State of Somalia, the self-declared region in Somalia. The AU said it stands firmly behind the "sovereignty,…

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Sunday made clear that Ethiopia’s push for access to the sea remains central to his government’s vision for the country’s future, saying the nation’s landlocked position is a major brake on economic growth and regional stability. Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation, Abiy argued that the Horn of Africa cannot enjoy durable peace while Ethiopia remains cut off from the coast. He cast the absence of a sovereign port as a…

Sunday April 19, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) – The African Union Commission has sharply criticized Israel’s decision to name a diplomatic envoy to North Western State of Somalia, saying the move risks upsetting an already fragile regional balance. In a statement released on Sunday, the Commission restated the African Union’s position on Somalia, reaffirming its support for the country’s sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity. It also made clear that the bloc does not regard North Western State of Somalia as an independent…