Monday June 8, 2026 Istanbul (AX) — Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was reportedly turned away at the U.S. border over the weekend, just days before he was scheduled to join preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Artan, one of 52 referees chosen by FIFA for the tournament to be staged in the United States, Canada and Mexico, had been traveling from Istanbul to Miami on Saturday for a FIFA seminar for match officials, according to reports. He was reportedly refused entry upon arrival and sent back to Istanbul on…

Monday June 8, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia took a new step Sunday toward safeguarding its historical record, as Information, Culture and Tourism Minister Abdulfatah Kasim Mohamud launched a UNESCO workshop focused on protecting the country’s documentary heritage, including the long-significant Radio Mogadishu archive. The National Workshop for Somalia is being held under UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme, an initiative designed to preserve and improve access to documentary heritage ranging from manuscripts and…

By Abdirahman JeylaniMonday June 8, 2026 The bursts of gunfire that rattled Mogadishu in early June should end any remaining hope that Somalia’s political crisis is just another quarrel over election dates. What played out in the capital was not merely a clash between government troops and forces tied to the opposition. It marked the first violent eruption of a constitutional dispute that has been simmering for years — one now threatening the fragile political understanding that has held Somalia’s post-conflict…

Monday June 8, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Former Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo on Sunday urged President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Somalia’s former heads of state to sit down together immediately, saying the country’s worsening political turmoil demands a Somali-led solution. At a news conference in Mogadishu, Farmaajo said he would extend a formal invitation to Mohamud to meet at his residence, where the two sides would discuss elections, security and the country’s broader political direction. He argued that…

Monday June 8, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somali Danab commandos launched coordinated operations across parts of Lower Shabelle on Sunday, striking al-Shabab positions that military officials say were being used to squeeze money from motorists and residents. The 161st Battalion of the 16th Brigade led the raids in Warmaxan, Tasxiille, Shareey, 10-Buundo, Tabeellaha and surrounding areas near Donka. Military commanders said the targeted sites included checkpoints and concealed bases the group relied on to collect illegal taxes…

Turkish intelligence steps in as Somalia’s election standoff deepens MOGADISHU, June 8, 2026 – Turkish intelligence officials in Mogadishu are set to open another round of talks with Somali opposition figures on Monday, sources said, as a behind-the-scenes diplomatic effort intensifies to break the country’s political impasse. The delegation has spent the past several days in the Somali capital meeting separately with opposition leaders and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, using shuttle diplomacy to try to narrow the gap…

Monday June 8, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — A national peace conference led by women on Sunday urged President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to immediately open an inclusive national dialogue aimed at easing Somalia’s worsening political crisis. In its statement, the gathering said any talks must bring in civil society, with Somali women in particular, to help shape a durable political settlement rooted in consultation and consensus. “We expressed strong concern about the political situation in the country, following the recent violence…

by STEPHEN ASTARIKOMonday June 8, 2026 East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) MP Falhada Iman Dekow speaking to the press in Garissa town on Sunday. /STEPHEN ASTARIKO A video of Garissa Governor Nathif Jama speaking with a patient at Garissa County Referral Hospital has thrust the Social Health Authority (SHA) programme back into the spotlight, prompting fresh questions over whether the government's health push is delivering on its promise. The clip, recorded on Friday and circulated widely on social media over the…

Mohamed Gabobe, MogadishuSunday June 7, 2026 Fighters from the Union of Islamic Courts took control of Mogadishu in June 2006 For Yusuf Ali, the sounds of Mogadishu’s past have never really gone away. The 34-year-old shopkeeper still lives with the memories of being drawn into Somalia’s insurgency as a child soldier, fighting in the streets of the capital while the city around him descended into ruin. As Mogadishu gradually rebuilds, the psychological wounds left by years of war remain largely untreated. Few services are…

Sunday June 7, 2026 Addis Ababa (AX) — Somalia’s ambassador to Ethiopia says Mogadishu is determined to extend federal authority across every part of Somali territory, including Hargeisa and Berbera, as tensions flare again over North Western State of Somalia’s disputed status. Speaking to Al Jazeera this week, Ambassador Abdullahi Mohamed Warfa said the federal government is rebuilding state institutions and bolstering the national army so that federal authority can reach all regions of the country. “Northern Somalia is…