Tuesday May 12, 2026 Hargeisa (AX) — North Western State of Somalia has named Greek national Dimitrios Tourikis as its special representative to Greece, a move that signals a fresh push to expand its diplomatic footprint in Europe. Tourikis said Monday in a post on X that he had accepted the appointment and was honored by the role, adding that he would work to strengthen ties between North Western State of Somalia and the Hellenic Republic. North Western State of Somalia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not released…

Lok DarjeeTuesday May 12, 2026 Liban Mohamed, a 27-year-old progressive newcomer with deep immigrant roots, has turned a little-known campaign into one of Utah’s most closely watched Democratic contests — and his narrow convention win has given him a real opening heading into June’s primary. Liban Mohamed: ‘We have first-time delegates, young people, refugees, immigrants, working-class people, and longtime community members organizing to deliver a huge upset.’ Photograph: Liban Mohamed for Congress Mohamed, the son of Somali…

Mohamed Gabobe in MogadishuMonday May 11, 2026 So worn they are now being turned away by buses, Somalia’s banknotes have become a symbol of a cash crisis deepened by a dollarised economy and the growing reach of mobile payments, which are driving up the price of basic goods Muse Omar Jama, 49, sits in his Mogadishu office beside piles of banknotes. He says a government order requiring the Somali shilling to be accepted is being ignored. Photograph: Mohamed Gabobe When US troops pulled out of Somalia in the spring of 1994, a…

by STEPHEN ASTARIKOMonday May 11, 2026 IDPs from floodwaters from Bula Punda in Garissa are camping at the Police Training Centre./STEPHEN ASTARIKO Families across Garissa County are facing a fresh wave of suffering after torrential rains and swelling waters along River Tana swept through villages, flattening homes, ruining farms and wiping out livelihoods in their path. The Garissa County Steering Group says at least 10,000 households in Garissa Township have already been displaced, while more than 60,000 others countywide…

By Dr. Ali Said FaqiMonday May 11, 2026 When President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud campaigned on the promise of “Somalis at peace with themselves and at peace with the rest of the world,” the line struck a nerve. After years of political turbulence and fragmentation, many Somalis saw in it the outline of a fresh start: reconciliation, rebuilt institutions and a stronger sense of national purpose. Four years on, that optimism has largely given way to frustration. Many Somalis now say the country is more divided than before, its…

Monday May 11, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s dominant opposition alliance said Monday it will return to the streets of Mogadishu on May 16, pressing ahead with an anti-government protest after accusing federal authorities of blocking an earlier rally and using security forces to stifle dissent. The Somali Salvation Forum said it would carry on what it described as a “peaceful struggle” over forced displacement, land seizures and what it called the misuse of power by the federal government. In a statement, the forum said…

Monday May 11, 2026 Jigjiga (AX) — A long-awaited solution to Qabridaharre’s water problems took a major step forward on Sunday, when Ethiopia’s Somali Regional Government broke ground on a 407 million birr water purification plant aimed at easing chronic shortages and improving water quality in the town. Somali Regional State President Mustafa Muhumed Omar and Water Affairs Minister Ahmed Miraad Layli led the foundation-laying ceremony, joined by local and district officials. The plant is slated to supply clean, treated…

Monday May 11, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Former Somali Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire on Sunday said government forces opened fire on peaceful demonstrators in Mogadishu’s Dayniile district, alleging that one person was killed and several others were injured. Speaking to reporters, Khaire said residents had assembled in Dayniile to voice anger over forced evictions and displacement when security personnel fired on the crowd. He expressed sympathy to the family of the person he said died and wished those wounded a swift…

Grace Eliza GoodwinMonday May 11, 2026 The search for two missing US soldiers off Morocco’s coast has taken a solemn turn: the Army says the body of one of them has now been found and identified as First Lieutenant Kendrick Lamont Key Jr. The remains of one of the two service members who disappeared last week during a training exercise in Morocco were recovered, the US Army said. The Army identified the soldier as 27-year-old 1st Lt Kendrick Lamont Key Jr, a platoon leader and air defence artillery officer from Richmond,…

Sarah JohnsonSunday May 10, 2026 The journalists said they were arrested and assaulted by counter-terrorism police in Mogadishu on Friday. Photograph: Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images A Somali journalist who reported on a woman’s claim that she was being tortured in prison was detained by authorities and beaten with pistols, along with two other reporters, in what media groups say is the latest sign of an escalating crackdown on press freedom. Mohamed Bulbul was arrested on Friday evening in a restaurant in central Mogadishu…