West Africa

Deeqo lounges on the stoop of her shiny new home, a significant upgrade from eight grueling years in an IDP camp. Photo by Hoodo Ahmed/Ergo In Garowe, the bustling heart of Somalia's Northeastern State region, the winds of change are brewing. A thousand internally displaced families are leaving behind the gritty hustle of tin shacks and entering the permanence of actual homes. Who’d have imagined? It’s a cultural shift, one that offers a poignant chapter of new beginnings rather than the endless loop of makeshift living.…

TikTok, the app that's got everyone from teenagers living for viral dance trends to grandparents trying out the latest viral challenges, may soon vanish from the screens of over 170 million Americans. Come Sunday, it faces the tech world's equivalent of being sent to the guillotine, all due to the ongoing legal kerfuffling with Uncle Sam. Apparently, unless the Biden administration can whip up a last-minute assurance that they won’t be cracking the app with penalties for violating its looming ban, TikTok might just zip…

Mogadishu (AX) - At the hustling heart of Mogadishu, Somalia steps gleefully towards a new dawn of progress, rolling out its long-anticipated National ID Card. Imagine unlocking not just doors, but possibilities - that’s the power of this little rectangle of promise. The National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) has fired the starting gun on this venture, aiming to equip citizens with a key to both essential services and their due rights. The ribbon at the launching event was snipped by none other than the…

Mogadishu (AX) – In the heart of Hirshabelle State, an unfortunate chapter unfolded as hostilities broke out between two storied clans, the Hawadle and Abgaal. The air around Calabria, a serene yet secluded borderland bridging the Hiiran and Middle Shabelle regions, was shattered Saturday morning by the echoes of a timeworn struggle over the lush pastures both clans hold dear. You might wonder, what stokes such enduring conflicts? Picture this: fertile lands, a scarcity of resources, and age-old rivalries simmering beneath…

Mogadishu (AX) – With a voice as commanding as a ship's captain braving a storm, former Somali President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed issued a stern warning to the federal government this past Friday. At the heart of his concern? A looming political quagmire: unilateral elections. Picture this: a nation split at the seams, fraying edges evident unless sanity prevails through dialogue, something sorely lacking in today's discourse. Once upon a headline, Sheikh Sharif, now helming the Himilo Qaran Party, stepped into the fray…

Kismayo (AX) – Jubaland's spirited leader, Ahmed Mohamed Islam Madobe, boarded a private jet on Saturday morning, setting his sights on Kenya. It's his first cross-border jaunt since he snagged the presidency of Jubaland once again—a victory that the Somali federal government has dished out cold shoulders and a tight-lipped refusal to acknowledge. A swathe of diplomats awaits him in Kenya, where whispers in government corridors suggest that talks will orbit around the thorny political landscape of Somalia. High on the…

Somalia's Legal Evolution: A Mosaic in the Making The essence of a thriving society often beats in rhythm with the heart of its governing laws. For Somalia, these laws are whispering transformations, evolving in tandem with its vibrant culture and tumultuous history. The Provisional Constitution that emerged in 2012 attempted to create stability but left many areas ripe for further exploration and consensus. The Constitution, a dynamic tapestry of governance, sets the stage for legal structures, political interplay, and…

Mogadishu (AX) – In a whirl of political drama that's brighter than a winter carnival, the Somali Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Hassan Moalim, took a bold stand against opposition groups, accusing them of monkey-wrenching the efforts to pass pivotal laws—the kind that would redefine the nation's electoral process. He’s made it clear: they are playing with fire! On a breezy Thursday in Mogadishu, with the hibiscus flowers trying to outshine the sun, Minister Moalim didn’t mince words in his address.…

(Minasse Wondimu Hailu - Anadolu Agency) In a world as tumultuous as a caffeine-fueled newsroom, where tensions flicker like a neon sign, there’s a brewing dose of hope. The recent ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas resistance group has drawn applause from the African Union, Somalia, and South Africa, a trio adding harmony to what has been an all-too-dissonant symphony. Moussa Faki Mahamat, the orchestrator and chief conductor of the African Union Commission, lauded the pivotal ensemble cast of…

In an unexpected turn of events that reads like a Hollywood script, the family of Abdullahi Issa Ibrahim, who had been believed to have vanished from this mortal coil during an Al-Shabaab incursion nine years ago, is now elated beyond words. It's the kind of news you don't expect. Photo: Citizen TV/Cornelius Ronoh. Source: Twitter. Hidden away in the serene locality of Maili Nne, Eldoret, a family that had long mourned is now celebrating the miraculous news that their beloved relative, Abdullahi Issa Ibrahim—a Kenya Defence…