Somalia

Clashes in Mogadishu as Government Accuses Opposition Guards of Trying to Seize Police Station What happened Somalia’s federal government on Wednesday accused opposition politicians of attempting to storm a police station in Mogadishu, an allegation that, if confirmed, would mark one of the most serious confrontations in the capital this year. The clash, outside the Warta Nabadda District Police Station, involved security forces and armed guards escorting opposition lawmakers. Shots were fired and injuries were reported,…

Senior Puntland State commander killed by explosion during anti-ISIS operation BOSASO, Somalia — A senior commander in Puntland State’s counter‑terrorism forces was killed Monday when an explosive device detonated during a sweep of rugged mountains where Islamic State fighters have been hiding, regional officials said. General Ahmed Ali Qarjab, widely known by the nom de guerre “Qalyare,” was serving as commander of Puntland State’s 2nd Battalion when the blast struck in Dhasaan, in the Al‑Miskaad mountain range. Puntland…

Somalia says airstrike kills three senior al‑Shabab commanders in Hiiraan What happened Mogadishu — Somalia’s government said Tuesday it killed three senior al‑Shabab commanders in an airstrike in the central region of Hiiraan, the latest strike in a campaign it says aims to shear away the group’s leadership and sap its battlefield strength. In a brief statement, the federal government said the operation was carried out by Somalia’s intelligence service “working with international partners,” and targeted “important…

Somali traders count losses after cargo ship bound for Bosaso burns in Indian port Rapid response, heavy losses BOSASO — A commercial vessel chartered by traders in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland State state caught fire early on Monday while anchored off Porbandar in India’s Gujarat state, leaving burned cargo, a shaken crew and questions about the fragility of food supply chains that stretch from South Asia to the Horn of Africa. The ship, identified by Indian authorities as Jamnagar and reportedly operated by HRM and…

Somalia airstrike controversy exposes the fragile line between counterterrorism and community trust In the scrubland around El Buh, a coastal settlement in northern Somalia’s Sanaag region, the U.S. military says its jets found a weapons trafficker. Locals say they lost a peacemaker. That gap—between the intelligence picture from the sky and the social reality on the ground—has become the defining tension of remote warfare in Somalia. On Sept. 13, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) carried out what it called a “precision…

Djibouti’s succession drama: Guelleh’s possible return, clan rivalries and what it means for a strategic Horn state As Djibouti edges toward its April 2026 presidential vote, the delicate balance of clan politics, family influence and constitutional tinkering that has sustained President Ismail Omar Guelleh’s two-decade rule is again in the spotlight. Long considered one of the Horn of Africa’s few pillars of stability, Djibouti now faces a familiar dilemma: preserve continuity through established networks, or open space…

Ramla Ali Comes Home: Somalia Honors a Fighter Who Changed the Script On a humid afternoon in Mogadishu, where the Indian Ocean throws salt into the breeze and the city’s traffic hums like a restless drum, a boxer walked into City Hall and rewrote an old story. Ramla Ali, Somalia’s first Olympic boxer and one of its most recognized athletes, accepted the Medal of Honor from the Governor of Banadir Region and Mayor of Mogadishu, Hassan Mohamed Hussein Muungaab—an emblem of a nation eager to celebrate achievement amid the…

Somalia’s ‘Iron Rock’ Vanishes: A Village Relic, a Scientific Marvel, and a Global Tug of War In a quiet river valley of central Somalia, children once clambered over a vast iron boulder and pretended it was a horse. Elders told stories about it. Knife-makers chipped off slivers to sharpen their blades. They called it Shiid-birood—the iron rock. It was part landmark, part myth, and, as it turns out, a relic from deep time: a 13.6-metric-ton meteorite shaped by primordial collisions that predate life on Earth. Today, the…

U.S. military chiefs visit North Western State of Somalia as Congress advances bill to deepen engagement HARGEISA, North Western State of Somalia — Senior U.S. military officials overseeing East Africa operations met Monday with North Western State of Somalia’s new president, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi Irro, in a rare high-level visit to Hargeisa that dovetailed with fresh momentum in Washington to widen America’s ties with the self-governing territory. The talks — which both sides described as focused on security…

U.S. military chiefs visit North Western State of Somalia as Congress advances bill to deepen engagement HARGEISA, North Western State of Somalia — Senior U.S. military officials overseeing East Africa operations met Monday with North Western State of Somalia’s new president, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi Irro, in a rare high-level visit to Hargeisa that dovetailed with fresh momentum in Washington to widen America’s ties with the self-governing territory. The talks — which both sides described as focused on security…