Somalia

Thursday March 19, 2026 QatarEnergy's liquefied natural gas production facilities at Ras Laffan Industrial City Iranian missile strikes on Qatar’s flagship Ras Laffan Industrial City, the country’s main gas hub, left “significant damage,” authorities said. “The State of Qatar expresses its strong condemnation and denunciation of the blatant Iranian attack targeting Ras Laffan Industrial City, which caused fires resulting in significant damage to the facility,” Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on…

Thursday March 19, 2026 Barcelona blitzed Newcastle United 7-2 at Camp Nou on Wednesday, charging into the Champions League quarterfinals with an 8-3 aggregate triumph. A week after a 1-1 stalemate on Tyneside, the hosts tore the tie apart after the interval, with Fermin Lopez, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha spearheading a merciless onslaught. Before that surge, the opening 45 minutes were frantic before 60,000 fans, producing five goals and opportunities at both ends. In the sixth minute Raphinha slotted Barcelona ahead…

Somalia: Regional Bloc Rallies Behind Southwest State as Clash with Federal Government Widens MOGADISHU, Somalia — A bloc of Somali regional states and political figures has thrown its support behind Southwest State President Abdiaziz Laftagareen, further isolating the federal government as a constitutional confrontation gathers pace. The Somali Future Council, which includes the regional governments of Jubbaland and Puntland State alongside the Salvation Forum, issued a statement applauding Laftagareen’s move to challenge…

Thursday March 19, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Political friction between Baidoa and Mogadishu sharpened Thursday after the opposition-aligned Somali Future Council backed Southwest State President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen’s decision to freeze relations with the federal government and press ahead with regional elections. In a statement, the council said it welcomed Southwest’s stance but voiced alarm over a deepening national impasse. It argued that disputes over regional leadership, the electoral framework and recent…

Thursday March 19, 2026 - Baidoa (AX) — Southwest State President Abdiasis Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen on Wednesday accused Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of stalling regional elections since 2022, sharpening an increasingly public split between Baidoa and Mogadishu. At a press conference in Baidoa, Laftagareen said leaders of federal member states had made repeated attempts to organize their own ballots but were blocked by the federal leadership. “In September 2022, all the regional state leaders were present…

Thursday March 19, 2026 Baidoa (AX) — Southwest State President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen on Wednesday reaffirmed a break in relations with Somalia’s federal government, accusing Mogadishu of undercutting federalism and destabilizing his region. “Starting today, there will be no contact between us and the federal government until something Somalis agree on is brought,” Laftagareen told reporters at a press conference in Baidoa. The regional leader said cooperation with the central government will not resume until…

Saudi Arabia warns Iran after attacks on world’s largest LNG hub RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia’s top diplomat delivered a blunt ultimatum to Tehran on Thursday, saying the kingdom and fellow Gulf states have only "limited" patience for further Iranian attacks and urging Iran to immediately "recalculate" its regional strategy. Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, speaking at a news conference following a summit of Arab and Islamic leaders, said Gulf nations possess "very significant capacities and…

Thursday March 19, 2026 Baidoa (AX) — In a sharp escalation with Somalia’s federal authorities, Southwest State on Wednesday halted all commercial and private air traffic into and out of airports across the region. The Southwest Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation said in a statement the suspension took effect March 18, 2026, and will remain in force until further notice. The ministry said it imposed the measure to protect public safety and keep air traffic orderly “given the prevailing circumstances,” without…

Veteran diplomat Nicholas Haysom, former senior UN envoy to Somalia, dies at 73 NEW YORK — Nicholas Haysom, a South African lawyer-diplomat and former senior United Nations envoy to Somalia, has died in New York at the age of 73, officials said. His most recent post was as the UN Secretary-General’s special representative for South Sudan, culminating a decades-long career that bridged diplomacy, peacebuilding and constitutional law. Affectionately known as “Fink,” Haysom helped steer South Africa’s transition to democracy,…

Wednesday March 18, 2026 Iran confirmed Tuesday that Ali Larijani — a senior security power broker and a pillar of conservative politics within the Islamic Republic — was killed in an Israeli strike. He was 67. After U.S. and Israeli strikes late last month that killed Iran’s supreme leader and broadened the conflict, Larijani was widely viewed as the de facto manager of state affairs. Israel announced earlier Tuesday that it had killed Larijani; Tehran waited several hours before acknowledging his death. He had been tapped…