Axadle - Breaking news and analysis from Somalia, the Horn of Africa, and across Africa.

A fresh maritime seizure near the United Arab Emirates sharpened tensions around the Strait of Hormuz today, as a British naval monitoring agency said a vessel had been taken and was heading toward Iranian waters while the US and Chinese presidents met in Beijing for talks that included the Iran war. Following the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, a White House official said both men agreed the Strait of Hormuz must remain open and that Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons.…

By Aaron RossFriday May 15, 2026 A security officer keeps watch as United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher, not pictured, visits a camp for internally displaced Somali people in Baidoa, Somalia, on April 29, 2026. In drought-stricken parts of the country, clinics treating severely malnourished children have been forced to turn away patients and ration supplies after shipping disruptions linked to the Iran war cut off vital therapeutic foods. REUTERS/Feisal…

Chad is teetering at a perilous tipping point, its structural weaknesses now so stark that the country—and the region around it—risks sliding toward state collapse. For years, regional powers and international partners equated military effectiveness with domestic stability and looked the other way. That misreading has run its course. The debate is no longer about whether President Mahamat Deby Itno presides over an authoritarian system—he does—but whether his government can keep the nation intact at all, writes Cameron…

In a troubling escalation of public health concerns, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that the Lassa fever outbreak has claimed 191 lives nationwide. As the number of infections continues to rise, health officials are sounding the alarm over widespread cases emerging in numerous states. This year, at least one confirmed case of Lassa fever has been identified in 23 states, affecting 106 local government areas. Alarmingly, five states—Bauchi, Ondo, Taraba, Edo, and Benue—are responsible for…

What began as a solemn tribute to Malawi’s founding leader, Hastings Kamuzu Banda, quickly unraveled on Kamuzu Day when police deployed tear gas to break up Malawi Congress Party supporters escorting former president Lazarus Chakwera to the Kamuzu Mausoleum in Lilongwe. The confrontation underscored sharpening political frictions around the holiday. The MCP had shunned the official State ceremony, arguing Chakwera was sidelined from the national event due to what authorities labeled “protocol complications.” Government…

Keir Starmer faced mounting pressure over his leadership after a Labour MP stepped aside to give Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham a route back to parliament — and a possible platform to challenge for the top job. Mr Burnham said he wanted to return to Westminster to "make politics work properly for people" after Josh Simons, the Labour MP for Makerfield, announced he would resign his seat so Mr Burnham could "drive the change our country is crying out for". Sources said Mr Starmer does not plan to stand in the way of Mr…

Friday May 15, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s National Independent Human Rights Commission has raised alarm over the prolonged detention of Sadio Moallim Ali, saying she has spent more than a month in Mogadishu Central Prison without being tried. In a May 13 statement, the commission said it had visited the facility on April 29 to examine Ali’s detention conditions and review her legal and humanitarian circumstances. The commission said its delegation met with Correctional Service officials, prison administrators, Ali and…

Friday May 15, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s Immigration and Citizenship Agency has announced a major shift in passport rules, saying applicants will soon need a national identity card or proof of registration before they can apply. Starting July 1, 2026, Somali citizens who do not hold a National Identification and Registration Authority card, known as a NIRA ID, or a certificate confirming registration will no longer be eligible to submit a passport application, the agency said Thursday. “Anyone who does not…

Kyiv came under one of its heaviest assaults in months early today, as Russia unleashed hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles in a punishing strike that killed at least seven people and dealt another blow to already fading hopes of stopping Moscow’s grinding invasion. Air raid sirens echoed across the Ukrainian capital before hours of deafening blasts and flashes lit up the sky, sending residents rushing into metro stations and other shelters, journalists in the city said. The Ukrainian air force said Russia fired 675…

With the latest Lebanon-Israel ceasefire nearing its expiry, officials from both countries returned to Washington today for fresh peace talks, even as Israeli strikes that have killed hundreds during the truce underscored how fragile the calm remains. Israel's military said it was carrying out strikes on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon after ordering residents in several towns and villages there, as well as in the country's east, to evacuate. It also said a Hezbollah drone crashed inside Israeli territory, injuring…