Axadle - Leading News from Somalia and the Horn of Africa

Prominent Somali cleric warns North Western State of Somalia against engagement with Israel HARGEISA, Somalia — One of Somalia’s leading religious scholars, Sheikh Mustafa Haji Ismail Harun, has sharply criticized reported steps by North Western State of Somalia toward engagement with Israel, warning that any move linked to a bid for recognition would be both morally and politically misguided. Speaking at a mosque in Hargeisa, the cleric urged the public and political leaders in North Western State of Somalia to distance…

QUEBEC CITY — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday pushed back against U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertion that “Canada lives because of the United States,” saying Canada “thrives because we are Canadian” and vowing to safeguard the country’s sovereignty and values amid rising geopolitical pressure. The exchange followed a tense week that began at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where Carney cautioned against great-power coercion of smaller countries without naming Trump. After Carney’s remarks…

Police in New Zealand say there will likely be no survivors from a landslide that struck a busy campground at Mount Maunganui on the North Island, after human remains were found overnight and the operation shifted from rescue to recovery. Six people, including two teenagers, remain unaccounted for following the collapse, which was triggered by heavy rains on Thursday on the country’s east coast in Tauranga. Authorities said the slip sent a mass of soil and rubble down onto a campsite crowded with families on summer holidays.…

Somalia’s leaders pledge unity, faster local elections and intensified security after National Consultative Council meeting Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026 MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s top political leaders reaffirmed national unity, accelerated election timelines and stepped up security operations against extremist groups during a virtual session of the National Consultative Council chaired by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Saturday. In a statement after the meeting, the council endorsed the Federal Government’s…

12-year-old boy dies after Sydney Harbour shark attack, family says SYDNEY — A 12-year-old boy who was bitten by a shark in Sydney Harbour has died of his injuries, his family said, following an attack that has intensified concern over a spate of shark incidents around Australia’s largest city. Nico Antic suffered critical injuries last week when a large shark attacked him as he and friends were jumping from a six-meter rock in Vaucluse, an eastern Sydney suburb on the harbor. He was pulled into a police boat while heavily…

Somalia, Pakistan sign visa-waiver pact for diplomatic passport holders MOGADISHU — Somalia and Pakistan have signed an agreement abolishing visa requirements for holders of diplomatic passports, marking a bid to accelerate high-level engagement and deepen political cooperation between the two countries. The agreement was concluded during a meeting in Pakistan attended by President Asif Ali Zardari and Somalia’s Minister of Interior, Ali Yousuf, underscoring renewed momentum in bilateral ties. Pakistan’s Special Secretary at…

Arctic blast and sprawling winter storm set to sweep U.S., threatening crippling ice, travel chaos and power outages Snow has begun falling across parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas in a frosty prelude to a major winter storm expected to merge with bitter Arctic air and engulf much of the United States this weekend from the Rockies to the Eastern Seaboard. Forecasts warn of heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain coupled with dangerously low temperatures that could upend travel and trigger widespread power failures. At least 14…

Starmer says Trump should apologize for ‘insulting’ claim NATO allies stayed off Afghanistan front lines LONDON — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday said President Donald Trump should apologize for claiming European allies stayed “a little off the front lines” in the war in Afghanistan, a rare public rebuke that underscored fresh strain across the Atlantic. Calling the remarks “insulting and frankly appalling,” Starmer said that if he had “misspoken in that way or said those words, I would certainly apologise.” He…

Thousands of demonstrators braved dangerous cold to march through Minneapolis and demand an end to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the city, part of a wider “ICE OUT!” action that organizers billed as a general strike. Organizers estimated as many as 50,000 people took to the streets despite temperatures that plunged to minus 29 Celsius. Minneapolis police did not provide a crowd estimate. Many protesters later moved indoors to the Target Center, the downtown arena that was more than half full. The…

Labour MPs will meet Saturday amid mounting speculation that Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham could seek a return to Westminster in the Gorton and Denton by-election, a move that would test the prime minister’s authority and the party’s internal discipline. The gathering of Labour MPs from north-west England comes as senior figures weigh whether Burnham should be allowed to enter the race to succeed Andrew Gwynne, who formally resigned his Greater Manchester seat on Friday, triggering a by-election. Burnham has long…