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

Jesse Jackson, the Baptist minister and civil rights leader who marched with Martin Luther King Jr. and elevated Black political power for more than six decades, died peacefully this morning at 84, his family said in a statement. “Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world,” the family said. “His unwavering belief in justice, equality, and love uplifted millions, and we ask you to honor his memory by continuing the fight for the values he…

Saudi Arabia’s quiet power play in Somalia’s new military pact Somalia and Saudi Arabia have signed a defense cooperation agreement in Riyadh, a move that folds one of the Horn of Africa’s most fragile states deeper into an increasingly crowded contest for Red Sea influence. The memorandum of understanding, announced by Somalia’s defense minister, Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, on X, comes weeks after Israel said it would recognize North Western State of Somalia — the northern, breakaway region of Somalia — as an independent state, a…

Kenya and Ghana Launch Investigations into Russian Man's Alleged Non-Consensual Filming Authorities in Kenya and Ghana are set to investigate disturbing reports that a Russian man secretly filmed sexual encounters with women in both countries and subsequently posted the footage online without their consent. This alarming case has raised serious concerns about gender-based violence and cybercrime in both nations. The individual at the center of this controversy has been identified as a self-styled "pick-up artist." Media…

Zelensky says diplomacy needs ‘justice and strength’ as Russia, U.S., Ukraine open Geneva talks GENEVA — Trilateral talks aimed at ending the nearly four-year war in Ukraine were set to begin in Geneva on Monday as a Russian delegation led by nationalist historian and former culture minister Vladimir Medinsky arrived in the Swiss city around 6 a.m., according to a member of the Russian team. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky framed the diplomatic push as inseparable from sustained pressure on Moscow, saying talks would…

MOGADISHU — Somalia’s foreign minister said the United Arab Emirates has halted its security assistance to the Horn of Africa nation after Mogadishu formally withdrew from bilateral agreements with Abu Dhabi. Foreign Minister Abdisalam Abdi Ali told reporters the Emirati program had focused on Somalia’s military and security institutions and no longer had a legal or political framework after the government’s move to scrap the pacts. “Most of the support provided by the UAE was concentrated in the security sector. Since the…

HARGEISA, North Western State of Somalia (AX) — A key community body in western North Western State of Somalia has rejected the interior minister’s claim that a peace deal ended recent inter-clan clashes, saying fresh fighting has erupted in Awdal and Salal and that casualties and destruction are mounting. In a statement issued late Monday, the Awdal Regional Tribal Cultural Committee said Interior Minister Abdalle Mohamed Arab’s Feb. 14 remarks declaring the conflict over were “misleading” and did not reflect the situation…

Trump says he’ll be ‘indirectly’ involved as U.S., Iran resume high-stakes nuclear talks in Geneva GENEVA — U.S. President Donald Trump said he will be “involved … indirectly” in talks set for today in Geneva aimed at containing Iran’s nuclear program, as Washington rushes additional military power to the Middle East and warns it is prepared for a sustained campaign if diplomacy fails. “I’ll be involved in those talks, indirectly. And they’ll be very important,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. He added he believes…

GENEVA — President Donald Trump said he will be “indirectly” involved in a second round of high-stakes U.S.-Iran nuclear talks opening Tuesday in Switzerland, as both sides signal urgency amid a military buildup that has stoked fears of a wider regional conflict. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday, Trump called the Geneva discussions “very important” and described Iran as “a very tough negotiator.” He suggested Tehran is now motivated to reach an agreement after last year’s escalation. “I don’t think they…

At least 14 people — including 11 security personnel — were killed in two bomb attacks and a gunfight in northwest Pakistan, authorities said, underscoring a surge in militant violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province along the Afghan border. At least 25 others were wounded across the separate incidents. A security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a suicide bomber in the evening rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the wall of a religious college in Bajaur district. “The blast also caused the roofs of…

Turkey sends Cagri Bey drilling ship to Somalia in first offshore mission abroad MOGADISHU, Somalia — Turkey has dispatched its deep-sea drilling vessel Cagri Bey to Somali waters, launching Ankara’s first offshore energy exploration campaign outside its own maritime zone, officials from both countries said Sunday. Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar called the deployment a “historic moment” for Turkey’s oil and gas strategy as the ship departed Tasucu port in the southern province of Mersin. The vessel is expected to reach…