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

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…

Robert Duvall, the Oscar-winning American actor whose taut restraint in The Godfather and ferocious charisma in Apocalypse Now made him a towering figure of modern cinema, has died at 95. His wife, Luciana Duvall, announced his death in a statement posted to his Facebook page, saying he died peacefully at home “surrounded by love and comfort.” “To the world, he was an Academy Award-winning actor, a director, a storyteller,” she wrote. “To me, he was simply everything.” No cause of death was disclosed. Duvall earned seven…

Somalia, Tanzania sign migration and travel pact to ease visas, bolster border security Monday February 16, 2026 MOGADISHU — Somalia and Tanzania have signed a memorandum of understanding to deepen cooperation on migration management and make travel easier between the two countries, officials said. The agreement was signed by Somalia’s Minister of Internal Security, Abdullahi Sheikh Ismail, known as Fartaag, and Tanzania’s Minister of Home Affairs, Patrobas Paschal Katambi. Senior immigration officials from both governments…

Savannah Guthrie renewed her public plea to find her missing mother as the FBI said DNA recovered from a glove near the 84-year-old’s Tucson-area home could produce a crucial lead as early as today. Guthrie, co-anchor of NBC News’ Today, said her family “still have hope” more than two weeks after Nancy Guthrie vanished. “To whoever has her, or knows where she is, it’s never too late,” she said in a video message posted online. “We are here, and we believe in the essential goodness of every human being. And it’s never too…

Somalia’s military court executes two men convicted in Mogadishu killings and bomb attacks MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s military court on Monday executed two men convicted of murder and bomb attacks in the capital after what officials described as the completion of all legal proceedings and procedural reviews. The men were identified by court officials as Hassan Ali Iftin Buule, known as “Gacmey,” and Hassan Ali Ibrahim Mohamed Ahmed. The court said both were charged with security-related crimes tied to attacks in…

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has pledged to act “within months, not years” to curb addictive social media features and protect children online, as the government prepares a three-month consultation in March on proposals that include banning under-16s from social media and restricting infinite scrolling. Framing the plans as a response to mounting parental concern, Starmer said the status quo is failing to safeguard children from online harms and signaled a swift legislative push. “I don’t think there’s a parent in the…

AU reaffirms Somalia’s sovereignty, condemns Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — The African Union reaffirmed its full support for the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Somalia on Sunday, issuing a sharp rebuke to what it called Israel’s unilateral recognition of North Western State of Somalia. In a joint communiqué at the close of the AU’s annual summit in Addis Ababa, member states warned that any unilateral recognition that contravenes the founding principles of the…

MOGADISHU — Somalia’s National Communications Authority on Monday brought together telecommunications operators and consumer representatives for a one-day consultation on a draft Telecom Consumer Protection Regulation, a move aimed at strengthening oversight and building public trust in the country’s fast-growing digital market. The session gathered telecom companies, internet service providers, submarine cable operators and consumer advocates to review the draft framework and provide feedback on how it should be implemented…

The Kremlin has dismissed as “baseless” a joint assessment by five European countries that Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was poisoned with the potent toxin epibatidine, a claim that resurfaced as supporters marked two years since his death in an Arctic prison colony. Britain, Sweden, France, Germany and the Netherlands said in a joint statement Saturday they believe Navalny, President Vladimir Putin’s fiercest domestic opponent, was killed with epibatidine, a rare alkaloid found in poison dart frogs. The…