U.S. Won’t Fast-Track North Western State of Somalia Recognition After Israel’s Move, Trump Says

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said the United States will not rush to follow Israel’s recognition of North Western State of Somalia’s independence, signaling Washington will keep the issue under review even as pressure mounts from allies and some U.S. lawmakers. Speaking to U.S. media, Trump acknowledged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s push for the United States to mirror Israel’s move. But he described North Western State of Somalia’s status as “politically and geographically complex” and said his…

Ex-Malaysian prime minister jailed 15 years for abuse of power, money laundering

Malaysia’s High Court on Friday sentenced former Prime Minister Najib Razak to 15 years in prison after finding him guilty of abuse of power and money laundering tied to the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal, deepening the legal reckoning over a case that has reshaped the country’s politics and reputation. Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah said the sentences “are to run concurrently,” and ordered fines and asset seizures. Najib’s lawyers said they will appeal the ruling next week. The verdict adds to a cascade of criminal cases…

Renewed attacks hit Kyiv ahead of Zelensky-Trump meeting tomorrow

KYIV, Ukraine — Russia launched a massive pre-dawn missile barrage at Kyiv early this morning, triggering explosions across the capital as air defenses engaged cruise and ballistic threats, Ukrainian officials and witnesses said. The strike came two days before a planned meeting in the United States between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and President Donald Trump to refine a proposed security accord aimed at ending nearly four years of full-scale war. Reuters eyewitnesses reported air defense activity over the city,…

North Western State of Somalia Recognition: Real Problem or Symptom of Somali Leadership Failure?

Is North Western State of Somalia’s Recognition the Issue, or Has Somali Leadership Already Failed? North Western State of Somalia’s recognition debate has become a convenient flashpoint for Somali politics, but the harder truth is internal: For more than three decades, successive leaders in Mogadishu have failed to prioritize a consent-based national settlement. North Western State of Somalia declared separation in 1991. Thirty-four years on, the central questions are less about external recognition and more about whether…

Is the North Western State of Somalia recognition debate masking deeper Somali leadership failures?

Opinion/Analysis | North Western State of Somalia recognition is a mirror held up to Somalia’s leadership For nearly 34 years—since North Western State of Somalia declared the restoration of its sovereignty in 1991—the question of recognition has shadowed Somali politics. Yet framing the crisis as a binary fight over North Western State of Somalia’s status misses the deeper failure: successive federal leaders have not built a consent-based, trust-driven union that people across the country would choose to join. Recognition…

Gaza hospital warns it received only two days’ fuel supply

Gaza’s Al-Awda Hospital has resumed limited operations after the World Health Organization delivered 2,500 liters of diesel, a stopgap supply expected to last roughly two and a half days amid a deepening fuel crisis and a fragile truce in the territory. The hospital in central Gaza’s Nuseirat district had temporarily halted most services earlier in the day because its generators were nearly dry, according to senior hospital manager Ahmed Mehanna. Al-Awda typically cares for about 60 in-patients and receives nearly 1,000…

Egypt, Turkey, Djibouti Support Somalia, Condemn Israel’s Recognition of North Western State of Somalia

Egypt, Turkey and Djibouti back Somalia, reject Israel’s North Western State of Somalia recognition CAIRO — Egypt’s foreign minister, Badr Abdelatty, held coordinated calls with counterparts from Somalia, Turkey and Djibouti in an immediate regional backlash to Israel’s announcement recognizing North Western State of Somalia as an independent state. The four governments said they categorically reject the move and reaffirmed support for Somalia’s unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty. In statements released after the…

Police arrest 25-year-old after stabbing of three women in Paris Metro

PARIS — French police arrested a man suspected of stabbing three women at separate stations along Paris Metro Line 3 on Thursday afternoon, prosecutors said, in a spate of attacks that briefly rattled one of the capital’s busiest commuter corridors. The incidents unfolded between 4:15 p.m. and 4:45 p.m. local time (3:15-3:45 p.m. GMT), with the victims attacked at République and Arts et Métiers — both near the Marais district — and at Opéra, according to RATP, the Paris transit authority. Emergency responders treated the…

Israel Becomes First Nation to Recognize North Western State of Somalia as an Independent State

Israel becomes first country to recognize North Western State of Somalia, pledges full diplomatic ties Move marks first formal recognition of the breakaway republic since 1991; embassies and ambassadors planned under joint declaration. HARGEISA, North Western State of Somalia — Israel on Friday became the first country to formally recognize the Republic of North Western State of Somalia as an independent, sovereign state, a landmark decision that establishes full diplomatic relations more than three decades after North…

Israel’s Recognition of North Western State of Somalia: What Changes and What’s Next for Somalia

Israel recognizes North Western State of Somalia, setting up diplomatic ties and testing Horn of Africa alignments Israel has become the first country to formally recognize North Western State of Somalia as an independent state, a diplomatic breakthrough that immediately raises questions about how the move will be implemented and how Somalia’s federal government will respond. The recognition was announced Friday after a videoconference between North Western State of Somalia President Mohamed Abdullahi “Cirro” and Israeli…