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

Monday June 8, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — A national peace conference led by women on Sunday urged President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to immediately open an inclusive national dialogue aimed at easing Somalia’s worsening political crisis. In its statement, the gathering said any talks must bring in civil society, with Somali women in particular, to help shape a durable political settlement rooted in consultation and consensus. “We expressed strong concern about the political situation in the country, following the recent violence…

With pressure mounting on the streets and online, President Cyril Ramaphosa has gone on national address to unveil a sweeping set of steps aimed at tightening South Africa’s grip on illegal migration, as anti-foreigner marches grow and anger over stubbornly high unemployment boils over. Ramaphosa said the package will target multiple pressure points in the system: tougher enforcement against employers who hire undocumented migrants; dedicated immigration courts designed to accelerate deportation processes; reinforced border…

Two months after a ceasefire appeared to quiet the Middle East war, Israel and Iran traded attacks once more, shattering the pause despite a public appeal for restraint from US President Donald Trump. Israel launched its strikes after Iran fired at Israel in retaliation for an airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold backed by the Islamic republic. The renewed exchange came after weeks of stalled negotiations aimed at securing a lasting end to the regional conflict ignited by US and Israeli strikes on…

by STEPHEN ASTARIKOMonday June 8, 2026 East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) MP Falhada Iman Dekow speaking to the press in Garissa town on Sunday. /STEPHEN ASTARIKO A video of Garissa Governor Nathif Jama speaking with a patient at Garissa County Referral Hospital has thrust the Social Health Authority (SHA) programme back into the spotlight, prompting fresh questions over whether the government's health push is delivering on its promise. The clip, recorded on Friday and circulated widely on social media over the…

Mohamed Gabobe, MogadishuSunday June 7, 2026 Fighters from the Union of Islamic Courts took control of Mogadishu in June 2006 For Yusuf Ali, the sounds of Mogadishu’s past have never really gone away. The 34-year-old shopkeeper still lives with the memories of being drawn into Somalia’s insurgency as a child soldier, fighting in the streets of the capital while the city around him descended into ruin. As Mogadishu gradually rebuilds, the psychological wounds left by years of war remain largely untreated. Few services are…

Gunfire erupted near a neighborhood festival in Toledo, Ohio, leaving at least 12 people wounded and prompting a sprawling police search for those responsible, authorities said. Investigators were canvassing the area for suspects, speaking with witnesses and reviewing mobile phone footage after what police believe was an exchange of shots involving at least two people near the Old West End Festival. "Twelve people were struck with bullets... two of them critical," Toledo Deputy Police Chief Joseph Heffernan told reporters,…

Sunday June 7, 2026 Addis Ababa (AX) — Somalia’s ambassador to Ethiopia says Mogadishu is determined to extend federal authority across every part of Somali territory, including Hargeisa and Berbera, as tensions flare again over North Western State of Somalia’s disputed status. Speaking to Al Jazeera this week, Ambassador Abdullahi Mohamed Warfa said the federal government is rebuilding state institutions and bolstering the national army so that federal authority can reach all regions of the country. “Northern Somalia is…

A visit rich in both diplomacy and family history is on the horizon, with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney set to travel to Ireland next week. Mr Carney will begin in Dublin, where he is due to meet Taoiseach Micheál Martin in the first bilateral visit to Ireland by a Canadian Prime Minister in nearly a decade. He will then travel west to Co Mayo, where he is scheduled to meet President Catherine Connolly. The trip also carries a personal dimension for Mr Carney: two of his grandparents left Aughagower, near Westport, for…

Sunday June 7, 2026 Baidoa (AX) — Somalia’s Independent National Electoral and Boundaries Commission has started taking in candidates for the Southwest State presidential election, marking the formal launch of the region’s race for leadership. One of the first to file was Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, a former president of Southwest State, who was handed his certificate of candidacy by the commission. Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nur Madobe, speaker of the House of the People of Somalia’s Federal Parliament, also received his…

Britain's Deputy Prime Minister has rebuked JD Vance for tying Henry Nowak's murder to immigration, telling the US Vice President he was wrong on the facts and warning that his social media intervention was "not helpful". David Lammy said he confronted Mr Vance in a "robust" phone call yesterday after the American politician suggested the killing was the product of a "mass invasion" of migrants into Europe. Henry Nowak, an 18-year-old student, was handcuffed by police as he lay dying, despite pleading that he had been…