Axadle - Leading News from Somalia and the Horn of Africa

President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has not publicly stated why Inspector General Joseph Shikongo was removed, but the decision comes in the wake of a serious State House security lapse in which an intruder slipped into the President’s private quarters without detection. The breach triggered swift and widespread outrage. Among the critics was former Inspector General Sebastian Ndeitunga, who said the incident laid bare “catastrophic weaknesses” across the police chain of command. Shikongo, 62, had led the force since…

U.S. Moves to Lift Eritrea Sanctions Amid Red Sea Security Concerns WASHINGTON — The United States is preparing to lift sanctions on Eritrea, according to an internal government document obtained by Reuters, in a notable policy shift shaped by the East African nation’s growing strategic value as conflict ripples across the Middle East. The move to revoke the penalties, which analysts say reflects Eritrea’s control over a key Red Sea shipping corridor, would mark a major change in Washington’s approach to one of the world’s…

Wednesday May 6, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somali opposition leaders are preparing a mass rally in Mogadishu on May 10, calling on residents to take to the streets in protest against what they say is the forced displacement of people from the capital and to demand that families be allowed to return to their homes. Former President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, speaking in Mogadishu on Wednesday, said the suffering of residents — especially those uprooted from their neighborhoods — must not be dismissed. “The people of Mogadishu…

Two people were killed after a car tore into a crowd in central Leipzig, and the 33-year-old man accused of carrying out the attack has now been committed to a psychiatric hospital by court order. A judge said there were "compelling reasons" to believe the suspect was acting "in a state of at least significantly diminished responsibility", prosecutors in Leipzig said in a statement. According to investigators, the German national drove at high speed along a main street in the historic heart of the eastern city yesterday,…

JOHANNESBURG — Fear is spreading among African migrants in South Africa’s biggest cities as xenophobic tensions rise in Pretoria and Johannesburg, sparking urgent security alerts from several diplomatic missions. Foreign nationals have been told to close their businesses and remain on high alert after a wave of anti-migration demonstrations. This week, diplomats from Ghana and Nigeria issued formal warnings to their citizens, urging them to steer clear of protest areas to reduce the risk of violence. In Pretoria,…

Wednesday May 6, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — U.S. forces struck Islamic State militants in northern Somalia on May 4 in an operation carried out with the backing of the Somali government, U.S. Africa Command said. According to AFRICOM, the airstrike hit fighters in the Golis Mountains, roughly 75 kilometers (47 miles) southeast of the port city of Bosaso, and was directed at members of the Islamic State group’s Somalia affiliate, ISIS-Somalia. AFRICOM said the mission was conducted in coordination with the Federal Government of…

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s low-key weekend trip to Zimbabwe carried a sharp warning for Emmerson Mnangagwa, according to former ally Rutendo Matinyarare: drop any plan to dismiss Vice President Constantino Chiwenga and rethink Constitutional Amendment Bill No.3, the measure seen as paving the way for Mnangagwa to stay beyond his two-term limit. Ramaphosa visited Mnangagwa at Precabe Farm in Kwekwe, where he was photographed alongside a tight circle of the Zimbabwean leader’s allies who back the proposed…

Panic tore through a school in northeast Brazil after a teenage boy opened fire, killing two staff members and wounding two others, including a student, as terrified pupils scrambled to flee by climbing over a wall, authorities and a witness said. A 13-year-old boy was arrested in connection with the attack at Sao Jose Institute in Rio Branco, the capital of Acre state, according to a statement from the local government. A witness said that as the gunfire erupted, some students tried to escape by scaling a wall that…

Wednesday May 6, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — A three-day Somali Civil Society Conference on good governance and political stability wrapped up in Mogadishu on Wednesday, bringing together a wide spectrum of voices in a rare push for political calm and consensus. Held from May 3 to 5, the conference drew scholars, civil society umbrella organizations, women, youth, people with disabilities, media representatives, academics and traditional elders. Over the course of the sessions, participants examined Somalia’s political…

Just hours before Ukraine’s unilateral ceasefire was set to begin at midnight, officials in Kyiv said Russia had launched fresh attacks, following a wave of strikes that killed at least 28 people in cities across the war-scarred country. Russian authorities had not reported any Ukrainian attacks several hours after the proposed truce was due to start. In southern Ukraine, however, officials in the Zaporizhzhia region said early this morning that Russian forces had struck local infrastructure. Both Russia and Ukraine…