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

Pope Leo XIV will soon undertake a sweeping 18,000-kilometre journey through Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea, a packed itinerary that includes 11 speeches and seven masses before his return on 23 April. The trip is designed to spotlight some of the world’s most urgent concerns — from conflict and migration to corruption and human rights — against a backdrop of uncertainty tied to the Middle East war. Leo will make history as the first pope to visit Algeria, where Islam is the state religion. His programme…

A tragic airstrike by the Nigerian military has claimed the lives of numerous individuals, primarily traders, after hitting a village market. This incident unfolded near the border connecting Yobe and Borno states, where the aircraft was reportedly engaged in operations against Islamist militants. According to the Nigerian Air Force, the strikes were part of "mop-up" operations targeting "identified terrorist locations" along the Jilli axis in Borno State. Sources indicate that the fighter jet involved was tracking a group…

Monday April 13, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — The Somali Future Council on Sunday warned that the Somali National Army must be shielded from political manipulation, saying any effort to pull the force into partisan or clan disputes could erode its neutrality and weaken the country’s security architecture. In a statement issued to coincide with the army’s 66th anniversary on April 12, the council congratulated soldiers across the ranks and praised their service in defending Somalia, preserving national unity and helping maintain…

Shane Lowry lit up Augusta National with a stunning hole-in-one at the Masters, a moment he later described as "wild" as it thrust him firmly into the hunt going into the final round. The Offaly golfer has built an enviable catalogue of aces over the years, and this latest effort gave him another slice of history: it was his second at Augusta National, making him the first player ever to achieve that feat. Lowry’s tee shot at the 190-yard sixth vaulted him from six under to eight under par, and he closed with a 69 to sit on…

With diplomacy faltering and the risk of a wider confrontation rising again, the US military said it will impose a blockade on all maritime traffic entering and leaving Iranian ports and coastal waters after weekend talks collapsed without a deal to end the war with Iran, putting a fragile two-week ceasefire in jeopardy. The talks in Islamabad, held from Saturday into early yesterday, marked the first direct meeting between the US and Iran in more than a decade and the highest-level engagement since Iran's 1979 Islamic…

Sunday April 12, 2026 Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres (R) celebrates scoring with Martin Zubimendi during the English Premier League match between Arsenal and Bournemouth in London, Britain, April 11, 2026. (Xinhua) Arsenal’s Premier League title challenge took a damaging blow on Saturday as Bournemouth arrived in north London and left with a 2-1 victory, extending their unbeaten run to 12 matches in the top flight. The defeat leaves Arsenal nine points clear of Manchester City, though Pep Guardiola’s side still has two games in…

Analysis by Nic Robertson Sunday April 12, 2026 As the sun dipped below the horizon in Islamabad and rose again over the city, the talks stretched on through the night and into another day. Their collapse without an agreement deals a serious blow to the fragile hopes that a diplomatic escape route might still be found in this crisis. The stakes could hardly have been higher. These were the most senior US-Iranian negotiations since the Islamic Republic was established in 1979, and the complexity of the discussions was…

After 21 hours of talks in Islamabad, the US and Iran have steered clear of the worst possible outcome: a complete collapse of peace negotiations. Only by the narrowest of margins, though. The two delegations were so divided that they walked out of the five-star Serena Hotel without even locking in another meeting — a modest benchmark that even hardened sceptics had assumed was within reach. Although Iran had all but signalled it might stay away, and the opening of the talks slipped behind schedule, there was early cause for…

Sunday April 12, 2026 Barcelona tightened their grip on La Liga on Saturday, opening a nine-point cushion at the summit after a 4-1 home victory over Espanyol in the Catalan derby, helped by Real Madrid's 1-1 draw at home to Girona a day earlier. Ferran Torres set Barcelona on their way and, in the process, ended a scoring drought that had stretched back to January 31. The forward headed in from a corner after just nine minutes as the home side sought a response to their UEFA Champions League loss to Atletico Madrid, then…

Asha Bhosle, the iconic Indian playback singer whose voice became inseparable from Bollywood’s golden decades of the 1970s and 80s, has died in Mumbai at the age of 92, her family said. Bhosle, a two-time Grammy nominee, died at Breach Candy Hospital after being admitted with what doctors described as "extreme exhaustion" and a chest infection. "My mother passed away today (Sunday). Her last rites will be held tomorrow at Shivaji Park in Mumbai," her son Anand Bhosle told reporters. Across a career that stretched over seven…