Two arrested after shots fired at Sydney’s Bondi Beach

SYDNEY — Two people were taken into custody after reports of gunfire and injuries at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, New South Wales Police said Saturday, as officers urged the public to avoid the area during an ongoing operation. Emergency services said eight people were transported to hospitals following the incident at the popular beachfront in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. Authorities did not immediately provide details on the nature of their injuries or whether there were any fatalities. “The police operation is ongoing and we…

Somalia’s President Urges Mogadishu Residents to Vote in Banadir Local Elections

MOGADISHU — Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud urged Mogadishu residents to turn out for the Banadir local council elections later this month, calling the vote a historic step toward one-person, one-vote democracy and the first time in nearly 57 years that citizens will directly choose their local leaders. Speaking Saturday after collecting his own voter card, Mohamud framed the December ballot as both a civic right and a personal responsibility with tangible consequences for daily life in the capital. “You choose who…

UN Security Council extends Al‑Shabaab arms embargo in Somalia to 2026

MOGADISHU — The U.N. Security Council has unanimously renewed sanctions targeting Somalia’s al-Qaida-linked Al-Shabaab, extending maritime interdictions and expert monitoring while resisting Somali pressure for faster loosening of arms controls. All 15 members on Friday adopted Resolution 2806, keeping in place an arms embargo, asset freezes and travel bans focused on the insurgent group that has fought the Somali government for more than 16 years. The measure extends authorization for naval inspections to enforce the…

Trump shrugs off newly released Jeffrey Epstein photos as trivial

Trump dismisses newly released Jeffrey Epstein photos as ‘no big deal’ WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday brushed off the release of new photos showing him with Jeffrey Epstein, telling reporters the images were “no big deal” and insisting the late financier appeared in countless pictures with prominent people long before his 2019 death. “Everybody knew this man,” Trump said at the White House. “He was all over Palm Beach. He has photos with everybody. I mean, almost — there are hundreds and hundreds of people…

Somalia’s Southwest State Executes Police Officer for Killing Civilian Over $2

Somalia’s Southwest state executes police officer over $2 extortion killing in Baidoa BAIDOA, Somalia — The Southwest Somali administration on Saturday executed a member of its special police force after a military court convicted him of killing a civilian during a dispute over a $2 extortion demand, authorities said. The soldier, identified as Abdisamad Hassan Madnuur, was sentenced to death by the 60th Division Military Court for fatally shooting a traveler in late November in Berdale district of the Bay region, according…

Sweden continues Somali deportations amid controversy over redirected aid

Mogadishu (AX) — Sweden will continue deporting Somali nationals whose asylum claims have been rejected, Migration Minister Johan Forssell said, defending a bilateral return agreement that has come under intensifying political and public scrutiny over funding channels and oversight. Forssell said the cooperation with Somalia has delivered “clear results” and forms part of a broader effort to enforce asylum decisions. He added that Sweden intends to expand similar arrangements with additional countries, signaling a tougher…

Southwest regional authorities execute police officer convicted in $2 killing of civilian

South West State executes police officer over $2 extortion killing in Baidoa BAIDOA, Somalia — The South West State administration on Saturday executed a member of its special police force who was convicted of fatally shooting a civilian during a $2 extortion dispute, according to officials and court records. The soldier, identified as Abdisamad Hassan Madnuur, was sentenced to death by the 60th Division Military Court for killing a traveler in late November in Berdale district of the Bay region. Court documents state the…

Somalia Appoints New Commerce and Public Works Ministers Amid Cabinet Reshuffle

Saturday, December 13, 2025 MOGADISHU — Somalia’s Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre dismissed two cabinet ministers and named their replacements on Saturday in a targeted reshuffle intended to speed up government operations and reinforce delivery of services, according to a decree issued by his office. Ambassador Jamaal Mohamed Hassan was appointed Minister of Commerce and Industry, replacing lawmaker Mahamud Geesood. Senator Ayuub Ismail Yusuf was named Minister of Public Works and Reconstruction, taking over from Dr. Elmi…

Brown University shooting leaves two dead, mayor says

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Two people were killed and eight others were critically injured in a shooting at Brown University on Friday, prompting a campuswide shelter-in-place order as police launched a manhunt for the gunman, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said. Shots were fired inside Barus and Holley, Brown’s main engineering building on College Hill, while exams were underway. The university issued an emergency alert at 4:22 p.m. local time reporting an “active shooter near Barus and Holley Engineering,” and urged students,…

Turkey building Somalia spaceport as U.S., China, France boost satellite surveillance

Turkey starts building Somalia spaceport, a strategic equatorial launch site drawing global scrutiny Turkey has begun constructing a satellite and rocket launch site on Somalia’s Indian Ocean coast, a bold step that Ankara says will accelerate its space ambitions and that outside observers say is already drawing intense attention from rival powers. The spaceport — publicly backed by Baykar chairman Selçuk Bayraktar — is being developed under Turkish state authority on a roughly 30-by-30-kilometer coastal tract. Turkish…