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

MOGADISHU, Somalia — President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has doubled down on his push for one-person, one-vote elections, saying he will not abandon the plan despite growing pressure from critics at home and abroad over the electoral model being prepared by Villa Somalia. Addressing traditional elders at the presidential palace in Mogadishu, Hassan Sheikh insisted Somalia must press ahead with political reform and reject the indirect, clan-based voting system that has shaped the country’s politics for decades. “We can never…

Tuesday April 28, 2026 Nairobi (AX) — A Kenyan court has authorized investigators to hold a Somali female political aspirant from Garissa County for 10 days as they pursue allegations of hate speech and incitement to violence, authorities said Monday. The Directorate of Criminal Investigations said Bare Sahara Ahmed is being detained at Kilimani Police Station after the Chief Magistrate’s Court at Kahawa Law Courts in Nairobi approved the request. Investigators said the extra time is needed to examine digital material,…

South Africa discards roughly 10 million tonnes of food annually—even as millions go without. In response to the rapid escalation of food and nutrition insecurity, FoodForward SA is urging decisive policy moves and targeted action, writes allAfrica's Melody Chironda.

Nathan Chasing Horse, once known for his role in Dances With Wolves, has been sentenced to life in prison for sexually assaulting Indigenous women and girls. A Nevada judge handed down the sentence on Monday, after a jury had earlier found him guilty on 13 counts, most tied to the sexual assault of three women. Jurors cleared him on several other charges. Chasing Horse, 49, will become eligible for parole after 37 years behind bars. In court, accusers and relatives told Judge Jessica Peterson they are still living with the…

Tuesday April 28, 2026 Sa’dia Moalim Ali, a Somali tuktuk driver at the centre of a political storm after her arrest during protests opposing evictions in Mogadishu. Mogadishu (AX) — Amnesty International is demanding the immediate and unconditional release of Sadia Moalim Ali, a 27-year-old tuk-tuk driver and social activist who has been held in Mogadishu since earlier this month without formal charges. Ali, widely known as “Sadia Bajaj,” was taken into custody on April 12 in Hodan district by officers from the National…

President Donald Trump has rejected Iran’s latest outline for ending the two-month war, according to a US official, dealing a fresh blow to hopes of defusing a conflict that has rattled energy markets, pushed up inflation and left thousands dead. The new Iranian proposal would postpone any discussion of Tehran’s nuclear programme until the war — paused after a ceasefire announced earlier this month — is formally over and disputes over Gulf shipping are settled. Mr Trump opposes that sequencing and wants nuclear matters on…

In a shocking incident, eight children are still unaccounted for following an armed assault on an unregistered orphanage in Kogi State. Kingsley Fanwo, the state's information commissioner, reported that 15 children were successfully rescued thanks to a "prompt and coordinated response" from security forces. While no group has officially claimed responsibility for this violent act, security officials suggest that a functional Boko Haram cell operates within the region, citing a history of violent incidents there. Fanwo…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Somalia’s National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) on Monday met with the National Independent Human Rights Commission (NIHRC), led by Chairperson Dr Maryan Qasim, to formally hand over its 2025 State of the Media Report. The document records 72 verified violations of media freedom between January and December 2025, painting a stark picture of a press corps operating under constant strain and official pressure. The report details a wide pattern of abuses, ranging from arbitrary arrests and…

Tuesday April 28, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — In a pointed appeal during a state dinner at the presidential palace on Monday, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud pressed Somalia’s traditional elders to throw their weight behind universal suffrage as the country moves through a fraught political transition. The event brought together elders from across Somalia at a moment when debate over the voting system and the shape of future governance has become increasingly intense. Hassan Sheikh lauded the elders for their longstanding…

A quarrel over access to a water well has spiraled into deadly interethnic violence in eastern Chad, leaving at least 42 people dead and 10 others injured. Such clashes, often rooted in farmer-herder tensions over scarce resources, are a recurring challenge across the country. Authorities said a delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Limane Mahamat was dispatched to the area and that the situation is now under control. Conflicts over water and grazing land have become more frequent in Chad, with extreme weather…