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

Italian authorities have seized assets and businesses worth more than €200 million as they tighten the net around money allegedly laundered from drug trafficking tied to a notorious mafia boss. Matteo Messina Denaro, arrested in 2023 after three decades as a fugitive, had long been one of the defining figures of the Sicilian Cosa Nostra’s violent campaign against the Italian state in the 1980s and 1990s, a period that included the murder of prosecutor Giovanni Falcone. Known as “U Siccu,” or “the skinny one,” Messina Denaro…

Morning commuters at a busy Swiss train station were thrown into chaos after a knife attack that left three people wounded, in what a regional security official described as a "terrorist act." "I am exceptionally calling this a terrorist attack," Mario Fehr, who oversees security in the Swiss canton of Zurich, told reporters, saying it was "clear from the scene that the motive for this act must be sought in the realm of radicalisation and extremism." Witnesses recounted fear and confusion as the suspect, identified by police…

Defying the already fragile terms of Gaza’s October ceasefire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has instructed the military to expand its hold over the enclave to 70% of the territory. "We are currently squeezing Hamas. We now control 60% of the territory in the strip," he said at a conference in an occupied West Bank settlement, according to a video broadcast by Israel's Channel 12 network. He said Israeli forces had been holding 50% of Gaza under the ceasefire arrangements, before adding: "My directive is…

A fresh UN warning underscores how relentlessly the planet is heating up: global average temperatures are expected to stay at or near record highs this year and through the following four years. Every one of the 11 hottest years ever observed has occurred since 2015, and the UN’s weather and climate agency says that pattern is poised to persist, with another hottest-ever year considered "likely" before 2031. The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said there is a 75% chance that the average temperature across the…

by Quincy Thomas Thursday May 28, 2026 Shamso Ahmed Hassan and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf Federal prosecutors say two Minnesota women played a central role in a sprawling fraud tied to the state’s autism Medicaid program, in a case they describe as one of the largest of its kind. Shamso Ahmed Hassan, 55, and Hanaan Mursal Yusuf, 25, allegedly submitted more than $46 million in fraudulent claims and laundered $21 million of those proceeds, according to court filings and statements from prosecutors. Authorities allege that from May…

A widening Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has drawn urgent promises of help from global and regional health leaders, with Africa CDC saying it intends to deliver a vaccine and treatment for the Bundibugyo strain before the year is out. "What we can tell you for sure, by the end of this year, 2026, Africa CDC will make sure that we have a vaccine and medicine against Bundibugyo," its Director-General Jean Kaseya said. At the same time, the head of the World Health Organization vowed to use "everything in…

By Anthony Bettin, Adam DuxterThursday May 28, 2026 Muhammad Omar U.S. Attorney's Office A Minnesota man facing charges in what federal officials describe as a sprawling Medicaid fraud case has been ordered held as a flight risk, underscoring the scale and seriousness of the alleged scheme that siphoned more than $90 million from taxpayers. At an arraignment and detention hearing Wednesday, a judge ruled that Muhammad Omar, 32, of Roseville, Minnesota, must remain in custody while his case moves forward. Omar and a partner,…

Amid escalating tensions in Burkina Faso, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued a stark warning against the suppression of student voices, emphasizing that stifling dissent will not address the nation’s deepening security and governance challenges. This alert comes on the heels of a government decision to suspend the General Union of Burkina Students (UGEB), the largest student organization in the country, signaling a troubling trend of crackdowns on civil liberties. Founded as one of Burkina Faso's longest-standing and most…

Somalia: Rift Deepens Between President and Intelligence Chief Over Galmudug Election MOGADISHU, Somalia — A widening clash between Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) Director Mahad Salad has raised alarm over the risk of unrest in central Galmudug, according to people familiar with the talks. What began as a round of political consultations in Mogadishu has now soured into a breakdown in negotiations over who should lead Galmudug ahead of the regional presidential…

by STEPHEN ASTARIKOThursday May 28, 2026 Education leaders, special school representatives, parents, human rights activists and advocates for children with special needs in Tana River have warned that current funding levels for special schools are too low to meet the rising demands of learners living with disabilities. Speaking at a forum held in a Garissa hotel, the stakeholders said special needs institutions are grappling with persistent problems rooted in underfunding. They pointed to shortages of teachers, a lack of…