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

Friday April 3, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Former Somali Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke has sharply condemned the federal government’s decision to name an interim leader for Southwest State, calling it unconstitutional and a direct affront to Somalia’s federal order. In a statement, Sharmarke challenged what he described as the effective reduction of a federal member state into an entity subordinate to the central government. He argued that no legal authority exists for replacing an elected state administration…

President Donald Trump sharply escalated his rhetoric on Iran, declaring the US “hasn't even started destroying what's left in Iran” as governments around the world scrambled to restore crucial energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz. Nearly five weeks after the conflict erupted with a joint US-Israeli aerial assault, the war in Iran is still sending shockwaves across the region and through global financial markets, intensifying pressure on Mr Trump to secure a rapid end to the fighting. In recent days, Mr Trump has…

Friday April 3, 2026 A picture released by the Iranian government's foreign media department shows graves being prepared for victims, mostly children, of a United States attack on a girls' primary school in Minab, Iran More than 100 international law scholars based in the United States have issued a sharp open letter condemning US and Israeli strikes on Iran, saying the attacks violate the United Nations Charter and could amount to “war crimes”. Published on Thursday, the letter says the conduct of US forces and remarks by…

Mogadishu, 2 April 2026 – In a joint operation that dealt a significant blow to Al-Shabaab’s leadership, African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) troops alongside Somali National Armed Forces (SNAF) captured a senior militant commander in Lower Shabelle. The suspect, identified as Salaad Cusmaan Macalin, also known as "Sahm,” was apprehended on Thursday on the north-western outskirts of Mubarak. Salaad, aged 40, serves as a battalion commander within Al-Shabaab. He is originally from Burhakaba,…

Fears are mounting for a 30-year-old man held in Iran after his family said the case against him could end in execution, despite what they describe as glaring contradictions in the allegations. Peyvand Naimi has remained in custody since early January, when he was arrested during anti-government protests. In an interview with RTÉ's News at One, his Dublin-based cousin, Sama Sabet, said he has endured torture, mock executions and sustained pressure to admit to crimes he denies. "On 8 January 2026...he was arrested by the…

Rachel Savage and agenciesFriday April 3, 2026 A deportation flight from the United States has touched down in Uganda, underscoring Donald Trump’s drive to send migrants to countries where they have no roots, no family and, in many cases, no clear future. The people removed from the US will remain in the east African country as “a transition phase for potential onward transmission to other countries”, an unnamed senior Ugandan government official told Reuters. The Uganda Law Society, which has denounced the arrivals, said 12…

Somalia has officially re-entered the world of ship registration this week, as the Federal Government’s Ministry of Ports and Maritime Transport (MPTS) logged the Somali-flagged vessel Guney (IMO No. 8230417) — a move aimed at rebuilding national control over the country’s maritime domain and jump-starting its blue economy. The registration effort is designed to tighten how vessels flying the Somali flag are identified, regulated and managed, and it represents the first such flagging since the central government’s collapse…

As Easter approaches, countries across Africa are ramping up plans for a weekend defined by faith, family, and heavy travel, with leaders using the moment to press safety and security messages nationwide. In Mozambique, immigration authorities expect close to 400,000 people to cross the nation’s borders during the Easter period—about 17,000 more than last year. To cope with the uptick, officials are tightening procedures and staffing to keep checkpoints moving smoothly. In Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu has arrived in…

Russia unleashed nearly 500 missiles and drones on Ukraine in a wave of attacks that officials said killed at least six people, as Moscow pressed ahead with a growing pattern of daytime strikes. Since the start of its invasion, Russia has pounded Ukraine from the air, with most barrages typically launched after dark. In recent weeks, however, those assaults have increasingly come in daylight hours. "Terrorist Russia strikes in broad daylight deliberately - to maximise civilian casualties and damage," Ukraine's Foreign…

Friday April 3, 2026 The African Union (AU) on Friday praised the China-Pakistan five-point initiative aimed at easing the current peace and stability crisis in the Gulf and Middle East. In a statement, AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said the plan “constitutes a timely and constructive contribution to ongoing international efforts to de-escalate tensions and advance a political and diplomatic pathway.” He said the initiative’s “emphasis on an immediate cessation of hostilities, the protection of civilians,…