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Somali opposition denounces Banadir council vote as one-party exercise Somali Salvation Forum says Thursday’s Mogadishu election lacks constitutional basis, warns of unrest MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s main opposition coalition, the Somali Salvation Forum, has condemned the Banadir Regional Council elections scheduled for Thursday in Mogadishu, calling the process neither free nor fair and accusing the government of engineering a one-sided contest. At a press conference in Mogadishu, former Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire…

Raphinha, Yamal fire Barcelona four points clear with 2-0 win at 10-man Villarreal VILA-REAL, Spain — Barcelona’s wide men did the damage and a late defensive wobble never came, as Raphinha and Lamine Yamal scored in a 2-0 victory over 10-man Villarreal that pushed the Catalans four points clear at the top of La Liga. The Brazil international won and converted a penalty inside the opening quarter-hour on Sunday, and Villarreal’s Renato Veiga was dismissed before halftime for a reckless lunge on Yamal. The 18-year-old winger…

KIUNGA, Kenya — On a sliver of Kenya’s northern coast, just 15 kilometers from the Somalia border and within sight of the turquoise shallows of the Kiunga Marine National Reserve, a different kind of refugee story has been unfolding for more than three decades. It’s a story without tents or barbed wire, without aid convoys or registration queues. In Kiunga, families opened their doors to Somali neighbors fleeing conflict and drought — and kept them open. A new media release by the Office of the Director Public Service…

Somali university group warns against using schools as polling stations Union cites student safety, disruption to learning and political neutrality as key risks in election planning MOGADISHU, Somalia — The Union of Somali Universities on Tuesday urged authorities to drop plans to use schools, institutes and university campuses as polling stations in upcoming elections, warning the move could jeopardize student safety, disrupt learning and erode the political neutrality of education. In a statement, the union called on the…

FILE - Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki hold up a symbolic key during a joint ceremony marking the restoration of diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea in Asmara, Eritrea. The 2018 peace initiative formally ended two decades of hostility following a border war and paved the way for the reopening of embassies, flights and cross-border ties. MOGADISHU — Eritrea has withdrawn from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development for the second time, accusing the Horn of Africa…

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud met Tuesday with a high-level Swedish delegation led by Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa, signaling an effort by both governments to deepen ties on economic development, trade and institution-building amid heightened debate over migration policy. The closed-door talks at Villa Somalia focused on strengthening bilateral cooperation to support Somalia’s reconstruction and governance reforms, according to a statement…

Monday December 15, 2025 Federal agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including Homeland Security Investigations officers, stand outside a restaurant during an enforcement operation in Minneapolis, Minnesota. CREDIT: Councilmember Jason Chavez As ICE raids intensify in Minnesota, Somali families in Minneapolis’ Cedar-Riverside, along Lake Street and in Rochester are quietly drawing up “know your rights” plans—teaching children not to open doors to strangers, memorizing key phone numbers and gathering…

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…

Mogadishu races to deliver voter cards as Dec. 25 Banadir local elections near MOGADISHU — Nearly 200,000 registered voters in Banadir have received official voting cards ahead of the Dec. 25 local council elections, Somalia’s National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (NIEBC) said Saturday, easing fears that delays could keep many Mogadishu residents from the polls. The vote will be the first time Mogadishu residents directly elect their local council and mayor — a milestone the commission has called historic.…

US to bring seized tanker to American port, vows to take its oil; Venezuela decries ‘piracy’ as Russia signals support The United States will bring an oil tanker seized off Venezuela to a US port and intends to confiscate the crude aboard, the White House said Thursday, signaling Washington could target additional sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean. White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told reporters the operation, carried out by the US military a day earlier, is part of a broader effort to disrupt illicit energy flows…