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Rebuilding Gaza will cost an estimated $71bn, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said, underscoring the scale of the destruction as European leaders weigh both aid and pressure on Israel. Speaking in Brussels during a series of meetings focused on the Palestinian issue, Ms Kallas said the estimate had been developed after months of talks with the World Bank and the United Nations. The EU is bringing together countries that have committed to backing a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict, alongside a donor…

North Korea’s capacity to build nuclear weapons is rising at an alarming pace, according to the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, who warned of a “very serious increase” in the country’s production capability. South Korea’s spy agency has said it believes North Korea is running multiple uranium-enrichment facilities, a crucial stage in producing nuclear warheads. Among them is a plant at the Yongbyon nuclear complex, which Pyongyang had purportedly decommissioned after talks but later brought back into…

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte opened a meeting of Ukraine’s main backers in Berlin with a stark warning: allies must not let attention drift from the war and should raise their support for Kyiv to $60 billion in 2026. The appeal came as defence ministers from countries including Germany and Britain gathered with the conflict against Russia now entering its fifth year. "We have to ensure that we are capable of delivering uninterrupted support for Ukraine," Mr Rutte said. "We cannot lose sight of Ukraine." In recent weeks,…

KAMPALA, Uganda — Uganda’s military chief, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has set off another round of diplomatic unease, this time by calling for $1 billion in compensation for Uganda’s mission in Somalia while also saying he wants to marry the “most beautiful woman” in Turkey. The commander of Uganda’s armed forces and son of President Yoweri Museveni made the remarks in a series of striking statements that once again highlighted his flair for provocation. Kainerugaba said marrying a Turkish national was a personal requirement,…

Sunday April 5, 2026 Baidoa (AX) — Somali National Army commander on Friday rewarded soldiers who took part in the operation that reopened the key Mogadishu–Baidoa road, calling the campaign a serious setback for al-Shabab and a breakthrough for the movement of civilians. Brig. Gen. Ibrahim Mohamed Mahmoud praised the troops for helping secure the corridor, which militants affiliated with al-Qaida have intermittently blocked since 2009. “I sincerely thank you from the bottom of my heart,” the commander said. “As far as I am…

Sunday April 5, 2026 FILE PHOTO: Somalia has been making gains against the al Shabab terrorist group. / AA Somali intelligence forces, working alongside international troops, killed at least nine Al Shabab terrorists in a शनिवार operation in the southern Lower Shabelle region, among them specialists linked to bomb-making, authorities said. The raid also destroyed six heavy engines used by the militant group to produce explosives, the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) said in a statement. NISA identified two of…

By Idrees Ali and Phil StewartFriday April 3, 2026 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday ousted U.S. Army Chief of Staff Randy George, three U.S. defense officials told Reuters, marking the latest shake-up in a Pentagon purge that has reached the military’s highest ranks. Hegseth, the former Fox News host moving rapidly to remake the department, has been cutting through senior leadership with unusual speed. Removing a four-star general in wartime, however, is almost unheard of. The Pentagon later confirmed that George,…

Concerns are rising regarding the appointment of Jonathan K. Weedor as the chairperson of the National Elections Commission, as opposition leaders and civil society organizations voice their objections. They argue that Weedor's previous endorsements of the ruling Unity Party raise significant doubts about his impartiality in this critical role. “He brings extensive expertise in electoral management to the table,” commented Anderson Miamen, director of the Center for Transparency and Accountability in Liberia. “However, his…

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Major General Mohamed Sheikh Hassan on Sunday officially took charge of the Somali Custodial Corps, stepping into leadership of the country’s prison service at a handover ceremony held in Mogadishu. The changeover unfolded without the outgoing commander, General Mahad Abdirahman, who remains under house arrest in the capital. Even so, the ceremony went ahead, with senior correctional officials and government representatives present for the transfer of command. General Mohamed Sheikh Hassan now inherits a…

The bombing of an Iranian elementary school drew “visceral horror,” the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said today, as he pressed Washington to finish its investigation and demanded justice for “the terrible harm done”. Turk spoke at the opening of an urgent debate in the UN Human Rights Council called to address the 28 February attack on a school in Minab, describing the strike as an attack on children that none of the council’s members should be willing to justify. “The bombing evoked a…