MOGADISHU — The Somali Future Council, an alliance aligned with the opposition, said Monday its high-level negotiations with the federal government ended without agreement after several days of talks at the Presidential Palace, intensifying political uncertainty as the mandates of federal institutions expire in three months. The collapse deepens the dispute over Somalia’s election roadmap and the political terms of the next transition. The discussions focused on elections and constitutional reform. In a statement, the…

Somali Future Council says government talks collapse as election deadlines loom Opposition bloc alleges unilateral constitutional changes, exclusion of MPs, and pressure tactics; seeks electoral pact by April 14 MOGADISHU — Somalia’s opposition-aligned Somali Future Council said Monday that its high-level negotiations with the federal government ended without agreement, raising the stakes as mandates for federal institutions expire in three months. The talks, held over several days at the Presidential Palace in Mogadishu,…

MOGADISHU, Somalia — High-stakes talks at Villa Somalia between President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and opposition leaders collapsed Sunday without agreement, laying bare deep divisions over the electoral model meant to guide Somalia’s next vote. The second round of discussions between the presidency and figures grouped under the Somali Future Council ended in deadlock after the sides failed to reconcile positions on core political questions tied to Somalia’s electoral framework, according to sources familiar with the talks. At…

OP-ED: Somalia’s 2026 Transition: Steering Through a Proxy Election Before National Collapse Somalia’s 2026 presidential transition is no longer a contained domestic debate about electoral mechanics. It is an inflection point where a stubborn internal deadlock meets a widening geopolitical contest, raising the risk that the vote becomes a proxy battleground — and that fragile state-building gains unravel. Months from the national vote, there is still no agreed framework for how to elect a president. The long-sought…

At least 19 killed as construction crane crushes Thai passenger train, derailing three cars At least 19 people were killed in northeastern Thailand when a construction crane collapsed onto a passing passenger train, derailing three carriages and sparking a brief fire, authorities said. The crash occurred in Sikhio district of Nakhon Ratchasima province, about 230 kilometers northeast of Bangkok. The train had departed the capital and was bound for Ubon Ratchathani province in the country’s far east. Local police said more…

COPENHAGEN — A senior European official warned that a U.S. move to seize Greenland by force would spell “the end of NATO,” as Denmark and multiple European capitals rallied behind the self-governing Arctic territory and urged Washington to abandon coercive rhetoric. European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius said European Union member states would be obliged to come to Denmark’s assistance if faced with military aggression. “I agree with the Danish Prime Minister (Mette Frederiksen) that it will be the end…

In Dhusamareeb, AFI 2025 turned a fragile moment into a political opening for Somalia The 9th Annual Forum for Ideas (AFI 2025) in Dhusamareeb was expected to be another policy conference. It became something else: an improbable stage-setter for dialogue between a wary federal government and a skeptical opposition, and a stress test of Somalia’s political resilience amid a fast-moving geopolitical storm. Organized by the Heritage Institute in partnership with the Galmudug administration, the gathering drew roughly 500…

At UN Week, Somalia and Allies Sound Alarm Over Funding Gap for AU Mission NEW YORK — Inside a packed conference room just off the United Nations General Assembly floor, Somalia and its closest partners issued an unusually blunt warning: if the world does not step up with reliable money, hard-won security gains against al-Shabab could begin to unravel within months. The urgency is not abstract. The African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) — the AU-led force that helps secure towns, main roads,…

Tragedy Strikes Ethiopian Marathon Community with the Loss of Shewarge Alene The sun was just beginning to rise over Addis Ababa, casting a warm golden hue across the training fields, when the news spread like wildfire through the running community. Shewarge Alene, a celebrated Ethiopian marathon runner, tragically passed away after falling ill during a training session. She was only 30 years old. Alene had built a reputation as a formidable competitor, participating in 27 marathons since her debut in 2011. Her most recent…

A tragic incident has unfolded in the Argentine coastal town of Villa Gesell, where a ten-story hotel building has collapsed, resulting in the death of an elderly man and leaving a dozen individuals unaccounted for, as reported by local officials and media outlets. "The calamity struck around 1:00 am, leading to the collapse of the ten-story structure that housed the Dubrovnik Hotel," stated the municipality of Villa Gesell, situated approximately 350 kilometers south of Buenos Aires along the picturesque Atlantic coast.…