crackdown

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s federal government says al-Shabab is facing mounting financial strain after a string of operations that killed senior operatives overseeing the group’s revenue networks and a sustained push to dismantle its funding channels. State news agency SONNA reported Saturday, citing intelligence sources, that the al-Qaida-linked group is struggling to reconstitute income streams amid a coordinated financial offensive aimed at its economic backbone. Independent verification of the internal figures was…

Trump border czar ends Minnesota immigration surge after protests, deadly shootings MINNEAPOLIS — President Donald Trump’s border czar said an aggressive federal immigration “surge” in Minnesota is ending after weeks of sweeping raids, mass arrests and mounting public outrage following the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens. Tom Homan, a top administration official overseeing Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations, announced the drawdown at a briefing outside Minneapolis, saying he proposed the move and that Trump…

QUETTA, Pakistan — Pakistani forces are hunting separatist fighters across Balochistan after a wave of coordinated attacks left more than 190 people dead over two days, officials said, as the government vowed to strike back and the Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility. Authorities said around a dozen sites remained sealed off Sunday as troops combed banks, jails, police stations and military installations struck by militants a day earlier. At least 31 civilians and 17 security personnel were killed in the assaults,…

Minneapolis — A fatal shooting by a federal agent in Minneapolis has intensified scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown after a month marked by five shootings tied to enforcement operations and a surge in deaths in immigration detention. The man killed Tuesday was identified in local reports as Alex Pretti, 37, a U.S. citizen, registered nurse and licensed gun owner. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said a U.S. Border Patrol agent opened fire after Pretti resisted attempts to disarm him. Local…

MINNEAPOLIS — The corridors of Karmel Mall, usually a hive of bargaining and chatter, were hushed on a recent afternoon. Steel shutters rolled down over rows of storefronts. A bakery still perfumed the air with fried dough, the central heating hummed, and low recitations from the Quran drifted from a few open doorways. Mostly, though, vendors waited alone. “It’s been like this for three weeks now,” said Abdi Wahid, who works at his mother’s convenience store inside the sprawling Somali business complex in south Minneapolis.…

Iran protests subside under sweeping crackdown and internet blackout as Reza Pahlavi vows return TEHRAN — Mass protests that erupted across Iran a week ago have largely subsided under a sweeping security crackdown and a nationwide internet blackout, monitors said, even as opposition figure Reza Pahlavi urged fresh demonstrations and declared he would return to the country. The latest unrest began Dec. 28 with a shutdown in Tehran’s historic bazaar amid mounting economic grievances, then swiftly widened into the largest…

MINNEAPOLIS — The takedown happened in seconds: masked federal agents sprinting toward a 20-year-old Somali American as he stepped from a restaurant, forcing him through a doorway and pinning him against a metal gate. “Why are you running?” one demanded in the bystander video, despite footage showing he had stopped. Moments later, as snow gathered on his jacket, an arm slid around his neck and he was shoved into an unmarked gray SUV while neighbors shouted that he is a citizen. The man, who asked to be identified as Mubashir…

GAROWE, Somalia — Puntland State President Said Abdullahi Deni has offered condolences to families of those killed in days of violent protests in Borama and urged dialogue after North Western State of Somalia security forces opened fire on residents demonstrating against the planned launch of the Xeer Ciise book. “I express my condolences for the violence that occurred in Borama that resulted in deaths. It was truly an inappropriate matter. I call for a solution to be sought for everything without resorting to violence,”…

MOGADISHU — The commander of the Banadir Regional Police Force, Mahdi Omar Mumin, on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting to tighten security across Mogadishu as residents report a surge in mobile phone robberies and attacks by armed bandits, authorities said. Senior police officers briefed Mumin on recent security incidents reported in multiple districts and outlined both ongoing and planned operations aimed at curbing robberies — with an emphasis on mobile phone thefts carried out by armed groups. The session assessed…

Egypt’s campaign against online creators exposes a new front in the fight over free expression In the last weeks Egyptian authorities have detained and charged dozens of people who make videos, run social accounts or otherwise produce content for the internet, according to Human Rights Watch. The accusations are striking not for their specificity but for their vagueness — a range of crimes from “public morals” violations to “undermining family values” — and for whom they appear to be aimed at: a generation that came of age…