Defence

Kenya and Ethiopia deepen military ties in bid to secure unstable borderlands ADDIS ABABA — In a gesture that underlines shifting patterns of regional security cooperation in the Horn of Africa, Kenya and Ethiopia on Monday signed a defence cooperation agreement aimed at tightening the two neighbours’ response to cross‑border threats, including the al‑Shabaab insurgency that has long bled into northeastern Kenya. Kenya’s Chief of Defence Forces, General Charles Kahariri, and Ethiopia’s commander, Field Marshal Birhanu…

Somalia’s defence minister breaks silence to defend Ilhan Omar — and signals a new kind of transnational politics When Somalia’s Defence Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi took to Facebook this weekend to defend U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, it read less like a routine diplomatic note and more like an embrace. “If our daughter is being targeted for her identity, I will stand firmly with her,” Fiqi wrote, adding that as defence minister “I am making it clear that I stand with Ilhan.” The statement came after former U.S. President…

Israel has welcomed its new defense minister, Israel Katz, who recently took his oath before the parliament. This swearing-in followed the surprising removal of his predecessor, Yoav Gallant, at the hands of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a move attributed to a significant erosion of trust during the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Mr. Netanyahu made headlines on Tuesday when he dismissed Gallant, a decision fueled by persistent disagreements over Israel's military response to Hamas. This response came after a devastating…