fragile

Osmond ChiaBusiness reporterThursday April 9, 2026 Oil prices climbed in Asian trading on Thursday as markets tracked the increasingly shaky US-Iran ceasefire and what it could mean for shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. The two-week truce, already described as conditional, came under fresh pressure after Israel carried out a series of deadly strikes in Lebanon, drawing a warning from Tehran of a "regret‑inducing response" if the attacks go on. Oil prices plunged on Wednesday after the announcement of the agreement…

Somalia’s latest constitutional amendments are being hailed by some lawmakers as proof that the country has become a “fully fledged state.” The symbolism is powerful. Yet the celebration risks outrunning the substance. The reforms mark real progress, but they do not, on their own, settle the foundational questions of federalism, inclusion and authority that have defined Somalia’s decade-long constitutional journey. Since 2012, Somalia has operated under a provisional constitution designed to accommodate fragile…

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Somalia’s constitutional crisis has moved from a simmering dispute to a direct test of the country’s democratic commitments, as a recent bid to amend the Provisional Federal Constitution triggered accusations of procedural violations, executive overreach and erosion of federal norms. The constitution is meant to be Somalia’s stabilizing contract: a framework that binds clans, regions and political actors to shared rules. Changing it is not a technical exercise. It requires transparent debate, broad-based political consensus…

In Mogadishu’s Dec. 25 municipal vote, the promise of direct democracy met the reality of centralized power. Marketed as a landmark step toward universal suffrage and a prelude to Somalia’s 2026 presidential contest, the election in the Banadir region looked—by design and outcome—like a nomination process dressed up as a popular mandate. That tension goes to the core of Somalia’s electoral dilemma: in a fragile state without a census, credible registries or impartial institutions, the rush to “one person, one vote” can…

Hamas says Israel’s assassination of a senior commander has imperiled Gaza’s fragile ceasefire, urging U.S. President Donald Trump to pressure Israel to abide by the truce terms as rival factions maneuver over the enclave’s future security architecture. The group identified the slain commander as Raed Saed, killed alongside three associates. Thousands of supporters massed in central Gaza City for Saed’s funeral, chanting “Martyrs are dear to God” as coffins draped in green Hamas flags moved through one of the largest public…

EDITORIAL | Somalia's outgoing federal government officials must satisfactorily clarify the security incident in which a convoy of former President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was shot in Mogadishu. On Wednesday afternoon, the Custodial Corps, Somalia's prison guards, saw shooting at Mrs Mohamud's entourage. His allies have claimed it was an assassination attempt. But whether we agree with that etiquette or not, it is something that the federal government should investigate and provide adequate information not only to Mr…

French General François Lecointre returned on December 12 from a two-day inspection visit to Niger and Mali, his seventh visit to the Barkhane Force's Operational Theater. The Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces went to meet French soldiers and their partners from the Malian armed forces. The possibility of an overview of military operations one month before the anniversary of the Pau summit, 13 January, when a change in the format of French…