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by Frankline OduorThursday April 2, 2026 Flood-hit streets in Nairobi’s CBD and waterlogged grounds in Parklands are a stark preview of what could lie ahead as Kenya’s long rains gather pace. Kenyans.co.ke Ma3Route Kenya’s ongoing long rains are forecast to persist across most parts of the country through April, with rainfall expected to start off slightly lighter before strengthening later in the month and raising the risk of flooding, the latest Kenya Met outlook shows. People living in Rift Valley counties, the Lake…

Thursday April 2, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somali opposition figure and federal lawmaker Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame has sharply denounced the federal government’s move to install an interim leader in Southwest State, calling it unconstitutional and a direct danger to Somalia’s already fragile federal arrangement. In a statement released Thursday, Warsame, who leads the Wadajir Party, said the decision to name Second Deputy Prime Minister Jibril Abdirashid as interim head of the Southwest administration runs counter to both…

By: OMAR M ELMIWednesday April 1, 2026 Perched at the mouth of the Red Sea and astride one of the globe’s busiest shipping lanes, the Horn of Africa is again at the center of a high-stakes geopolitical contest. The shifting ties between Djibouti, North Western State of Somalia — the secessionist region of Somalia since 1991 — and Ethiopia reveal how trade, security and regional rivalries are becoming increasingly intertwined. At the heart of the matter is a simple but powerful issue: who controls access to the sea and the…

Wednesday April 1, 2026 Britain says it will bring dozens of countries together for urgent talks on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, after the US-Israeli war on Iran effectively shut down one of the world’s most important shipping lanes, Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Wednesday. At a news conference, Starmer said Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper would chair a virtual meeting on Thursday involving 35 countries. The aim, he said, is to examine steps that could be taken to restore the strait “after the fighting has…

Wednesday April 1, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia has written a fresh chapter in its football history, edging Mauritius 4-2 on penalties on Tuesday to move into the next round of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) PAMOJA 2027 qualifiers after a tense, scoreless second leg. The match at the Côte d’Or National Sports Complex finished 0-0 in regulation time, just as the first leg in Mozambique had ended without a goal. After 180 minutes of play produced no breakthrough, the contest came down to a shootout,…

Tuesday March 31, 2026 Somalia’s national army seized control of Baidoa, the largest city in South West state, on Monday, setting off a political rupture that ended with the regional president stepping down two weeks after he said his administration was cutting ties with the federal government. Baidoa, the administrative hub of South West state, is a key strategic center in a region shadowed by drought, conflict and displacement. The city also hosts international peacekeepers and humanitarian agencies, adding to its…

Tuesday March 31, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) - The African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) formally took over Operating Base (OB) SHAND from British forces in Mogadishu on 28 March 2026, marking a notable shift in support for Somalia’s security mission. First established in 2017 as the main military operating site for the United Kingdom Mission Support Team (UKMST) in Somalia, OB SHAND is now set to function as a key platform for strengthening AUSSOM’s operational reach and capacity. At the handover…

Tuesday March 31, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) - The African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) took formal control of Operating Base (OB) SHAND from British forces in Mogadishu on 28 March 2026, marking a fresh phase in the mission’s support structure in the Somali capital. First established in 2017 as the main military operating site for the United Kingdom Mission Support Team (UKMST) in Somalia, OB SHAND is now set to function as a key platform for strengthening AUSSOM’s operational reach. At the handover…

Faisal Ali - Tuesday March 31, 2026 The Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar. Photograph: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images A wave of misleading coverage has falsely suggested that North Western State of Somalia’s government was seeking the extradition of Ilhan Omar, after several outlets leaned on a social media post from an account that is not an official state channel. Fox News, the New York Post, Sinclair Broadcast Group’s the National News Desk and the Independent all published stories focused on the US…

Monday March 30, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s Southwest State on Sunday accused the federal government of turning Turkish-trained troops and military hardware donated by Türkiye against its own regional administration, a claim that adds fresh fuel to an already volatile political and security standoff. In a statement, the Southwest State presidency said forces trained by Türkiye for counterterrorism missions had been deployed in an operation directed at the regional leadership. It also alleged that Turkish drones were…