parliament

In a decisive move to implement its side of a transatlantic trade deal, the European Union has pushed forward legislation aimed at fulfilling commitments made with the United States amid months of uncertainty over President Donald Trump's tariff threats and a fresh US import surcharge. Lawmakers in the European Parliament approved the measures by 417 votes to 154, with 71 abstentions, but only after inserting a series of safeguards that reflect lingering doubts about Washington’s reliability following the Turnberry,…

Monday March 23, 2026 Baidoa (AX) — A fresh accusation from Baidoa is intensifying a growing rift with Mogadishu, as the speaker of Southwest State’s parliament claims the federal government is diverting Egyptian-supplied weapons—intended for national defense—into a volatile local power struggle in the Southwest region. In a post on X dated March 21, 2026, Dr. Ali Said Fiqi alleged that rifles provided by Egypt to help Somalia battle al-Shabab are instead being distributed to militias in the Burhakaba district. “These…

Saturday March 21, 2026 Baidoa (AX) — A looming election dispute in Somalia’s Southwest State has sparked a stark warning from the region’s parliamentary leadership, with Speaker Dr. Ali Said Fiqi cautioning that a federal push to stage polls in Barawe could destabilize the area and even ignite conflict. Writing Friday on his X account, Fiqi argued that Barawe has never operated as Southwest State’s effective seat of government. He said the regional parliament has not convened there, nor has the cabinet held meetings in the…

Two European Parliament committees backed a ban on AI “nudification” apps that create non-consensual sexual images of adults and children and supported delaying some AI rules. The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) voted as part of the Digital Omnibus on artificial intelligence. At the start of the year, changes to the Grok AI tool by social media company X sparked global outrage after people used it to generate and share…

Somalia adopts revised constitution; President Mohamud hails ‘historic achievement’ amid opposition boycott MOGADISHU, Somalia — President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Thursday hosted an iftar dinner for members of both houses of parliament, praising lawmakers for approving Somalia’s revised constitution after months of heated debate and years of stalled review. The gathering at a Mogadishu hotel came a day after a joint sitting of the House of the People and the Upper House voted to adopt amendments that complete a…

MOGADISHU — Somalia’s opposition-aligned Somali Future Council said it will convene a high-level meeting on April 10 to consider “measures to save Somalia’s statehood,” escalating a confrontation with the federal government after talks between the two sides collapsed last week. In a statement issued following a conference in Mogadishu attended by members of the Federal Parliament, political figures and representatives from civil society, the Council alleged the government’s push to amend the Provisional Constitution violates…

MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s leading journalists’ union on Monday accused parliamentary leaders of suppressing press freedom during high-stakes constitutional debates, alleging reporters were blocked from the legislature and that audio from raucous sessions was digitally scrubbed to mute dissenting noise. In a statement, the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ) called the actions a serious attack on transparency and democratic accountability, saying reporters were denied access, removed from the building and…

Somali Parliament wraps Chapter Four debate, opens divisive Chapter Five in constitutional review Monday, February 9, 2026 MOGADISHU — Somalia’s federal parliament on Monday closed debate on Chapter Four of the Provisional Constitution and formally opened deliberations on Chapter Five, pressing ahead with a high-stakes constitutional review that has laid bare deep political rifts between federal leaders, opposition lawmakers and member states. Lawmakers concluded discussions on Articles 49, 50 and 54, which define…

Monday, February 9, 2026 MOGADISHU — Somalia’s parliamentary leadership suspended six more lawmakers from the House of the People on Monday, accusing them of disrupting proceedings during a contentious joint sitting as a high-stakes fight over proposed constitutional amendments widens and deepens political rifts in Mogadishu. The decision, issued by Acting Speaker and Second Deputy Speaker Abdullahi Omar Abshirow, cites violations of the House’s Rules of Procedure under Articles 14, 16 and 28. The leadership said the…

Somalia’s Parliament Debates Federalism Revisions as 19 Lawmakers Are Suspended MOGADISHU — Somalia’s bicameral Parliament held a joint session Saturday to debate proposed amendments to the Provisional Constitution, zeroing in on federalism and power-sharing even as tensions flared over the process with the suspension of 19 lawmakers earlier in the day. The sitting — the seventh of the current parliamentary term and the 11th joint meeting of the Upper House and the House of the People — focused on Chapter Four of the draft…