Somali

Mogadishu — Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan has been named the CAF Best Male Referee for 2025, a landmark honor announced Wednesday evening at a ceremony at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in Rabat, Morocco. The award marks a historic breakthrough for Somali football and its match officials, drawing swift congratulations from the nation’s top leadership. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud called the accolade “historic” and said Artan’s rise reflects the talent and professionalism of a new generation of Somali officials…

Latest developments Somalia’s military said it has seized new ground from Al-Shabaab in coordinated operations across Lower Jubba and Bakool, underscoring a stepped-up campaign in the south and center of the country. In Jamaame, Lower Jubba, security forces reported a significant blow to the militants over the weekend. In Bakool, troops overran an Al-Shabaab camp in the Moora-Gaabeey area, about 37 kilometers from Xuddur. In Jamaame, the army says close to 60 Al-Shabaab fighters were killed in an operation backed by…

Somalia’s Upper House approves national human rights commissioners Somalia’s Upper House has approved the appointment of nine commissioners to the National Independent Human Rights Commission, a key step in formalizing the country’s human rights oversight architecture. The commissioners were sworn in immediately after the vote, completing the parliamentary endorsement process. Twenty-eight senators voted in favor during Wednesday’s session; one abstained. The House of the People approved the creation of the Commission on…

Somali forces kill at least 56 Al‑Shabaab fighters in coordinated raid on Lower Jubba stronghold Joint SNA–Jubaland operation targets Jamaame area; 20 suspects captured, hideouts destroyed MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somali security officials say at least 56 Al‑Shabaab fighters were killed and 20 others captured during a major operation in Lower Jubba, marking one of the most significant joint actions by federal and regional forces in the area in recent months. The raid, described by security sources as carefully planned, was…

Somalia: Allied forces report 56 al-Shabaab killed in Lower Juba operation Jubbaland State forces, the Somali National Army and U.S.-trained Danab commandos launched a coordinated sweep across Jamaame district on Sunday, striking multiple militant sites at once. Authorities described the multi-front push as a highly planned operation aimed at weakening al-Shabaab’s rural grip. Security officials said at least 56 al-Shabaab fighters were killed and 20 others captured alive. The allied units moved simultaneously to overwhelm…

Somalia’s cabinet approves Saudi media and culture pacts as security and local elections take center stage Somalia’s cabinet has approved two new cooperation agreements with Saudi Arabia focused on media and culture, a modest but telling bid to strengthen soft-power ties even as Mogadishu sharpens its attention on security and upcoming local council elections in the Banadir region, home to the capital. The measures were adopted at the government’s weekly meeting chaired by Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre in Mogadishu,…

Somalia’s New Opposition Bloc Warns of ‘Red Lines’ as Federalism Wobbles NAIROBI — In a city that often hosts Somali politics in exile, a newly formed alliance of regional leaders and opposition figures gathered Wednesday and issued the sort of warning that lands with a thud in Mogadishu: Do not bend the country’s fragile constitutional order. Do not change the rules without consensus. Do not extend your mandate. And do not squeeze Somalia’s federal system until it breaks. Calling itself the Somali Future Council, the bloc…

European naval forces shadow Somali pirates after string of attacks; no immediate threat to shipping, officials say NAIROBI — European Union naval forces and allied navies are keeping a close watch on a pirate group off Somalia’s coast after a spate of attacks in recent days, but they say commercial shipping faces no immediate danger thanks to an international security presence. In a brief posting on X on Wednesday, EUNAVFOR Operation Atalanta said the suspected pirates “remain in the area under surveillance,” urging…

In Kigali, a quiet pledge between Somalia and Nigeria hints at a broader shift in Africa’s fight against extremism On a mild Saturday in Kigali, two senior soldiers from different ends of the continent sat down and agreed to swap hard-won lessons from the battlefield. Somalia’s Land Forces Commander, Major General Sahal Abdullahi Omar—widely known as General Khalid—met Nigeria’s Infantry Commander, Major General Usman Abdulmumin Yusuf, to map out deeper military cooperation. The plan: share combat experience, expand joint…

In Mogadishu, a small but determined push against a tide of falsehoods MOGADISHU — For three days in late October, a conference room in the Somali capital hummed with the sort of quiet urgency that has come to define journalism in fragile states: laptops open, phones muted, trainers and trainees leaning into the same problem — how to stop lies from becoming news. The National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), with funding from the Australian government via its High Commission in Nairobi, brought 32 reporters, editors…