standoff

Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026 MOGADISHU, Somalia — The presidents of Puntland State and Jubbaland are expected to arrive in Mogadishu within hours to join a national consultative conference on Somalia’s electoral process and constitutional reforms, signaling a tentative easing of tensions between the federal government and regional states. Officials said advance teams from the Puntland State and Jubbaland presidencies — largely composed of security personnel — landed Tuesday afternoon at Aden Adde International Airport and are…

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…

Standoff threatens Somalia’s election talks as UN calls for urgent dialogue MOGADISHU, Somalia — Somalia’s latest push to unlock political talks on elections hit a new snag Sunday after a security dispute grounded delegations from Puntland State and Jubaland, prompting the United Nations Transitional Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNTMIS) to urge swift, good-faith dialogue to keep negotiations on track. In a statement posted on social media, UNTMIS said preparatory teams from the two regional states were unable to reach…

Somalia’s latest political confrontation is more than a quarrel over election dates. It is a stress test of the country’s post-debt-relief political order—and, by extension, of the international state-building model that has underwritten Mogadishu’s progress for more than a decade. At the center is the National Consultation Conference, an opposition-aligned gathering that closed this week in Kismayo with a stark indictment of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s government. Its communiqué accuses the presidency of…

Jubaland Leader Warns Somali President Against Power Grab Amid 2026 Election Dispute KISMAYO, Somalia — Jubaland state President Ahmed Madobe on Thursday warned Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud against consolidating power, accusing the federal leader of advancing policies he once opposed and underscoring growing rifts ahead of Somalia’s 2026 elections. Speaking at the Somali Future Council conference in Kismayo, Madobe cast the gathering as a forum to confront political tensions and said Somalia’s governance must rest…

MOYALE, Kenya — Ethiopian military personnel crossed into Kenyan territory near Moyale on Saturday, advancing roughly 1 kilometer from the Sesii area and prompting a two-hour exchange of fire with Kenyan security units, according to an official occurrence book entry filed at Moyale Police Station (OB No. 32/22/11/2025). Kenyan police, Administration Police Service and Border Patrol Unit engaged the intruding forces; Kenya Defence Forces later joined, pushing the Ethiopians back to the borderline; No injuries were…

HELSINKI, Finland (AX) — In a recent move, Finland has decided to hit pause on its development cooperation with Somalia. The primary reason? A lack of progress in settling agreements about sending back Somali folks who don’t have legal residency in Finland. Minister Ville Tavio, who handles Foreign Trade and Development, made the announcement on a Wednesday. “The suspension means no fresh funds will be approved,” Tavio stated plainly during a media briefing. He emphasized that this hold will last until Somalia makes…

Somalia writes to the UNSC after the standoff talks before the election flopped MOGADISHU, Somalia - In the midst of the ongoing stalemate before the Somali elections, the federal government has written to the United Nations Security Council , in response to a recent meeting of the Council on the security and stability of the country. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, United States…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - As part of efforts to harmonize some of the proposals for the election model, Somalia's stakeholders are expected to meet on Tuesday for a meeting that is expected to even out most of the differences. Several sources tell Axadlethat there have been consultations on the status of outgoing presidential participation, whose term expired on February 8, and whether to include other interested parties who have not been invited. For Farmajo, the organizers are confused about whether to let him in as the…

The three-day national and multisectoral strike, at the request of the country's first union group, UNTM, paralyzed many sectors in Mali between Wednesday and Friday. Negotiations can be resumed quickly between UNTM and the government, but the deviation continues. For Yacouba Katilé, president of the National Union of Workers of Mali, the strike was a success.The call to stop working for three days was well attended, especially in the banking sector, the mines or the public services for customs, finance and health. The…