Sunday May 17, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s stalled political transition has drawn fresh concern from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, which is pressing the country’s leaders to stay at the table after talks between the federal government and opposition figures failed to bridge major divides. In a statement released Saturday from Djibouti, the IGAD Secretariat said it had followed consultations held in Mogadishu from May 13 to 15 between the Federal Government of Somalia and opposition stakeholders. The…

Sunday May 17, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s stalled political transition has once again drawn urgent attention from the African Union, which on Saturday called on the federal government and opposition leaders to return to the negotiating table after a three-day round of talks in Mogadishu collapsed without a deal. The discussions, held from May 13 to 15, brought together the Federal Government of Somalia and representatives of the Somali Future Council. The AU Commission said it had monitored the process closely and…

By: Abdirahman Jeylani Mohamed Saturday May 16, 2026 Somalia has reached a fraught political milestone. On 15 May 2026, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s constitutional mandate formally expired, landing the country in one of its most precarious moments in recent memory. The date carries heavy symbolism. It coincides with Somali Youth Day, a commemoration of the generation behind the Somali Youth League (SYL), which once imagined a united, democratic and sovereign Somali republic built on civic nationalism rather than…

Friday May 15, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s Immigration and Citizenship Agency has announced a major shift in passport rules, saying applicants will soon need a national identity card or proof of registration before they can apply. Starting July 1, 2026, Somali citizens who do not hold a National Identification and Registration Authority card, known as a NIRA ID, or a certificate confirming registration will no longer be eligible to submit a passport application, the agency said Thursday. “Anyone who does not…

Thursday May 14, 2026 MT Honour 25 is one of the two product tankers being held off the coast of Somalia by pirates (EUNAVFOR ATALANTA) Alarm is mounting among the families of seafarers trapped aboard two product tankers seized by Somali pirates, as reports emerge that the gunmen are pressing harder for ransom and tightening control over the ships. The vessels, both laden with fuel cargoes, remain under pirate watch off the Somali coast. Authorities say they are tracking the ships, but one family member said any attempt to…

Thursday May 14, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Somalia’s federal government and opposition leaders left the table Wednesday without a deal after hours of hard-fought talks over the country’s contested electoral roadmap, according to sources familiar with the meeting. The negotiations took place within the tightly secured compound of Aden Abdulle Osman International Airport in Mogadishu, at a venue operated by the National Intelligence and Security Agency. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Deputy Prime Minister Salah Ahmed Jama…

Wednesday May 13, 2026 Teargas billowed through Nairobi’s city centre on Tuesday as Kenyan police moved to break up dozens of anti-France protesters who tried to push toward the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), the venue for the Africa Forward Summit. Police in Kenya fired teargas to stop surging protesters from reaching a conference centre in Nairobi, where France summit was being held on May 12. / Reuters Teargas billowed through Nairobi’s city centre on Tuesday as Kenyan police moved to break up dozens of…

Hussien ElkabanyTuesday May 12, 2026 Egypt said Monday that an oil tanker carrying eight Egyptian sailors was seized off Yemen’s coast and transported to Somalia, deepening concerns over a renewed spike in maritime insecurity in the region. “Egypt is closely monitoring the hijacking of the tanker M/T Eureka from Yemeni territorial waters, which was taken to Somali territorial waters,” the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The ministry said Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty had directed Egypt’s embassy in…

Sunday May 10, 2026 Mogadishu (AX) — Former Somali President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed said Sunday that security forces had sealed off roads to his home and stopped lawmakers and opposition figures from reaching him as Mogadishu braced for planned anti-government demonstrations. Sharif, who leads the opposition Somali Future Council, said during an X Spaces discussion that troops had been stationed in parts of the capital and that the movement of politicians and members of parliament had been curtailed ahead of Sunday’s protest.…

By Ali Mohamed Omar Saturday May 9, 2026 A Response to the Heritage Institute’s Assessment of Somalia’s Diplomacy There is a sharp line between rigorous analysis and reflexive cynicism, between constructive criticism and the kind of commentary that weakens the very institutions a country depends on abroad. When that line is crossed, scholarship can become a liability instead of a public service. A recent policy paper has asked Somalis, along with our international partners, to judge what the country has achieved during…