Union

African Union mission in Somalia teeters as $180 million shortfall threatens gains against al‑Shabab MOGADISHU — The African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) is confronting a funding cliff that could unravel years of hard-won progress against the Islamist insurgency, AU officials warned at the United Nations General Assembly. With about 11,000 troops from Kenya, Burundi, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Uganda deployed across Somali towns and desert tracks, the mission now faces an estimated $180 million…

At UN Week, Somalia and Allies Sound Alarm Over Funding Gap for AU Mission NEW YORK — Inside a packed conference room just off the United Nations General Assembly floor, Somalia and its closest partners issued an unusually blunt warning: if the world does not step up with reliable money, hard-won security gains against al-Shabab could begin to unravel within months. The urgency is not abstract. The African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) — the AU-led force that helps secure towns, main roads,…

FILE PHOTOA mortar round launched by al-Shabab struck a base inside the confines of Mogadishu’s international airport on Sunday, resulting in the deaths of two African Union soldiers and injuring another.Mohamed El-Amine Souef, the head of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) and Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, expressed deep condemnation for the assault on the Halane Base Camp. Speaking on behalf of ATMIS, he noted, “This brutal attack will not dissuade us or the…

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud recently voiced stern disapproval of Ethiopia’s actions, accusing it of double-dealing by hosting the African Union (AU) quarters while allegedly flouting its tenets in its engagements with North Western State of Somalia. As he stood before Somalia’s parliament on Saturday, Mohamud spotlighted a hotly debated Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) penned by Ethiopia with North Western State of Somalia, a matter that’s been whipping up quite the storm far and wide.…

This Saturday, Georgians will participate in a pivotal election that pits a coalition of pro-Western opposition parties against the ruling party, which has been accused of eroding democratic principles and leaning towards Russia. Brussels has underscored the importance of the October 26th election, emphasizing it as a critical moment for Georgia's emerging democracy and its enduring ambition to join the European Union. Current opinion surveys suggest that opposition parties might secure sufficient votes to form a coalition…

Mogadishu (AX) — On a sunny Wednesday, the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) passed the baton of the Kuday Forward Operating Base (FOB) to Somali forces. It's a significant leap in the third phase of ATMIS's troop drawdown, highlighting Somalia’s budding prowess in managing its security landscape all by itself. Since 2015, this base, which sits snugly near the strategic port town of Kismayo, has been helmed by the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) under ATMIS's wing. As an essential defensive anchor, it has…

REUTERS/Baz Ratner/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights March 24, 2020, saw a plane touch down at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Kenya. OPEN QUOTE The largest aviation workers' union in Kenya has scheduled a strike for Wednesday, voicing opposition to a proposed deal. This arrangement, with India's Adani Group (ADEL.NS), opens new tab, would lease the primary airport for three decades. The deal includes expanding the facilities. This info was shared by a union representative on Tuesday. WHY IT MATTERS…

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the parliamentary session opened in March on Tuesday 15 March. The session was marked by debates about the elections scheduled for 2023. It comes in the context of mistrust between the Ensemble pour la République by Moïse…

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia - Just over four months before theend of the mandate of the troops in the nation of Somalia, the African Union reached an agreement with the Federal Government of Somalia on the future of the armed forces of the African Union Mission in Somalia's Horn of Africa. A resolution adopted in June agreed that AMISOM troops would remain in Somalia until December 2021 and then leave for their respective countries, but Somalia opposed the measure due to the threat posedbyAl-Shabaab in the country. and FGS…

The European Union cuts Kenya's military funding in Somalia NAIROBI, Kenya - The European Union has cut off Kenya's defense forces Somalia's budget by nearly half, giving further indication of the imminent exit of AMISOM troops from the Horn of Africa nation, which still grapples with the threat of Al-Shabaab. This will pave the way for the exit of FDK troops serving in AMISOM, and subsequent…