MOSCOW (AP) — Russia is ready to supply Somalia’s army with military equipment in its war against terrorism, Russia's foreign minister said Friday.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made the offer after talks with his Somali counterpart Abshir Omar Jama in Moscow.
UN conference raises less than $1 billion for climate-wracked Horn of Africa in major disappointment
May 24, 2023 GMTUNITED NATIONS (AP) — A high-level U.N. conference on Wednesday raised less than $1 billion of the more than $5 billion organizers were hoping for to help over 30 million people in the Horn of Africa cope with a major climate crisis and mass displacement after years of conflict, a major disappointment to aid agencies.
UN reports extensive flooding damage in central Somalia
May 16, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Floods caused by the annual rains have left “a trail of destruction" across Somalia, a United Nations spokesman said, citing inundated homes and farmland as well as the shutdown of health facilities.
Minnesota Democrats set emergency meeting in response to melee at Minneapolis political convention
May 15, 2023 GMTMINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Democratic leaders will convene an emergency meeting Thursday evening to respond to the chaos that broke out during a convention to endorse a candidate for a Minneapolis City Council race.
Official: 148 Somalis evacuated from Sudan via Ethiopia
April 30, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Scores of Somalis fleeing violence in Sudan arrived in their Horn of Africa nation on Sunday, an official said.
Some 148 Somali nationals, mostly students, arrived by plane in the capital Mogadishu, said Abdurahman Nur Mohamed Diinaari, a top official with the Somali foreign ministry.
AP video journalist describes Somalia’s deadliest attack
October 16, 2017 GMTJOHANNESBURG (AP) — Mohamed Sheikh Nor was relaxing and playing with his 10-month-old daughter when his home shook with the worst bombing Somalia's capital had ever seen...
At least 21 killed as Somalia battles jihadis in remote area
April 22, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somalia's military repulsed an attack by jihadi fighters in a remote region of the country early Saturday, killing at least 18 of the al-Shabab militants, according to a top army official.
U.N chief calls for massive international support to Somalia
April 11, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed for “massive international support” for Somalia on Tuesday during his visit to the East African country, which is facing the worst drought in decades.
Some in dry Somalia break Ramadan fast with little but water
March 29, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — This year’s holy month of Ramadan coincides with the longest drought on record in Somalia.
African Union urges nearly $90 million for its Somali force
March 23, 2023 GMTUNITED NATIONS (AP) — The African Union appealed for nearly $90 million Wednesday for its peacekeeping force in Somalia, which is providing support to its military forces battling al-Shabab extremists.
Report: 43,000 estimated dead in Somalia drought last year
March 20, 2023 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — A new report says an estimated 43,000 people died amid Somalia's longest drought on record last year and half of them likely were children under 5 years old.
US citizen, Somali convicted in journalist’s hostage-taking
March 7, 2023 GMTNEW YORK (AP) — Two men have been convicted of helping Somali pirates who kidnapped a U.S. journalist for ransom and held him for 2 1/2 years, prosecutors said.
Mohamed Tahlil Mohamed and Abdi Yusuf Hassan were convicted by a federal court jury in New York on Feb.
Doctor in embattled Somaliland city says at least 145 dead
March 4, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The director of a hospital in a disputed city in the Somaliland region says at least 145 people have been killed in more than two months of fighting between anti-government fighters and Somaliland security forces after local elders declared their intention to reunite with Somalia.
US increases military support for Somalia against al-Shabab
March 1, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The United States is increasing its military assistance to Somalia as the country sees success in battling what the U.S. calls “the largest and most deadly al-Qaida network in the world.”
Somalia drought ‘extremely critical’ but no famine projected
February 28, 2023 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Food security experts say life remains “extremely critical” for more than 6 million hungry people in Somalia’s historic drought, but they no longer project famine for the worst-hit population of nearly a quarter-million people between April and June.
Doctor: Hospital in disputed Somaliland city shelled, 1 dead
February 28, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — At least one person was killed and several were injured when the main hospital in a disputed city in East Africa's Somaliland region came under mortar fire during an upsurge of violence Tuesday, a doctor said.
3 killed when African Union helicopter crashes in Somalia
February 26, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A helicopter belonging to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia crashed, killing three people and injuring eight others.
The mission reported that the helicopter was carrying Somali National Army officers on a joint training mission for casualty evacuation drills when it crashed Saturday at Baledogle airstrip in Lower Shabelle region
Horn of Africa drought trends said worse than in 2011 famine
February 22, 2023 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Trends in a historic Horn of Africa drought are now worse than they were during the 2011 drought in which at least a quarter-million people died, a climate center said Wednesday.
Somali security forces end al-Shabab siege that killed 10
February 22, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Security forces in Somalia have ended a siege by al-Shabab extremists that killed 10 people and wounded three others at a home in the capital, Mogadishu.
The Information Ministry late Tuesday said the al-Qaida-linked fighters launched the rare attack on a private home with a suicide bombing.
Doctor says 57 killed in week of fighting in Somaliland city
February 11, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — At least 57 people have been confirmed dead in days of clashes between antigovernment fighters and Somaliland security forces in the disputed city of Las-Anod after local leaders said they wanted to rejoin the federal government of Somalia, a doctor reported Saturday.
Sub-Saharan Africa is ‘new epicenter’ of extremism, says UN
February 7, 2023 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The new global epicenter of violent Islamic extremism is sub-Saharan Africa where people are increasingly joining because of economic factors and less for religious ones, says a new report by the U.N.'s international development agency.
House GOP votes to oust Democrat Omar from major committee
February 2, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Republican-led House voted after raucous debate Thursday to oust Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar from the chamber's Foreign Affairs Committee, citing her anti-Israel comments, in a dramatic response to Democrats last session booting far-right GOP lawmakers over incendiary remarks.
Regional heads plan joint push against al-Shabab in Somalia
February 1, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The leaders of Somalia, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya have agreed on a joint “search and destroy” military campaign against the Somali al-Shabab Islamic militant group that has carried out attacks in the region — including firing mortars near the meeting venue in Mogadishu before officials gathered Wednesday.
Wife of Islamic State leader jailed for 8 years in Somalia
January 30, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A military tribunal in Somalia has sentenced the wife of the head of a terrorist organization linked to the Islamic State group to eight years in prison for passing on information and organizing financial transactions for the group, a military official said Monday.
US urges donors to give far more as Somalia faces famine
January 29, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The first U.S. Cabinet member to visit Somalia since 2015 urged the world’s distracted donors Sunday to give immediate help to a country facing deadly famine, which she calls “the ultimate failure of the international community.”
US military kills senior Islamic State official in Somalia
January 26, 2023 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. special operations forces have killed a senior Islamic State group official and 10 other terrorist operatives in remote northern Somalia, the Biden administration announced Thursday.
Extremists storm govt office in Somalia’s capital; 5 dead
January 22, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Al-Qaida-linked extremists stormed a regional government office in Somalia's capital Sunday, and five civilians were killed, the government said.
Somalia, extremists claim over 100 killed in intense battle
January 20, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somalia’s government and al-Qaida-linked fighters both claimed more than 100 people were killed Friday in their deadliest battle since the government launched a major military offensive against the extremists in August.
World Food Program chief: Somali famine slowed, not avoided
January 17, 2023 GMTDAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The head of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning World Food Program says support from donors like the United States and Germany have allowed it to postpone — though not entirely avert — famine in Somalia but stressed that “we’re not out of this yet.”
5 Somali troops die in attack; 21 al-Shabab fighters killed
January 17, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — An attack by the al-Shabab extremist group on a military facility north of Somalia's capital on Tuesday killed five soldiers, officials said. Somali troops repelled the assault, killing 21 al-Shabab fighters.
‘They are on the run’: Somalia leads fight against al-Shabab
January 15, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Enough was enough. For 13 years, extremists with al-Qaida’s East Africa affiliate had controlled Mohamud Adow’s village in central Somalia, imposing harsh ideology and arresting local teachers and traditional leaders.
Al-Shabab extremists deny contact with Somalia’s government
January 9, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The Somalia-based al-Shabab extremist group has denied having contact with the Somali government after the country’s deputy defense minister claimed that the extremists had for the first time asked to negotiate.
Somalia claims al-Shabab extremists seek talks for 1st time
January 7, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somalia’s government claimed Saturday that the al-Shabab extremist group has for the first time asked to open negotiations, amid a military offensive the government has described as “total war.”
Death toll in Somalia twin bombings rises to at least 35
January 5, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A doctor says the death toll in a pair of suicide car bombings in Somalia early Wednesday has risen to at least 35, including nine members of the same family, in one of the worst attacks by al-Shabab extremists in retaliation for a government offensive described as “total war.”
Twin bombings targeting Somalia’s military kill at least 10
January 4, 2023 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Police in Somalia say two suicide car bombers killed at least 10 people early Wednesday when they targeted a military facility in a region at the heart of the government’s offensive against al-Shabab extremists.
Ugandan soldier fatally shoots 3 colleagues in Somalia
January 3, 2023 GMTKAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — A Ugandan soldier has shot and killed three colleagues serving in Somalia as part of an African Union peacekeeping force, Uganda’s military said Tuesday.
2 shot dead by al-Shabab militants in coastal Kenya
December 26, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Two people were shot dead by al-Shabab militants and several houses torched in a rural area in coastal Kenya, police said Monday.
The Christmas night attack happened in the Pandaguo area in Lamu county that neighbors Boni forest, where security agencies have been conducting an operation since 2015 to flush out militants in hiding.
Journalists in Somalia slam government restrictions, arrests
December 23, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Journalists in Somalia say the government is further restricting their work amid a significant military offensive against the al-Shabab extremist group, with a new directive to submit content for approval before publication.
Somali troops returning from once-secret training in Eritrea
December 21, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Somalia’s government says the first group of 5,000 Somalis who were sent to Eritrea for military training has returned home, to the relief of parents who had alleged their sons had been recruited under false pretenses.
Suspected extremists attack police in northern Kenya; 3 dead
December 21, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Three people, including two police officers, were killed Wednesday morning in an attack by al-Shabab extremists in northern Kenya, Kenyan police have announced.
The victims were in a police vehicle when they were attacked between the Hayley Lapsset Camp and Garissa town, northeastern Kenya police chief George Seda said in a statement.
Somalia not yet in famine but still in danger, report says
December 13, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Somalia has not yet fallen into famine but several parts of the country are in danger of it in the coming months, according to a new food security report on the Horn of Africa’s worst drought in decades.
25,000 tons of Ukraine grain reach east Africa amid drought
December 5, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The first shipment of grain as part of Ukraine's own initiative to supply countries in need arrived in Djibouti Monday for delivery to neighboring Ethiopia amid the region’s worst drought in decades.
Somali forces storm hotel held by extremists, free 60 people
November 28, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somali forces on Monday stormed a hotel in the capital, Mogadishu, where Islamic extremists had been holed up for more than 18 hours after killing eight civilians and trapping dozens in the building, officials said.
Al-Shabab extremist group attacks hotel in Somali capital
November 27, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Somali security forces were attempting to flush out armed assailants from a hotel in the Somali capital, a police spokesman said Sunday, after the extremist group al-Shabab claimed responsibility for the attack.
In war-torn states hurt by climate, scant hope for new funds
November 22, 2022 GMTSHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt (AP) — In conflict-ravaged nations like Yemen and Somalia, devastating floods and droughts kill hundreds of people and uproot tens of thousands from their homes.
Al-Shabab gunman kills 3 Kenyan peacekeepers in Somalia
November 21, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — A lone gunman entered a military base in Somalia and killed at least three Kenyan peacekeepers Monday, the latest attack by extremist fighters who oppose the presence of foreigners in the Horn of Africa nation, according to Kenya's military.
UN maintains Somali arms embargo over government objections
November 18, 2022 GMTUNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations Security Council voted Thursday to maintain an arms embargo on Somalia over strong objections from its government, saying the al-Shabab “terrorist group” still seriously threatens peace and stability in the region and sanctions are needed to degrade its activities.
5 killed in attack at Somali military training camp
November 6, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Military officers in Somalia say at least five people were killed and 11 others wounded when a suicide bomber detonated explosives at the front gate of a military training camp in Mogadishu on Saturday evening.
US military hits al-Shabab extremists in Somalia
November 5, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The United States military says it has carried out an airstrike in support of the Somali government’s operations against the al-Shabab extremist group that has killed some of the group's fighters.
Police say explosion in Somalia’s capital kills 2 students
November 3, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Police in Somalia say at least two people have been killed and five others wounded by a roadside explosion that hit a vehicle carrying students in the Dayniile district of Mogadishu.
Treasury sanctions IS-Somalia weapons traffickers, al-Shabab
November 1, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department announced sanctions Tuesday against a weapons trafficking network affiliated with the Islamic State group in Somalia and the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab extremist group, which are accused of carrying out deadly terrorist acts on civilians including car bombings.
Somalia car bombs death toll up to 120, some still missing
October 31, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The death toll from twin car bombings in Somalia's capital has reached 120 and could rise further because some people are still missing, the country's health minister said Monday.
Somalia car bombings kill at least 100, president says
October 30, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — At least 100 people were killed in two car bombings at a busy junction in the capital, Somalia's president said, and the toll could rise in the country's deadliest attack since a truck bombing at the same spot five years ago killed more than 500.
Two explosions rock Somalia’s capital, killing at least 30
October 29, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Two car bombs exploded Saturday at a busy junction in Somalia's capital near key government offices, causing “scores of civilian casualties" including children, national police said.
UN: Almost 1 million drought-hit Somalis in al-Shabab areas
October 26, 2022 GMTNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The United Nations says close to 1 million drought-affected people in Somalia are in areas under the control or influence of the al-Shabab extremist group, and it appealed to the fighters to allow humanitarian access as famine threatens the country.
8 killed in Somalia as militants attack port city hotel
October 23, 2022 GMTMOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Eight people were killed after militants stormed a hotel in Somalia's port city of Kismayo, an attack that started with a suicide bombing Sunday before gunmen forcibly entered and exchanged fire with security forces.
Somali Americans, many who fled war, now seek elected office
October 20, 2022 GMTCOLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — It’s a busy Friday afternoon at a Somali restaurant on the northeast side of Columbus, home to second-largest Somali population in the United States. The smell of spices is just as robust as the loud conversation, and the East African restaurant is crowded after afternoon prayers at the nearby mosque.
US hits al-Shabab finance facilitators with sanctions
October 17, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — The Treasury Department said Monday that it has sanctioned a group of high-ranking members of the Somalia-based al-Shabab militant group, who act as key middle men between the group and local companies in Somalia.