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☆ Five Dead After Soldier Opens Fire at Military Base in Mogadishu
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-10 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

(Reuters) -Five people, including Somali military officials and a United Arab Emirates (UAE) soldier, were killed on Saturday after a soldier opened fire at a military base in the capital Mogadishu, an army officer and hospital staff told Reuters. The gun man, a newly-trained Somali soldier, was also shot dead in the Gordon military base managed by the UAE, the officer, who gave his name only as Ahmed, said. "The soldier opened fire on the UAE trainers and Somali military officials when they started praying. Al Shabaab, linked to al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the attack via a statement on its Radio al Andalus and said its fighters had killed 17 soldiers. Al Shabaab has waged an insurgency against the Somali government since 2006 to try to establish its own rule.

Persons: Gordon, Ahmed, Al Shabaab, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Abdi Sheikh, Elias Biryabarema, Surbhi Misra, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Reuters, United, United Arab Emirates, UAE, Erdogan, Surbhi Locations: United Arab, UAE, Mogadishu, Somali, Israel, Gaza, al Shabaab, Somalia, Al, al Qaeda, Andalus, Nairobi, Bengaluru

☆ Death toll from flooding in Somalia climbs to nearly 100
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The number of people killed by floods from heavy rains in Somalia has climbed to 96, state news agency SONNA said on Saturday. "Somalia's flood death toll climbs to 96," SONNA said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, adding the figure had been confirmed by Mahamuud Moallim, the head of the country's disaster management agency. Like the rest of east and Horn of Africa, Somalia has been battered by relentless heavy rains that begun in October, caused by the El Nino and Indian Ocean Dipole weather phenomena. The flooding has been described as the worst in decades and has displaced about 700,000 people, according to the United Nations. The intense rains have unleashed widespread flooding across the country, triggering displacement and exacerbating an already existing humanitarian crisis caused by years of insurgency.

Persons: SONNA, Mahamuud Moallim, Abdi Sheikh, Abdiqani, Elias Biryabarema, Mark Potter Organizations: El Nino, United Nations, Kenyan, Cross, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, Somalia, Horn of Africa, Kenya

☆ Somalia joins east Africa trade bloc as it eyes new opportunities
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Abdi Sheikh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MOGADISHU, Nov 24 (Reuters) - The East African Community trade bloc admitted Somalia as its eighth member on Friday, a move Somali authorities and businesses hope will boost the country's war-ravaged economy. "Somalia officially joins the East African Community, reinforcing ties and opening new doors for progress and partnership," Daud Aweis, Somalia's minister for information, culture and tourism said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. In turn the bloc's large population and existing customs union and common market are a draw for investors that Somalia can now tap into. Somali businesses said the country's vibrant private sector, which has overcome long odds to stay afloat, would bring a fresh injection of risk-tolerant entrepreneurs into the trade bloc and boost exchanges across the large Somali Diaspora. "It will be simpler for the large Somali Diaspora living across East Africa to access financial services and products," said Shuayb Haji Nur Mohamed, managing director of Salaam Somali Bank, one of Somalia's major banks.

Persons: Daud Aweis, al, Shuayb Haji Nur Mohamed, Hereward Holland, Elias Biryabarema, William Maclean Organizations: East African Community, EAC, Democratic, East African, Salaam Somali Bank, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, Somalia, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Al Qaeda, Shabaab, Mogadishu, al Shabaab, Somali, East Africa

☆ Once-in-a-century flooding swamps Somalia after historic drought -UN
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Nov 10 (Reuters) - The United Nations has described floods that uprooted hundreds of thousands of people in Somalia and neighbouring countries in East Africa following a historic drought as a once-in-a-century event. Large-scale displacement, increased humanitarian needs and further destruction of property remain likely, OCHA said, with some 1.5 million hectares (3.70 million acres)of farmland potentially being destroyed. "Extreme weather linked to the ongoing El Niño risks further driving up humanitarian needs in already-vulnerable communities in Somalia and many other places," said Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General, the UN's Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. "We know what the risks are, and we need to get ahead of these looming crises," he said. Reporting by Abdi Sheikh in Mogadishu and Hereward Holland in Nairobi; Writing by Hereward Holland Editing by Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: El Niño, Camps, OCHA, Martin Griffiths, Abdi Sheikh, Hereward, Hereward Holland, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: United Nations, UN Office, Humanitarian Affairs, UN's Humanitarian Affairs, Emergency, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, Somalia, East Africa, Kenya, Mogadishu, Hereward Holland, Nairobi

☆ Somalia's first all-women newsroom spotlights female taboos
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Abdi Sheikh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MOGADISHU, Sept 20 (Reuters) - People often laugh when Fathi Mohamed Ahmed tells them she runs the first and only all-female newsroom in Somalia, one of the most dangerous places on the planet to be a reporter. "Sometimes my soul tells me I cannot continue the work because of insecurity and societal pressure. However, it is a career that I loved since my childhood and a dream which still lives in me," Ahmed said. With more than 50 journalists killed since 2010, Somalia is the most dangerous country for journalists in Africa, according to Reporters Without Borders. Bilan has revolutionised the news agenda in Somalia, said Abdallah Al Dardari, director of the United Nations Development Programme Regional Bureau for Arab States.

Persons: Fathi Mohamed Ahmed, Ahmed, Maria Abdullahi Jama, Sheikh Abdi Hayi, Omar Ibnu Khadab, Abdallah Al Dardari, Al Dardari, Abdi Sheikh, Abdirahman Hussein, Hereward Holland, Richard Chang Organizations: United Nations Development Programme, Protect Journalists, Somalia, Facebook, Bondhere School, Ministry, Women, United Nations, Programme, Bureau, Arab, Bilan Media, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, Somalia, Africa, Mogadishu

☆ Somalia's First All-Women Newsroom Spotlights Female Taboos
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

"Sometimes my soul tells me I cannot continue the work because of insecurity and societal pressure. However, it is a career that I loved since my childhood and a dream which still lives in me," Ahmed said. Although it is supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), success has not come easy or risk-free for Ahmed and her team. With more than 50 journalists killed since 2010, Somalia is the most dangerous country for journalists in Africa, according to Reporters Without Borders. Bilan has revolutionised the news agenda in Somalia, said Abdallah Al Dardari, director of the United Nations Development Programme Regional Bureau for Arab States.

Persons: Abdi Sheikh, Fathi Mohamed Ahmed, Ahmed, Maria Abdullahi Jama, Sheikh Abdi Hayi, Omar Ibnu Khadab, Abdallah Al Dardari, Al Dardari, Abdirahman Hussein, Hereward Holland, Richard Chang Organizations: Reuters, United Nations Development Programme, Protect Journalists, Somalia, Facebook, Bondhere School, Ministry, Women, United Nations, Programme, Bureau, Arab, Bilan Media Locations: Abdi Sheikh MOGADISHU, Somalia, Africa, Mogadishu

☆ Ethiopian forces clash with al Shabaab in western Somalia, residents say
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Sept 17 (Reuters) - Ethiopian forces engaged in fierce clashes with al Shabaab fighters near the town of Rab Dhuure in western Somalia on Sunday morning, local residents said. At around 9 a.m. (0600 GMT) local residents heard large explosions followed by a heavy near the town of Rab Dhuure in Bakool region, around 20 km (12 miles) from the Ethiopia border. Al Shabaab claimed to have ambushed a large convoy of Ethiopian troops, who are operating in the area as part of regional efforts to wipe out the al Qaeda-affiliated group. "We heard about three huge explosions and then an exchange of heavy guns followed," said local resident Hassan Abdulle. In February Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya agreed to begin what they described as "search and destroy" operations against al Shabaab, in addition to the African Union-mandated peacekeeping force, which is expected to leave Somalia by the end of next year.

Persons: al, Rab Dhuure, Al Shabaab, Hassan Abdulle, Fatuma Ali, Abdi Sheikh, Hereward Holland, Susan Fenton Organizations: African Union, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, al Shabaab, Rab, Somalia, Bakool, Ethiopia, Al, Qaeda, Djibouti, Kenya

☆ Somalia bans TikTok, Telegram and 1XBet over 'horrific' content, misinformation
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Residents gather outside the Pearl Beach Restaurant following an attack by Al Shabaab militants at the Liido beach in Mogadishu, Somalia June 10, 2023. REUTERS/Feisal Omar/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMOGADISHU, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Somalia has banned TikTok, messaging app Telegram and online-betting website 1XBet to limit the spread of indecent content and propaganda, its communications minister said. Members of insurgent group al Shabaab often post about their activities on TikTok and Telegram. The decision comes days after Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said a military offensive against al Shabaab aims to eliminate the al Qaeda-linked group in the next five months. TikTok, Telegram and 1XBet did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

Persons: Al Shabaab, Feisal Omar, Jama Hassan Khalif, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, 1XBet, TikTok, Abdi Sheikh, George Obulutsa, Devika Organizations: Pearl, REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Mogadishu, Somalia, Rights MOGADISHU, Shabaab, TikTok, United States, Montana

☆ Somalia says Russia grants relief on debt worth $684 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MOGADISHU, July 27 (Reuters) - Russia has granted debt relief on over $684 million owed by Somalia in a deal finalised on the sidelines of a Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg, officials from the Horn of Africa nation said. Emerging from decades of civil war, Somalia is seeking to secure sweeping external debt relief under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank's Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. The agreement signed on Wednesday between Egeh and Russian deputy finance minister Timur Maksimov concerned Paris Club loans, Somali Deputy Prime Minister Salah Ahmed Jama told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti. Somalia owed Moscow nearly $695 million in 2019, according to the IMF. Reporting by Hereward Holland, Abdi Sheikh and Rachel Savage; editing by Joe Bavier and Mark HeinrichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Bihi Egeh, Timur Maksimov, Salah Ahmed Jama, Jama, Vladimir Putin, Putin, pare, Hereward Holland, Abdi Sheikh, Rachel Savage, Joe Bavier, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: International Monetary Fund, Somali Finance, Moscow, Paris Club, RIA Novosti, African, IMF, Thomson Locations: MOGADISHU, Russia, Somalia, Africa, St Petersburg, Horn of Africa, Egeh, Paris, Russian, Moscow, Ukraine

☆ Russia halts grain deal in what UN calls blow to needy people everywhere
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres signalled that Russia's withdrawal meant that the related pact to assist Russia's grain and fertilizer exports was also terminated. Moscow said it would consider rejoining the grain deal if it saw "concrete results" on its demands but that its guarantees for the safety of navigation would meanwhile be revoked. REUTERS/StringerUkrainian forces have been striking Russian supply lines as it pursues a counteroffensive to drive Russian forces out of its south and east. On Monday it reported two more civilians killed by Russian forces, which it said had begun a major push in the northeast. The grain deal was hailed as preventing a global food emergency when brokered by the United Nations and Turkey last year.

Persons: Dmitry Peskov, Antonio Guterres, Moscow, Antony Blinken, Saraf, Halima Hussein, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Stringer, Hanna Maliar, Serhiy Cherevatyi, Vladimir Putin, Marat Khusnullin, Putin, Artem Dekhtyarenko, Max Hunder, Michelle Nichols, Abdi Sheikh, Ron Popeski, Lidia Kelly, Peter Graff, Philippa Fletcher, Alex Richardson, Grant McCool Organizations: UN, Russian Federation, International Rescue, REUTERS, Stringer Ukrainian, Lyman, Ukrainian Armed Forces, TV, Reuters, Ukraine's Security, Ukraine, United, United Nations, Thomson Locations: Crimea, Ukraine, Russian, KYIV, Russia, Moscow, Ukrainian, Washington, AFRICA Ukraine, East Africa, Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia's, Mogadishu, Kyiv, Turkey, Kerch, Kupiansk, Kharkiv, United Nations, New York

[1/5] A Somali police officer uses his cell phone inside the rubble of the Pearl Beach Restaurant following an attack by Al Shabaab militants at the Liido beach in Mogadishu, Somalia June 10, 2023. REUTERS/Feisal OmarMOGADISHU, June 9 (Reuters) - Nine people were killed in an attack claimed by al Shabaab Islamist militants at an upmarket restaurant in the Somali capital Mogadishu on Friday night, police said. Those killed at the popular Pearl restaurant were six civilians and three soldiers, police said in a statement. Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab said it was behind the attack. Al Shabaab controlled a vast area of Somalia before being pushed back in government counteroffensives since last year.

Persons: Al Shabaab, Omar MOGADISHU, al, Abdikadir Abdirahman, Hussein Mohamed, Shabaab, Abdi Sheikh, Feisal Omar, Jose Joseph, George Obulutsa, William Mallard, Frances Kerry Organizations: Pearl, REUTERS, Security, Somali National News Agency, Twitter, Mujahideen, Thomson Locations: Somali, Mogadishu, Somalia, al Shabaab, Shabaab, Lido Beach, Al Qaeda

☆ Three dead after African peacekeeping mission helicopter crashes in Somalia
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Three people died and eight others were injured when a helicopter operated by the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia crashed on Saturday in the country's Lower Shabelle region, the mission said in a statement on Sunday. In the statement the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) said the helicopter, carrying eleven passengers including soldiers from Somalia military, was participating in training drills for casualty evacuation when the crash occurred. Eight injured officers have been evacuated to Mogadishu for urgent medical attention," ATMIS said in the statement. ATMIS is assisting Somalia's central government in its war against the Islamist al Shabaab insurgency. The al Qaeda-allied al Shabaab group has been fighting for more than a decade to topple Somalia's government and establish its own rule based on its own strict interpretation of Islamic sharia law.

☆ At least five injured after blast at mayor's office in Mogadishu
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Somali policemen prepare to take their positions near the mayor's office following a blast in Mogadishu, Somalia January 22, 2023. REUTERS/Feisal OmarMOGADISHU, Jan 22 (Reuters) - At least five people were injured in a blast on Sunday at the gates of the mayor's office in Somalia's capital Mogadishu and gunfire continued to sound, a member of the ambulance service and a witness said. Abdikadir Abdirahman, director of Aamin Ambulance Services, told Reuters that ambulance staff had so far evacuated five injured people from the scene of the blast. "We were in the office and we were deafened by a blast, we ran out, gunfire followed," Farah Abdullahi, who works in the mayor's office, told Reuters. The mayor's office is located in the local government headquarters building in a well guarded area of Mogadishu.

☆ At least one killed in blasts targeting troops in central Somalia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Jan 14 (Reuters) - One person was killed and at least six others injured in a suicide car bombing at a checkpoint manned by Somali government troops in the central region of Hiran on Saturday, witnesses said, part of a twin suicide car attack. Federal government soldiers and allied clan militias launched a major offensive against al Shabaab last August. The group has retaliated with a series of attacks after they were driven out of some of the territories. "A suicide car bomb exploded at a government forces checkpoint near the bridge," said Seinab Abdullahi, a shopkeeper in Jalalaqsi, who counted one body and six injured victims. Reporting by Abdi Sheikh; Writing by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Christina Fincher and Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Car bombs explode at Somalia's education ministry
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Two car bomb explosions at Somalia's education ministry rocked the capital Mogadishu on Saturday and blew out windows of nearby buildings, witnesses and the emergency services said. "Two car bombs targeted the education ministry building along K5 street," an inhabitant Ahmed Nur told Reuters. The first explosion hit the walls of the ministry while the second blast occurred as ambulances arrived and people gathered to help the victims, police captain Nur Farah told Reuters. A Reuters journalist near the blast site said the two explosions occurred within minutes of each other and smashed windows in the vicinity. Reporting by Abdi Sheikh; Writing by Elias Biryabarema; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Alison WilliamsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Car bombs at Somali education ministry leave scores of casualties
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MOGADISHU, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Two car bomb explosions at the education ministry in Somalia's capital Mogadishu killed or wounded scores of people on Saturday, police and the state news agency said. Authorities said the Islamist group al Shabaab carried out the attack, which they said had targeted the education ministry, an intersection and a school. "At 2:00 p.m. al-Shabaab terrorists carried out two explosions targeting civilians, including children, women and the elderly," police spokesman Sadiq Doodishe said. State news agency SONNA, said the blasts had caused "scores of civilian casualties including independent journalist Mohamed Isse Kona". [1/8] A view shows smoke rising following a car bomb explosion at Somalia's education ministry in Mogadishu, Somalia October 29, 2022 in this picture obtained from social media.

☆ Somalia blast hits Kismayu hotel, gunfire heard - police
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The state-run Somali National Television said on Twitter security forces were dealing with a "terrorist incident" at the hotel, which al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab has taken responsibility for. "There is a blast at Tawakal hotel and there is gunfire being heard," Mohamed Nur, a police captain, told Reuters from Kismayu. "The security forces have besieged the scene," Farah Ali, a shopkeeper in Kismayu, told Reuters. Kismayu is the commercial capital of Jubbaland, a region of southern Somalia still partly controlled by al Shabaab. Al Shabaab was driven out of Kismayu in 2012.

☆ Somalia signs oil exploration agreement for seven blocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOGADISHU, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Somalia has signed a petroleum exploration agreement for seven offshore blocks with United States-based Coastline Exploration, the company said in a statement on Friday. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterNo government officials were immediately reachable for comment. Coastline, an upstream oil and gas company focused on East Africa, said in a statement on Friday it had paid a $7 million signature bonus to the government and would now proceed with exploration. In 2019, Somalia passed a petroleum sector law paving the way for exploration, especially off its coast. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Abdi Sheikh; Writing by George Obulutsa;Editing by Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Suicide bombing in Somalia kills one soldier and injures six
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterMOGADISHU, Sept 25 (Reuters) - One soldier was killed and at least six others injured in Somalia on Sunday when a suicide bomber blew himself up at a military base in the west of the capital Mogadishu, a soldier and a hospital worker told Reuters. The suicide bomber had disguised himself as a regular soldier and joined others as they filed into a military base early Sunday before he detonated the explosive, Captain Aden Omar, a soldier at the base told Reuters. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterA nurse at Madina Hospital in Mogadishu told Reuters they had received one dead soldier and six others who were wounded. It was not immediately clear who had carried out the attack but Islamist group al Shabaab frequently carries out bombings and gun attacks in Somalia and elsewhere. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Abdi Sheikh; Writing by Elias Biryabarema; editing by David EvansOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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