Somali group admits “several fighters” died as African Union force acknowledges “attempted attack” at Somalia base. Somali rebel group al-Shabab says it has killed 43 soldiers in an attack on a base of Ethiopian troops serving with the African Union’s AMISOM force Somalia. The town of Halgan, where Thursday’s attack occurred, lies in the Hiraan […]

My day starts with some exercise, break­fast in my room, then an 8am planning session. The schedule typically includes meetings in town with politicians, receiv­ing Somali or international visitors, and seeing colleagues working on issues such as elections, security sector reform, rule of law, child protection, gender, human rights, food security, displacement and reconciliation. There […]

Ten years ago, Somalia was in a state of near-hopelessness as Mogadishu was conquered by a coalition of Muslim clerics who routed 11 notorious warlords and their militias who had ruled the city for one-and-a-half decades. Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) set up offices in Mogadishu and caused UN-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) a lot […]