Somalia

Somalia’s military says it has repelled an attack by two armed groups in Baidoa, the largest city in Somalia’s South West State. In a statement posted on X, Somalia’s Defence Ministry said “militias” loyal to ousted Governor Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen launched the attack early on Thursday morning.

The African Union authorised its mission in Somalia to join federal government forces in military operations in South West State against Al-Shabaab and armed groups it described as affiliated with the militants, according to an internal AU memorandum reviewed by Somalia Today.

The World Food Programme (WFP), the UN agency providing food assistance, said around one third of Somalia’s population is now facing acute hunger, with nearly two million children expected to suffer from acute malnutrition this year.

Somalia’s army has said it has driven opposition fighters out of Baidoa, the largest city in Somalia’s South West State, after hours of heavy fighting.

Armed forces from Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland state have attacked a camp held by federal government troops, in the latest flare-up between regional leaders and the Somali government. Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni told a news conference on Wednesday in the regional capital Garowe that the assault was “a planned security operation” to send a “clear message to anyone working against the Puntland government”.

[…] The discussions centred on expanding bilateral security cooperation and strengthening the operational capacity of Somalia's armed forces, the defence ministry said.

Ending the military-heavy AUSSOM gives the AU space to develop a political mission focused on long-term stabilisation.

The African Union has asked Somalia to urgently nominate representatives for a series of consultations on the future of the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), as the mission faces mounting financial challenges that have raised concerns over its long-term sustainability.

On 1 July the United States announced that it will block UN financial support for the African Union’s peacekeeping force in Somalia in 2027, deepening a funding crisis that has dogged the mission since its creation. AUSSOM, which replaced the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia in 2024 and now deploys close to 11,800 troops under a UN Security Council mandate, relies on the UN for basics such as fuel, food and troop transport. 

Heavy fighting erupted in parts of Mogadishu on Wednesday as forces aligned with Somalia's government and opposition forces exchanged gunfire in a dramatic escalation of a political standoff that has pushed the Horn of Africa nation closer to instability, residents said.