Somalia

The African Union on Thursday joined the United States in appealing for calm in the Horn of Africa after regional tensions soared following a contested deal between Ethiopia and the breakaway region of Somaliland.

Somalia and the breakaway region of Somaliland have agreed to resume dialogue to resolve outstanding issues, after long-running political tensions and years of deadlock.

The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia on Sunday resumed handing over security responsibilities to Somali government forces after a three-month pause, officials said. … The first phase of the AU drawdown was concluded in June when 2,000 troops left Somalia. In September, the Somali government requested a 90-day “technical pause” of the drawdown … .

Somalia and the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) have vowed to intensify military operations to flush out al-Shabab militants following the lifting of a 31-year-old United Nations arms embargo on the country.

Recognizing the benchmarks reached on implementing the security transition, the Somalia Transition Plan and the national security architecture, the Security Council today unanimously adopted a resolution lifting the arms embargo on the Federal Government of Somalia.

Somalia has been admitted as the eighth member of the East African Community on Friday November 24, 2023, just over a year after the latest entrant, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was admitted into the bloc.

At least 31 people have died in floods caused by heavy rains in Somalia, Information Minister Daud Aweis said on Sunday. Some 500,000 people have also been forced to flee their flooded homes. Aweis said another 1.2 million people could be affected by the disaster and the death toll may rise.

East African Community (EAC) Secretary-General Peter Mathuki says Somalia could be admitted to the bloc this month.

Following the Secretary-General’s strategic review of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM), the Security Council today extended until 31 October 2024 the Mission’s mandate and tasks, as set out in resolutions 2158 (2014) and 2592 (2021).

Insecurity persists in Somalia, with extremist group Al-Shabaab and fighting in the Laascaanood region taking a heavy toll on civilians, the UN envoy for the country told the Security Council on Thursday.