Features

Somalia: The Killer Who Was Also a Journalist — And the Method That Didn't Die With Him

On April 11, 2016, a firing squad at a police academy in Mogadishu killed Hassan Hanafi Hajji. He had been one of Somalia's most trusted radio voices. For nearly ten years, he used that trust to help al-Shabaab.

Somalia Trains Journalists as New Frontline Against Digital Extremism

Mogadishu, Somalia (Horn Observer) Somalia's Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Abdifatah Qasim Mohamud, has concluded a four-day "Peace Journalists" training programme in Mogadishu, organized by the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC) with support from Saudi…

The Guarantee: How Somalia's Elections Always Land Where Hassan Sheikh Wants Them

88-1. 86-13. 142-30. Four offices, three mechanisms, one result.

Laftagareen's Forces Attack Baidoa, Reviving the Fight Somalia Thought It Had Won

BAIDOA, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) — Before dawn on Monday, fighters loyal to ousted South West State president Abdiaziz Laftagareen attacked federal positions in Baidoa. It is the city he was forced out of five months ago. The attack reignited a conflict Mogadishu had declared settled.

Conflict Drives Farmers Into Somalia's capital Mogadishu

Mogadishu – Large numbers of farming families have arrived in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in Mogadishu, where they are facing severe humanitarian conditions after fleeing renewed conflicts in parts of Lower Shabelle.

Somalia's New Speaker Got His Parliamentary Seat Through a Military Operation. His Career Was Built by Turkey.

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) — On 30 March 2026, armoured personnel carriers rolled through the streets of Baidoa. By nightfall, Southwest State President Abdiaziz Laftagareen had fled and announced his resignation on Facebook. Federal troops had entered the capital of Somalia's second-largest…

Somalia's Appeals Court Frees Sadiyo Bajaaj, Rebukes a Conviction Built on Nothing

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) — On August 12, 2026, the Banadir Regional Court of Appeal overturned the three-year prison sentence handed to Sadiyo Moalin Ali, widely known as Sadiyo Bajaaj, and ordered her immediate release, ruling that the conviction against her never had a legal foundation…

A Government With One Foot Out the Door: Somalia's Foreign Passport Crisis

MOGADISHU, Somalia (HORN OBSERVER) — On June 24, 2026, Somalia's Second Deputy Prime Minister, Jibril Abdirashid Haji, arrived at Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport aboard a flight from Mogadishu. Kenyan immigration officers stopped him at the gate. His Kenyan passport, they said,…

Somaliland Seeks International Partnerships as Government Highlights Progress in Peace, Development and Recognition

Nairobi – Kenya (Horn Observer) Somaliland's president Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi "Cirro" has highlighted progress in peace-building, infrastructure, energy, healthcare and international diplomacy while calling for stronger partnerships with the international community in Nairobi, Kenya.

Somali Cabinet Approves Passport, Trade and Judicial Reforms

Mogadishu, Somalia (Horn Observer) Somalia's Council of Ministers, chaired by Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre in Mogadishu, has approved several measures covering passports, trade and the judiciary.