Vol 58 No 1 | SOMALIA Surviving elections and jihad 6th January 2017 Calming the controversies of the electoral process will occupy the government. Security will remain precarious across the country The agonising electoral process has raised as many problems as it has solved. The highly disputed selection of members of parliament – which will lead eventually to the selection o...
Vol 57 No 25 | SOMALIA Electoral process stumbles but stays on track 2nd December 2016 The tortuous parliamentary selection needs more time, but the chances are that Hassan Sheikh, despite losing international confidence, will win No Somali President was elected on 30 November, as scheduled, but it looks now as though the process will be brought to a conclusion by 15 December. It had already become clear the...
Vol 57 No 23 | SOMALIA ISIS's Puntland stunt 18th November 2016 The brief seizure of Qandala by Da'ish supporters was made possible by a rupture in the clan alliances governing Puntland After long seeking a foothold in Somalia, ISIS's Somali followers finally pulled off a coup by seizing the port of Qandala on 26 October. Capturing the Puntland town, 80 kilometre...
Vol 57 No 23 | ETHIOPIASOMALIA Shabaab fills Ethiopian vacuum 18th November 2016 Ethiopia has been withdrawing forces from Somalia in order to help restore order at home, say military observers, and Al Haraka al Shabaab al Mujahideen has moved in to fill the va...
Vol 57 No 20 | SOMALIA Electoral roads to federalism 7th October 2016 As the country goes to the polls, the base is broader but will the government that emerges be more legitimate than its predecessors? Four years ago, general elections took place in Mogadishu in a hectic atmosphere created mostly by an international community determined to show that the political transition was o...
Vol 57 No 20 | SOMALIAUGANDA Coordinated exit 7th October 2016 In June, General Edward Katumba Wamala, Chief of the Defence Forces, announced plans to withdraw Ugandan troops from Somalia by the end of 2017. That echoed recent signs from Kenya...
Vol 57 No 12 | KENYASOMALIA Stand-off over Dadaab 10th June 2016 Refugee experts and diplomats are divided on whether Kenya is serious about its stated intention to close down the huge Dadaab refugee camp in November, Africa Confidential is told...
Vol 57 No 10 | SOMALIA US comes to struggling Amisom's aid 5th May 2016 The African Union member countries are at odds, leaving US air power – and some propaganda – to make up for military failures The international coalition against Al Harakat al Shabaab al Mujahideen has been relying recently on a war of words – as well as United States drones and Special Forces – to keep u...
Vol 57 No 5 | SOMALIA Amisom struggles 4th March 2016 A funding gap and a string of defeats head a long list of problems for the African alliance fighting Islamist militants The health of the African Union Mission in Somalia is still in question after the leaders of the troop-contributing countries ended a crucial summit on its financing and its future...
Vol 57 No 2 | SOMALIA Al Shabaab sees off Da'ish 22nd January 2016 Al Qaida's loyalists ruthlessly purged the militia of Da'ish sympathisers after they tried to take over For many Somali government officials, the recent visit by a senior British general confirmed what many already knew: sticking to the Western agenda of security fears earns more res...
