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Tag Archives: Somalia

African Union: Between Collusion and Integrity

African Union: Between Collusion and Integrity

Ever since the African Union (AU) granted Israel an ‘observer status’, the organization has found itself entangled in a pitiful  web of political maneuvering and controversy. Only two months earlier, this same organization has joined rest of the world in condemning Israel for violating the international law with its reckless bombardment of Gaza, targeting civilians, […]

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Somalia, Time To Part Ways?

Somalia, Time To Part Ways?

Somalia, Is It Time To Part Ways? If there was any undisputable lesson gained from the three miserable decades of civil war and that lesson was engraved on a stone, it would have read: Avoid the road most traveled; pave yourself a new one. But, ‘who cares’ is sadly the prevalent attitude. Currently, Somalia is […]

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How Somalia Was Made ‘Great Again’

How Somalia Was Made ‘Great Again’

  In recent weeks the confluence of many issues and events of different shades and dangers made Somalia’s political situation more complicated. This being the last year of the current administration, challenges of that nature are not entirely new, but the intensity and volatility of these developments are. However, this piece is not an attempt […]

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A Shock Therapy for Somalia

A Shock Therapy for Somalia

It has been 60 years since the Italian Somaliland and the British Somaliland became independent from their respective colonial powers to form a union that miserably failed 30 years later. After a long ever-morphing saga of blood, destruction, and loss of identity Soomaalinimo (Somaliness), these two political entities, legally known as Somalia, have just concluded […]

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Insecurity in Somalia: Is Mogadishu’s ‘Green Zone’ Part of the Problem?

Insecurity in Somalia: Is Mogadishu’s ‘Green Zone’ Part of the Problem?

Naturally broken nations like Somalia that require intervention from the international community require a safe area where diplomats and other officials representing key governments and organizations could be hosted. Hence Somalia’s heavily guarded “Green Zone”, or Halane as it is commonly known. As a compound dominated by African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) soldiers, mostly […]

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Why did Somalia blacklist its country’s top UN diplomat?

Why did Somalia blacklist its country’s top UN diplomat?

In the first week of the New Year, Somalia was one of the few countries that dominated the headlines. Not because one of her finest daughters, Ilhan Omar, who came to the US two decades ago and was elected as an American lawmaker, but because Somalia declared the UN’s chief diplomat—who had only been working […]

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Somalia and the Houdinis of Corruption

Somalia and the Houdinis of Corruption

In the moral version of human history – expressed in the Quran, Bible, and Torah – corruption is considered the worst reckless impulse that caused men to fall from grace. It was the betrayal of trust and loyalty for purely selfish gains. From that perspective, the root cause of corruption is individual moral shutdown, derailment […]

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Transformation Euphoria in the Horn of Africa

Transformation Euphoria in the Horn of Africa

The political transformation in the Horn of Africa is arguably the most counterintuitive development in the 21st century so far. Ethiopia has steered away from implosion and, for the first time in its history, appointed an Oromo Prime Minister with an Islamic name and heritage, ending the 20-year-long conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea. Nonetheless, Abiy […]

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Regional and Geopolitical Impact of Ethiopia Meltdown

Regional and Geopolitical Impact of Ethiopia Meltdown

The Horn of Africa is among the most congested, eventful, and most volatile geopolitical intersections on earth. It is where the West meets the East in a highly competitive game of strategic positioning for economic or hegemonic advantage. China and Turkey who, more or less, employ similar soft-power strategies have tangible investments in various countries […]

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Straight Talk On Somalia Insecurity

Straight Talk On Somalia Insecurity

There is a broad-based consensus that security in Somalia has been deteriorating at an alarming rate. In the past few weeks, hundreds of people have been killed by truck bombs at two prominent locations in Mogadishu. The lethal potency of the explosives and the scale of death and devastation resulting from the Oct 14th one […]

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What the terrorist attack in Mogadishu tells us about the resurgence of Al-Shabaab

What the terrorist attack in Mogadishu tells us about the resurgence of Al-Shabaab

The latest terrorist attack in Mogadishu has brought the threat of Al-Shabaab to the forefront of world news and signalled the weakness of the Somali American-backed government. More than 300 people died on 14 October in Mogadishu after two bomb trucks exploded in the crowded district of Hodan. While no group officially claimed the attack, […]

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Farmajo Follows Footsteps of Failure

Farmajo Follows Footsteps of Failure

  All betrayals are not made equal. In recent weeks, a political disaster of epic proportions has befallen upon Somalia. The Somali government has committed what many – including some of its staunchest supporters – consider a treasonous act. Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) has extradited a Somali citizen, a highly decorated military […]

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Blackened Waters of Somalia

Blackened Waters of Somalia

At this critical juncture and in this particular ‘do or die’ moment in Somali history, objective assessment of new trends has an existential significance. Early this year when the previous Somali President was voted out of the office in favor of a more popular one, the euphoria was so contagious, and expectation so high. Sadly, […]

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Circling The Square In Somalia

Circling The Square In Somalia

Somalia is headed in the right direction. But “right direction” doesn’t mean a path free of pitfalls and clear of landmines.

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Chasing Mirages Across Somalia

Chasing Mirages Across Somalia

With Somalia’s election around the corner, what criteria should be used to evaluate each candidate? Hint: not name recognition nor clan affiliation.

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