Tag: Somalia
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Somaliland, Somalia, and the Ethics of Non‑Alignment
Recognition, Reality, and Responsibility in the Horn of Africa The recognition of Somaliland would mark a historic moment—akin to Eritrea or South Sudan—not a geopolitical earthquake, but a shift whose ripple effects could extend far beyond its borders. Global politics has a way of humbling our certainties: the developments we dismiss as peripheral often become
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Horn of Africa: A Unity Deferred: Between Memory and Possibility
The Horn of Africa remains one of the world’s most fragile political landscapes. State legitimacy is contested, nation-building is stalled or unraveling, and war routinely eclipses peace. Ethiopia and Sudan, its two largest states, are engulfed in civil war and political upheaval. Somalia continues to fracture, with little more than nominal central authority. Eritrea and
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The Horn of Africa States Ethiopia’s Undiplomatic Faux Pas
It was always clear that Ethiopia’s false historical narrative would one day catch up with it. The country that was Abyssinia adopted Africa’s historical Greek name, Ethiopia, in 1932. It currently proves every sunrise and every sunset that it cannot hold the many nations it had held together by force in the past. The war
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The Horn of Africa States The Need Beyond the Narrow Mindset
Favoritism is a disease that causes immense damage to any organization, country, or region. It takes competency out of the equation, and if one goes back to history, one will note that any leader who used favoritism as a guide to his/her leadership by appointing friends, loyal people, and family members in key positions in
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The Bloody African Horn Region
This week, both Eid and Fasiga came a few days apart; on this occasion, I wish Christians and Muslims who finished Lent and Ramadan, Happy Holidays time. Hopefully, the fasting cleared some bad air and you will have spiritually fulfilling days ahead. For Eritreans, when Christian and Muslim feasts coincide, they become optimistic believing it
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It Is Ramadan, Make Peace With the PFDJ!
At least for a month we have to try hard to live a spiritual life. It’s in our tradition, culture, and religion. Therefore, in the spirit of Ramadan I am making peace with the Eritrean regime for a day. Ramadan is here and it triggers memories, not only of prayers and supplication but also its
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Three Envelopes for The Horn of Africa Leaders
A newly appointed corporate manager asked his predecessor to give him the best advice he could. The outgoing manager gave him three envelopes and told him to open them in sequence whenever he faced serious difficulties. Soon, he opened the first one. It read: blame everything on the previous management and buy time. He did.
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One Kicked Out, Two To Go
In 2018, when Abiy Ahmed made his overly promoted visit to Eritrea and “signed a peace agreement” with Isaias Afwerki, half the world media and the political tribes behaved like a child taken to a circus for the first time and watched sheepishly as wool was passed over their eyes. But the second half (and
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Somalia Elects President Hassen Sheik Mahmoud
Somalia led the ex-president Formaggio to the Exit door and welcomed President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud who won the election by 184 votes. Amid a worsening inflation, lack of security, food shortage and a widespread draught, Somalia’s 328 representatives elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud out of 35 contenders. Mohammed Formaggio, the last president came next. President Hassen
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The Horn of Africa: Unchanging Political Seasons
(Reading Time: 7 minutes) Historically, the African region that contains Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Somaliland, and Somalia are considered Horn of Africa countries though Sudan doesn’t belong to that geography. But the above countries are so much related and influenced by each other. These countries have no properly defined geographical limits, therefore, they are haphazardly
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Eritrea: A Conveyer Belt Supplying Mercenaries
Eritrea has been a training ground for Sudanese opposition groups that finally made peace with Khartoum and were absorbed in the system in what was known as the Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement in 2006. Still, recent reports indicate that new Sudanese groups are being trained there. In April 2020, Gedab News reported that “UAE airplanes
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The UAE and the Horn of Africa Threesome
Since Abiy Ahmed became Ethiopia’s prime minister in the spring of 2018, he has met with Isaias Afwerki at least a dozen times. On Sunday, Abiy Ahmed arrived in Eritrea once more. This time, he is accompanied by Lemma Megersa, the Ethiopian defense minister. Also, after his first visit to Eritrea in July, 2019, the Somali
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Horn of Africa: Port-Politics Taken to New Levels
Yesterday, the Djiboutian President Ismael Guelleh concluded a two-day visit to Mogadishu where he met the Somali president Abdullahi Formaggio and gave a speech at the parliament. During his stay, Guelleh reopened the old Djiboutian embassy in Mogadishu and discussed several bilateral agreements with his counterpart. As Guelleh concluded his visit to Somalia, Osman Saleh,
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Peering into the Cagey Politics of the Horn of Africa
The summit that leaders of Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia held in the Ethiopian cities of Gondar and Bahir Dar in early November is a landmark event in the evolving politics of Africa’s Horn Region. The event’s significance derives not so much from the meeting’s own merits as from the clues it provides on the political thinking
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Isaias Travels Through Ethiopia To Mogadishu Via Nairobi
Gedab News received a leaked copy of a letter detailing Isaias Afwerki’s airplane flight schedule. The letter was sent by the Kenyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Kenyan Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure with a copy to the Eritrean Embassy and The Civil Aviation Authority at Jamo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi. According to
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An Intimate Report: Year-End Fundraising Campaign
Dear colleagues and friends of Awate.com, This is our first report for the Year-End Fundraising Campaign that we launched last week. First, we thank the few who reacted to the call immediately, we are grateful to you all. We hope the rest of you will also react and help. At the same time, as always,
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Eritrea: Cries of a Nation on the Brink of Evanescence
The last six months have seen a flurry of diplomatic activities involving most of the Horn-of-Africa countries and some member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). These activities which have included a series of mediation efforts, state visits, summit meetings, and bilateral agreements seem to herald a new phase of regional geopolitics in which alliances
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Hastily Prepared Tripartite Meeting Wrapped Up
Objections by EPRDF bigwigs has delayed the long-planned visit by Isaias Afwerki of Eritrea to the Amara region of Ethiopia, which was announced over a month ago. Isaias visit also triggered criticism by Mohammed Jawar, the director of Oromo Media Network and a popular mobilizer among the Ethiopian youth. On November 7, Jawar tweeted the
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UN Sanctions Against Eritrea to Remain in Force
The UN imposed sanctions against Eritrea will remain in place despite the statements by the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who said he will work to help lift it. Somalia’s president has also made similar statements during his visit to Asmara on July 28 explaining “the move would help the economic integration of the region.”
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The Circular Ethiopian-Eritrean Border Saga
Ethiopia has come a long way. In the last fifty years, it traveled the longest distance from where it started compared to many African and Middle Eastern countries. The Epic journey took it out from the darkest abyss of a feudal system lorded over by Emperor Haile Selassie, through a bloody Dergue Marxist revolution that