Eritrea

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Somalia

Egypt

Israel

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Military & Security

Politics

The governments of Somalia's Jubaland and Puntland states skipped a meeting convened by Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to discuss plans to protect the country's territorial integrity following Israel's Dec. 26 recognition of the independence Somaliland, a breakaway region, Hiiraan Online reported on Dec. 29.

Somalia: Puntland and Jubaland Skip Meeting With Federal Government Over Israeli Recognition of Somaliland

United States

Turkey

Yemen

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced in a joint declaration with Somaliland's President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi that Israel recognized Somaliland's sovereignty as an independent state, the first country in the world to recognize the breakaway region, The Jerusalem Post reported on Dec. 26.

Israel, Somalia: Israel Recognizes Somaliland's Sovereignty

The regional administration of southern Somalia's semiautonomous state of Jubaland publicly rebranded itself as a "government" rather than a regional state, effectively rejecting its previous status under the national federal system governed by the Federal Government of Somalia, Garowe Online reported on Dec. 8. 

Somalia: Jubaland State Rebrands as a 'Government'

Economics

Attackers using rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns and other weapons boarded the Greek-owned, Malta-flagged Hellas Aphrodite southeast of the Somali port town of Eyl, ABC News reported on Nov. 6. 

Somalia: Pirates Board Vessel off Somali Coast for First Time Since May 2024

The United States reportedly suspended support for Somalia's elite Danab commandos, a Somali National Army elite unit trained and equipped by Washington, Garowe Online reported on Sept. 16. 

Somalia: U.S. Reportedly Suspends Support for Elite Unit Commandos

Egypt is reportedly set to deploy troops to Somalia under the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission (AUSSOM) to counter the al Qaeda-affiliated militia al Shabaab, which maintains strongholds in central and southern Somalia, Garowe Online reported on Sept. 9.

Somalia, Egypt: Cairo Prepares To Deploy Troops in Somalia, Identifies Key Military Bases

Kenya

Kenya's Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said that the Kenyan government had launched an investigation into the alleged presence of forces from Somalia's Jubaland state in the town of Mandera in northeastern Kenya, Citizen Digital reported on Sept. 3.

Kenya, Somalia: Tensions Rise in Northeast Over Alleged Presence of Jubaland Forces

Somalia's federal government and a faction of the opposition within the Somali Salvation Forum reached an agreement on the 2026 elections, RFI reported on Aug. 26.

Somalia: President and Some Opposition Leaders Reach Agreement on Upcoming Elections

Snapshots

Sudan

Residents wave Somaliland flags as they gather to celebrate Israel's announcement recognizing Somaliland's statehood in downtown Hargeisa, on Dec. 26, 2025. 

Israel establishing military facilities in Somaliland would invite Houthi attacks against the territory and raise the likelihood of renewed disruptions to Red Sea shipping.


Israel's Recognition of Somaliland Raises the Stakes Along the Red Sea Corridor 

Assessments

Sub-Saharan Africa

Mozambique

Republic of the Congo

Syria

Afghanistan

A destroyed church is seen in Mosul, Iraq.

The Islamic State's main threat to the West in 2026 will remain its ability to inspire lone-actor violence, though in the coming years the group's African, Afghan and Syrian branches may become increasingly capable of directing mass casualty attacks in Western countries.

The Islamic State's Enduring Threat to the West

Yemenis stand under a billboard depicting the seizure of an Israeli-linked ship in the sea by Yemen's Houthi-run coast guards during a demonstration staged in solidarity with the people of Gaza and against U.S. President Donald Trump's deal to end the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 3, 2025, in Sanaa, Yemen. 

While the partnership provides tactical benefits, structural limitations on Houthi resources and al Shabaab's financial independence suggest the relationship will remain opportunistic.

The Outlook for Cooperation Between Yemen's Houthis and Somalia's al Shabaab

Djibouti

The flag of Somaliland is seen during a political rally in Hargeisa on Nov. 8, 2024.

The United States is growing more likely to recognize Somaliland's statehood to secure basing rights in the territory, which would likely roil U.S.-Somalia relations and risk plunging Somalia into crisis.

Assessing the Prospect of the U.S. Recognizing Somaliland's Independence

Columns

On Geopolitics

South Sudan

Chad

Uganda

Shipping containers are offloaded from a vessel at Berbera Port in Somaliland on Aug. 31, 2021.   (ED RAM/AFP via Getty Images)

The UAE is expanding its influence across East Africa through large-scale investments and security partnerships, aiming to consolidate its status as a global trade hub and counter regional competitors, at the risk of entangling regional states in broader geopolitical contests.

The UAE's Long Game in East Africa

Palestinian Territories

Qatar

Europe

Philippe Lazzarini (C), the commissioner general for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, attends a humanitarian conference for Gaza in Cairo, Egypt, on Dec. 2, 2024, amid the continuing Israel-Hamas war.

Egypt's economic limitations will continue to restrain its assertiveness in foreign policy, constraining its ability to project power in the region.

Egypt's Economic Priorities Sideline Assertive Foreign Policy

An illustration of the Ethiopian and Somali flags.

The countries’ commitment to negotiate maritime access reduces immediate conflict risks and could enable Ethiopia to secure leasing rights at Somali ports, but tensions will likely resurge if the two sides fail to finalize a deal.

Ethiopia and Somalia Crack Open the Door To Compromise on Maritime Access

A Somali National Army soldier participates in a military drill in Mogadishu on March 19, 2024.

Egypt and Somalia's deepening security coordination risks triggering armed clashes with Ethiopia that could undermine regional counterterrorism efforts and inflame ethnic tensions.

The Horn of Africa Braces for Conflict as an Anti-Ethiopia Alliance Takes Shape

Media

Podcasts

What does Somalia's security landscape look like for the next five to 10 years?

Essential Geopolitics: The Future of Somalia

Internally displaced people walk past the Tigrayan flag at the Tsehaye camp in Ethiopia's Shire, Tigray region, on July 16, 2024. 

Factionalism within the Tigray region's ruling party raises the prospect of resurging clashes in the region, threatening to undermine Ethiopia's recent peace and economic gains.

Tigray's Leadership Tussle Bodes Ill for Ethiopia

Haiti

U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden pose with Kenyan President William Ruto (center), alongside his wife and children, as they arrive for a State Dinner at the White House on May 23, 2024. 

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

For Kenya, stronger ties with the U.S. could unlock new investment and diplomatic opportunities, but bilateral relations could weaken if Nairobi draws down its police deployment in Haiti, or if Trump reenters the White House.

What To Expect From Stronger U.S.-Kenya Ties

A photo of the Somali flag.

As Somalia’s president moves to strengthen the country’s fragile state institutions, disputes over constitutional reforms threaten to deepen domestic and regional challenges.

Somalia's Constitutional Changes Widen Rifts at Home and Abroad

Located on the Horn of Africa, Somalia shares borders with Djibouti to the northwest, Ethiopia to the west and Kenya to the south. To the north and east along the Indian Ocean, the country has the second-longest coastline in Africa.    Many have classified Somalia as the ultimate failed state, as civil conflict has gripped the country for decades. Some of Somalia's problems stem from the artificiality of the country's borders, as large ethnic Somali populations reside on the other side of the border in Ethiopia and Kenya. This weakness precipitated frequent external challenges to the country, especially during the Cold War when the United States and the Soviet Union staged proxy battles for influence in   Ethiopia and Somalia.    Somalia's biggest challenge lies in addressing a potent Islamist insurgency, followed closely by the need to reconstruct extremely fragile or nonexistent institutions. In addition to the threat posed by Islamist groups such as al Shabaab, deep-seated clan divisions have hindered efforts to foster unity. For example, the Somali National Army has received foreign financial support and training for many years, but it is largely incapable of defending the country amid its own internal divisions.    Furthermore, Ethiopia, the region's landlocked giant, is eager to prevent Somalia from re-emerging as a regional threat, as it did in the 1970s. The massive internal and external challenges facing Mogadishu suggest that international efforts to stabilize the country will continue for years to come.

SITUATION REPORTS

Somalia: Puntland and Jubaland Skip Meeting With Federal Government Over Israeli Recognition of Somaliland

Israel, Somalia: Israel Recognizes Somaliland's Sovereignty

Somalia: Jubaland State Rebrands as a 'Government'

Somalia: Pirates Board Vessel off Somali Coast for First Time Since May 2024

Somalia: U.S. Reportedly Suspends Support for Elite Unit Commandos

Somalia, Egypt: Cairo Prepares To Deploy Troops in Somalia, Identifies Key Military Bases

Kenya, Somalia: Tensions Rise in Northeast Over Alleged Presence of Jubaland Forces

Somalia: President and Some Opposition Leaders Reach Agreement on Upcoming Elections

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