Somalia | Council on Foreign Relations

Sudan

Authoritarian Trends in the Horn of Africa Require New Policy Approach

U.S. policy has been largely ineffectual in reversing democratic backsliding in the Horn of Africa.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin December 28, 2021 Africa in Transition
United States

U.S. Policy in Africa Should Reflect Renewed Commitment to Democracy

American policy in Africa has not always empowered those fighting on behalf of democracy—and sometimes even supports anti-democratic forces—taking away from its stated aim of promoting democracy abroad.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin December 15, 2021 Africa in Transition
Somalia

Somalia’s Ongoing Political Crisis Exposes Fundamental Problem for U.S. Policy

Reflections on the shortcoming of U.S. policy in Afghanistan have brought lessons that can be used to rethink American policy toward Somalia.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin September 15, 2021 Africa in Transition

Terrorism and Counterterrorism

United States Names Five African Jihadis as Specially Designated Global Terrorists

The practical consequences of the U.S. Department of State adding five terrorist leaders operating in Africa to the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists is likely to be limited.

Blog Post by John Campbell August 10, 2021 Africa in Transition
Somaliland

Recognizing Somaliland's Democratic Success

On May 31st, the people of Somaliland went to the polls to participate in long-delayed parliamentary and municipal elections.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin June 8, 2021 Africa in Transition
Somalia

Al-Shabab

Al-Shabab remains capable of carrying out massive attacks in Somalia and surrounding countries despite a long-running African Union offensive against the Islamist terrorist group.

Backgrounder by Claire Felter , Jonathan Masters and Mohammed Aly Sergie May 19, 2021

COVID-19

India’s COVID-19 Surge, Somalia’s Political Crisis, and More

India struggles with the world’s largest COVID-19 surge, Somalia’s president addresses Parliament after dropping a bid to extend his term, and the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan gets underway ten years after the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay and Robert McMahon April 29, 2021 The World Next Week
Somalia

Somalia's Political Crisis Demands Sustained Attention

While international attention has been focused on Ethiopia’s multiple internal and foreign policy crises, the political situation in Somalia has gone from precarious to untenable.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin April 14, 2021 Africa in Transition
Wars and Conflict

Nonstate Warfare

Stephen Biddle explains how nonstate military strategies overturn traditional perspectives on warfare.

Book by Stephen Biddle April 6, 2021 National Security and Defense Program
Refugees and Displaced Persons

Beyond the Sand and Sea

From Ty McCormick, winner of the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award, an epic and timeless story of a family in search of safety, security, and a place to call home.

Book by Ty McCormick March 30, 2021
Somalia

Somali Stability Depends on More Than Just Counterterrorism

Among the Trump administration's many eleventh hour decisions that will require quick review by President Biden’s team was the choice to withdraw nearly all U.S. military personnel from Somalia.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin January 22, 2021 Africa in Transition
Radicalization and Extremism

From Separatism to Salafism: Militancy on the Swahili Coast

Nolan Quinn is a research associate for the Council on Foreign Relations’ Africa Program. The revelation that a Kenyan member of al-Shabab was charged with planning a 9/11-style attack on the Unit…

Blog Post by Guest Blogger for John Campbell January 13, 2021 Africa in Transition
Somalia

Diplomatic Progress in Somalia

The re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Mogadishu, Somalia, is welcome news to many who have worked on U.S. policy issues in the Horn of Africa for decades. It represents not just a positive step in st…

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin October 3, 2019 Africa in Transition
Somalia

The Controversy Over U.S. Strikes in Somalia

The United States has been helping Somalia fight al-Shabab militants for more than a decade, but rights groups say increasing drone strikes are putting civilians at risk.

In Brief by Claire Felter April 3, 2019
Yemen

Global Conflict This Week: Negotiating a Truce in Yemen

Developments in conflicts across the world that you might have missed this week.

Blog Post by Center for Preventive Action February 8, 2019 Strength Through Peace