Kasmaal  Independent Somali news and analysis website .

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis arrived Sunday for a short visit to Djibouti, a strategically important country on the Horn of Africa which hosts the United States’ only permanent military base on the African continent. Camp Lemonnier, home to some 4,000 US soldiers and contractors, is vital to US military operations in Somalia against militant […]

China shares Russia’s point of view on the situation in Syria and North Korea, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. According to the Chinese official, Russia’s approach to Syria and North Korea are “logical and reasonable.” The official noted that China supported Russia‘s suggestion to attract […]

French voters went to the polls under heavy security Sunday for the first round of the most unpredictable presidential election in decades, with the outcome seen as vital for the future of the beleaguered European Union. Polling stations opened at 8:00 am (0600 GMT) and the last will close in major cities at 8:00 pm (1800 […]

TEHRAN – A senior Iranian official has criticized U.S. President Donald Trump’s contradictory words, saying he “does not have a clear understanding of international relations.” Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani made the remarks in an interview with the French daily Le Monde, which was published on Friday. Shamkhani’s remarks came after […]

French Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve on Friday accused far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen of seeking to use the killing of a policeman on Paris’s Champs Elysees for political gain. Cazeneuve, a Socialist, accused Le Pen of “shamelessly exploiting fear and emotion for purely political ends,” just two days before the first round ofFrance’s presidential election. […]

France has long feared a terror attack in the run-up to the presidential election. What impact will the Champs-Elysées shooting of a policeman that was claimed by terror group Isis have on Sunday’s crucial first round vote? The news that a policeman had been shot dead on the famous Champs-Elysées avenue broke as the 11 […]

Qatar has secured the release of 26 hostages after nearly a year and a half in captivity, including members of its ruling family, in what became possibly the region’s most complex and sensitive hostage negotiation deal in recent years. Several people with knowledge of the talks and a person involved in the negotiations said the […]

Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Iraqi troops have declared taking over al-Sihha al-Thaniya district from Islamic State in western Mosul. “The army’s Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) freed al-Sihha al-Thaniya district in western Mosul,” Lt. Gen. Abdul-Amir Yarallah, commander of the Nineveh operations, said in a statement on Saturday. “The forces raised the Iraqi flag on its buildings after losses […]

Baiji (IraqiNews.com) Two Islamic State suicide attackers were killed in an overnight foiled attack against a village in the city of Baiji, Salahuddin, according to a police official. Saad Nafous al-Hamad, commander of Baiji police, said the attackers targeted the village of Malha, but were held off by police and tribal troops at the dawn […]

The French presidential election could be a turning point for Europe’s biggest economic project, the shared euro currency. Markets are mostly expecting a pro-euro candidate such as former economy minister Emmanuel Macron to win. And that leaves room for a very sharp drop in markets — and a blow to the longer-term prospects for the […]