Kasmaal  Independent Somali news and analysis website .

Competition for the spotlight is going to be fierce at the UN General Assembly [Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images] United Nations – There is little doubt who is headlining this year’s United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). Diplomats could be heard chatting about US President Donald Trump’s arrival in the corridors of UN headquarters for weeks. There is a mild sense of […]

© Mikhail Golub @golub / Twitter Footage of an incident leaked online on Tuesday shows accidental rocket fire from a Russian strike helicopter hitting close to parked cars. The Russian military denied earlier reports on social media that the incident happened during the ongoing Zapad war games. UPDATE: Watch alleged cockpit video of the incident […]

AP Photo The childhood home of President Donald Trump in New York hosted several new visitors over the weekend — refugees who shared their stories as a way to bring attention to the worldwide refugee crisis as the United Nations General Assembly convenes in the city this week. The three-story Tudor-style home in Queens that […]

Syrian soldiers, backed by Russian air strikes, cross Euphrates River in a head-on course with rival SDF fighters.   Syrian government forces have made rapid gains in Deir Az Zor in recent days [Getty Images] Syrian troops battling ISIL crossed to the eastern bank of the Euphrates River in Deir Az Zor on Monday, securing […]

© KCNA / Reuters North Korea has warned that the more sanctions pursued by the US and its allies, the more quickly it will complete its nuclear force, official state news agency KCNA reports. The latest sanctions represent “the most vicious, unethical and inhumane act of hostility to physically exterminate the people of the DPRK, let alone […]

Kurds in Iraq plan to hold a referendum on independence despite opposition from Baghdad and neighbouring countries. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which governs the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq, plans to hold an independence referendum on September 25, 2017. While the vote, which is likely to result in favour of independence, is nonbinding, it […]

President to call for stronger international pressure on Pyongyang President Moon Jae-in left for New York, Monday, to hold crucial talks with foreign leaders on how to address North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile threats. During his five-day visit, he will deliver a keynote speech at the United Nations General Assembly and hold summits with […]

Senegalese-born German MP Karamba Diaby puts up a campaign poster in Halle. PHOTO: JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP He has been beaten up, received death threats and hundreds of insulting emails, but Karamba Diaby is not one to give up. After winning a seat four years ago as the first African-born black MP in Germany, Diaby, […]

Nikki Haley warns ‘reckless’ Pyongyang ‘a whole lot of military options’ are being considered to defend US and allies.   US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley ratcheted up the rhetoric against North Korea on Sunday [Stephanie Keith/Reuters] The US ambassador to the UN warned North Korea will be destroyed if it continues its “reckless […]

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un © KCNA / Reuters During a visit to Beijing, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel told reporters that Russia, China and the US should work together to solve the North Korean crisis, otherwise “our children will grow up in a very dangerous world.” Gabriel was in Beijing for six hours on […]