Kasmaal  Independent Somali news and analysis website .

Police say soldiers engaged in gun battle with fighters who stormed a school near Pigcawayan town on Mindanao island. The Philippine military says gunmen who had holed up in a primary school on the southern Midanao island have retreated after a gun battle with troops but are holding some civilians hostage. Suspected members of the […]

A new, gay-friendly mosque planned in Oslo will allow female imams and men and women praying together. The mosque, which will be located in the centre of the Norwegian capital, will be called Masjid al-Nisa’ (The Women’s Mosque), reports media Vårt Land. Thee Yezen al-Obaide at an anti-Pegida demonstration in Oslo in 2015. File photo: […]

Although Cheong Wa Dae said South Korea does not require any U.S. approval for its North Korea policy, it is concerned that the globally broadcast interview by the influential CBS may give the wrong impression that the South Korean President will visit the U.S. to seek approval from Washington.   President Moon Jae-in holds an […]

Sweden summoned Russia’s ambassador after a Russian SU-27 fighter jet flew unusually close to a Swedish reconnaissance plane in international airspace above the Baltic Sea. “The Russian ambassador has been asked to come to the foreign ministry soon,” spokesman Gunnar Vrang told AFP, without specifying further. File photo of a Russian SU-27 fighter jet. Photo: […]

‘Now is not the time to give up’ on two-state solution, UN Middle East envoy tells Security Council 20 June – Achieving a negotiated two-state outcome is the only way to lay the foundations for enduring peace that is based on Israeli security needs and the Palestinian right to sovereignty and statehood, the United Nations […]

Saudi Arabia has declared Prince Mohammed bin Salman as the kingdom’s crown prince while Prince Mohammed bin Nayef has been relieved from his position after a royal decree was issued by King Salman bin Abdulaziz early on Wednesday morning. The Saudi Press Agency confirmed that 31 out of 34 members of Saudi Arabia’s Allegiance Council […]

Mosul (IraqiNews.com) Mosul city council decided Tuesday to deport the families of Islamic State fighters and to relocate them to special camps in order to rehabilitate them mentally. In a statement, the council said it will no longer allow receiving migrant Islamic State fighters families arriving from other provinces. The existing families are to be […]

Troops shoot dead a man suspected of causing a small explosion at train station, in what police call ‘terrorist attack’ Belgian police say a man suspected of setting off a small explosion at the central train station in the capital, Brussels, has died after being shot by soldiers Belgian troops take up position close to the […]

Grievances towards Qatar are still not listed, which prompts ‘more doubts’ about reasons behind Gulf rift, US says. The US state department says it is “mystified” that Gulf states have not released details about their grievances towards Qatar more than two weeks after they imposed a blockade on the country Qatar has denied all accusations […]

Moscow said a US spy plane flying toward the Russian border made a “provocative turn” toward a fighter jet, which had been scrambled for an interception mission. Earlier, the US military claimed the Russian jet had approached the US plane in an unsafe way. The Russian Defense Ministry has confirmed that a Baltic Fleet Su-27 […]