China is moving to deepen its security cooperation with Somalia, pledging enhanced support for the country’s long-running battle against armed groups, including al-Shabaab and the Islamic State (ISIS) group. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reaffirmed Beijing’s commitment during a high-level meeting with Chinese diplomats stationed in Mogadishu. The discussions focused on Somalia’s volatile security landscape and the strategic direction of Chinese policy toward the militant factions operating within the Horn of Africa nation. Central to the deliberations was the safety of Chinese nationals and personnel working on development and infrastructure projects across Somalia. Wang emphasized that Beijing would take “every necessary measure” to ensure the protection of its citizens and the security of its growing economic interests in the country. … China’s strategic interests in Somalia remain multifaceted, ranging from significant investment in the fishing industry to diplomatic efforts aimed at curbing Taiwan’s influence in the region. Analysts suggest that by bolstering the SNA’s capabilities, Beijing seeks to secure its maritime and commercial interests while positioning itself as a key security

partner in East Africa. (Garowe Online)

South Sudan’s army (SSPDF) on Sunday deployed troops in the town of Akobo in Jonglei state, days after announcing it had recaptured the area from opposition forces, several sources said. Akobo County, near the border with Ethiopia, is considered a strategic area. It had been the last remaining stronghold of the opposition Sudan People’s Liberation Army-in-Opposition (SPLA-IO) in the Lou Nuer areas following the capture of bases in Nyirol and Uror counties. The development marks the first time the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) have regained control of Akobo since the civil war erupted in December 2013. Multiple sources told Radio Tamazuj that SSPDF soldiers entered the town on Sunday with vehicles and military equipment and began patrolling the area after residents fled to neighbouring Ethiopia. There were reports of fighting on Saturday morning before government troops were seen fully deployed in the town on Sunday, the sources said. (Radio Tamazuj)

International media watchdogs and a Sudanese legal aid group on Monday called on the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) to immediately release several female journalists and activists detained in South Darfur, amid growing reports of arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) stated that RSF personnel arrested Nyala State Radio reporters Mawaheb Ibrahim and Zahraa Mohamed Al-Hassan, along with presenter Ishraqah Abdulrahman, on February 28. The journalists were seized in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, after attending a workshop for female media professionals. … According to local sources cited by CPJ, the women are being held at Korea prison in Nyala without formal charges or legal representation. The emergency legal group “Emergency Lawyers” corroborated the reports, identifying additional detainees, including Dr Manahel Mustafa al-Sanousi and Izdehar Abdel Moneim Hamed. The group warned that the lack of a functioning judicial system in RSF-controlled areas leaves these women at high risk of torture and sexual violence. (Sudan Tribune)

The U.N.-backed Gang Suppression Force – an international mobilization intended to help Haiti’s police fight powerful armed gangs in the Caribbean country – should ​fully deploy by October this year, Roberto Alvarez, foreign minister of the ‌neighboring Dominican Republic, said on Tuesday. Alvarez, who spoke after a meeting with U.S. embassy officials, said new troops from Chad are now being trained in the United States and the Kenyan police who deployed ​to Haiti under an earlier model of the force should withdraw gradually. These ​Chadian forces are training in the United States right now,” Alvarez ⁠said, adding the Kenyans forces would withdraw gradually. (Reuters)