Somali President Asks PM to Organize Elections

Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed asked his prime minister on Saturday to organize elections as soon as possible. (AFP)
Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed asked his prime minister on Saturday to organize elections as soon as possible. (AFP)
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Somali President Asks PM to Organize Elections

Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed asked his prime minister on Saturday to organize elections as soon as possible. (AFP)
Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed asked his prime minister on Saturday to organize elections as soon as possible. (AFP)

Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed asked his prime minister on Saturday to organize elections as soon as possible in a move that seeks to calm the country's worst political crisis in years.

In a brief speech before parliament that was broadcast live, Farmajo, as the president is nicknamed, abandoned a policy voted earlier in the month that extended his term in office by two years.

"We have decided to seek the solution through negotiations and to avoid starting violence in the benefit of those who trade on the blood of the public," he said.

Deadly clashes have broken out between armed rivals in the capital Mogadishu since Farmajo failed to hold elections before his term ended in February.

The international community has repeatedly called for elections to go ahead, threatening sanctions against the nation of 15 million, which is divided into five member states.

In his speech Farmajo returned to an agreement reached with member states in September to hold indirect elections whereby special delegates chosen by Somalia's clan elders pick lawmakers who in turn choose the president.

"I want to make clear that Prime Minister Rooble Mohamed Hussein will lead in preparing and implementing the election and the security of the election," he said.

"I ask the government to get ready for the huge task."

The measure was voted unanimously by the 140 members of parliament present.

Earlier in the week the president had tried to ease tensions by "urgent discussions" with political actors in a highly-anticipated address to the nation.

Opposition candidates issued a statement on Friday night calling for Farmajo to step down.

"The council urges the Prime Minister Roble to take full control of the electoral process and national security," the statement said.



More than 43,000 Palestinians Killed in Yearlong War in Gaza, Palestinian Health Ministry Says

 Displaced Palestinians ordered by the Israeli military to evacuate the northern part of Gaza take a rest as they flee amid an Israeli military operation, in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip October 23, 2024. REUTERS/Hassan Al-Zaanin/File Photo
Displaced Palestinians ordered by the Israeli military to evacuate the northern part of Gaza take a rest as they flee amid an Israeli military operation, in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip October 23, 2024. REUTERS/Hassan Al-Zaanin/File Photo
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More than 43,000 Palestinians Killed in Yearlong War in Gaza, Palestinian Health Ministry Says

 Displaced Palestinians ordered by the Israeli military to evacuate the northern part of Gaza take a rest as they flee amid an Israeli military operation, in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip October 23, 2024. REUTERS/Hassan Al-Zaanin/File Photo
Displaced Palestinians ordered by the Israeli military to evacuate the northern part of Gaza take a rest as they flee amid an Israeli military operation, in Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip October 23, 2024. REUTERS/Hassan Al-Zaanin/File Photo

The number of Palestinians killed in the yearlong war in Gaza has passed 43,000, more than half of them women and children, the Palestinian Health Ministry said Monday.

The tally includes 96 dead who arrived at hospitals in Gaza over the past two days, the ministry said.

Israeli troops have launched an ongoing operation in northern Gaza that included a raid on a hospital over the weekend. The military said it detained 100 suspected Hamas militants in a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya on Friday.

The World Health Organization accused Israel of detaining 44 male hospital staff. Palestinian medical officials said the hospital, which was treating some 200 patients, was heavily damaged in the raid, Reuters reported.

Israel has raided several hospitals in Gaza over the course of the yearlong war, saying Hamas and other militants use them for military purposes. Palestinian medical officials deny those allegations and accuse the military of recklessly endangering civilians.

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in keeping with regulations, said there was heavy fighting around Kamal Adwan Hospital, though not inside it, and that weapons were found inside the facility.

The official said medical staff were detained and searched because some of the militants had disguised themselves as medics.

According to the official, the military had helped international organizations relocate 88 patients and medical staff to other hospitals in the weeks leading up to the raid, and that during the raid itself, troops had brought 30,000 liters of fuel and medical supplies from international organizations to help keep the facility running.

The Israeli military has called on Palestinians to evacuate northern Gaza, where it has been waging a large offensive for more than three weeks. The official said the operation in the northern Gaza city of Jabaliya would last “several more weeks.”

The UN said earlier this month at least 400,000 people are still in northern Gaza and hunger is rampant as the amount of humanitarian aid reaching the north has plummeted over the past month.

The Gaza Health Ministry said at least 43,020 people have been killed and 101,110 others wounded since the war started on Oct. 7, 2023.