20 Shabaab Militants Killed in Somalia

Somali forces patrol in Mogadishu. (AP)
Somali forces patrol in Mogadishu. (AP)
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20 Shabaab Militants Killed in Somalia

Somali forces patrol in Mogadishu. (AP)
Somali forces patrol in Mogadishu. (AP)

Somali state television announced on Wednesday that 20 al-Shabaab militants were killed in an airstrike in the country's central region of Hiran.

The Somalian intelligence forces, in cooperation with international allied forces, carried out the airstrike.

The attack targeted a vehicle belonging to al-Shabaab members, leaving 20 of them dead.

At least ten people were killed on Tuesday when al-Shabaab terrorists stormed a residential building in the Somali capital of Mogadishu.

In a statement, the US military’s Africa Command (AFRICOM) said it carried out a “collective self-defense” strike against al-Shabaab following a request from the Somalian government.

The strike was in support of Somali National Army engagements against al-Shabaab, AFRICOM said.

“At the request of the Federal Government of Somalia and in support of Somali National Army engagements against al-Shabaab, US Africa Command conducted a collective self-defense strike on Feb. 21,” the statement read.

The strike occurred in a remote area near Galmudug, which is approximately 510 km northeast of Mogadishu, it added.

“The initial assessment is the strike killed seven al-Shabaab militants. Given the remote location of the operation, the command assesses that no civilians were injured or killed,” according to AFRICOM.

Meanwhile, the Somali National News Agency reported that disputes among al-Shabaab militias have led to the house arrests of several leaders in the south of the country.



ICC Warrants are Binding, EU Cannot Pick and Choose, EU's Borrell Says

23 May 2023, Israel, Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a statement in the Knesset. (dpa)
23 May 2023, Israel, Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a statement in the Knesset. (dpa)
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ICC Warrants are Binding, EU Cannot Pick and Choose, EU's Borrell Says

23 May 2023, Israel, Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a statement in the Knesset. (dpa)
23 May 2023, Israel, Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a statement in the Knesset. (dpa)

European Union governments cannot pick and choose whether to execute arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court against two Israeli leaders and a Hamas commander, the EU's foreign policy chief said on Saturday.

The ICC issued the warrants on Thursday against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri, for alleged crimes against humanity.

All EU member states are signatories to the ICC's founding treaty, called the Rome Statute.

Several EU states have said they will meet their commitments under the statute if needed, but Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has invited Netanyahu to visit his country, assuring him he would face no risks if he did so.

"The states that signed the Rome convention are obliged to implement the decision of the court. It's not optional," Josep Borrell, the EU's top diplomat, said during a visit to Cyprus for a workshop of Israeli and Palestinian peace activists.

Those same obligations were also binding on countries aspiring to join the EU, he said.

"It would be very funny that the newcomers have an obligation that current members don't fulfil," he told Reuters.

The United States rejected the ICC's decision and Israel said the ICC move was antisemitic.

"Every time someone disagrees with the policy of one Israeli government - (they are) being accused of antisemitism," said Borrell, whose term as EU foreign policy chief ends this month.

"I have the right to criticize the decisions of the Israeli government, be it Mr Netanyahu or someone else, without being accused of antisemitism. This is not acceptable. That's enough."

Israel's 13-month campaign in Gaza has killed about 44,000 Palestinians and displaced nearly all the enclave's population while creating a humanitarian crisis, Gaza officials say.

In their decision, the ICC judges said there were reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu and Gallant were criminally responsible for acts including murder, persecution and starvation as a weapon of war as part of a "widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population of Gaza".

The warrant for Masri lists charges of mass killings during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks. Israel says it has killed Masri.