2017-02-08

Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, a former Somali prime minister and dual Somalia-U.S. citizen, was elected president of Somalia after two rounds of voting by the country’s newly selected parliament. The departing president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, conceded defeat on Wednesday, in a sign that the war-ravaged nation can hope for a smooth transition of power. Celebratory gunfire rang around the capital Mogadishu, which had been under security lockdown throughout the day to ensure the voting took place without the risk of a violent attack from al-Shabaab, the al Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group. Still, an attack claimed four lives in Puntland, and mortar fire was heard in Mogadishu throughout the day, a reminder that the threat of violence and destabilization from al-Shabaab is never too far away. The 55-year-old Mr. Mohamed, known widely by his nickname “Farmajo,” is faced with an unenviable set of problems, including U.S. President Donald Trump’s travel ban on Somalia’s citizens and refugees, a famine threatening six million of his people, al-Shabaab’s violent Islamist insurgency and an isolated and impoverished economy. Photo – Somalia’s new president Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed “Farmaajo” He completed his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Buffalo, and was resident of Buffalo for much of his adult life. He [...]

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