INTERNACIONAL
Is Trump considering bold Africa play to push back on China, Russia and Islamic terrorists?
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
President Donald Trump is reportedly working on a move that would give the U.S. a new military and economic foothold in Africa, counter China and Russia and strike a blow against Islamist terrorists in the region. And now a leading senator has told Fox News Digital this goal can be realized by recognizing the breakaway Somaliland as an independent state.
Somaliland, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden, broke away from Somalia in 1991. Its government is said to be offering the U.S. a new air and sea base close to the entrance of the Red Sea, and directly across from Yemen and the Houthis, if the U.S. formally recognizes it, 30% of the world’s container ship traffic is reported to pass through its waters en route to or from the Suez Canal.
In the Oval Office on Aug. 8, Trump told reporters, «We’re looking into that right now,» when asked about the recognition of Somaliland and the possible resettlement of Gazans there, adding, «We’re working on that right now, Somaliland».
TRUMP URGED TO AID YEMEN’S ANTI-HOUTHI FORCES AS TERROR GROUP ESCALATES ATTACKS ON SHIPPING
A general view of the city of Hargeisa, Somaliland, in September 2021. (Eduardo Soteras/AFP via Getty Images)
The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Africa, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., told Fox News Digital, «There is a very real opportunity that President Trump will recognize Somaliland during this administration.»
Cruz added, «President Trump is bringing a new era of clarity in American national security, after four years of the Biden administration rewarding our enemies and punishing our allies, and recognizing Somaliland should be part of this new era.
«Somaliland has been a reliable ally to the United States, is integrating itself with us and our allies globally, and is committed to helping us counter efforts by China to undermine the safety and prosperity of Americans,» he said.
The White House did not respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
Somaliland security personnel stand watch in front of shipping containers being stored at Berbera Port. (Ed Ram/AFP via Getty Images)
Neighboring Somalia has been battling Islamist fundamentalist fighters for decades. U.S. Africa Command has increased the number of airstrikes against both ISIS and al-Shabab terrorists under the current administration.
Across from Somaliland, al-Shabab terrorists conduct military exercises in Mogadishu, Somalia. (AP Photo/ Farah Abdi Warsameh)
But Somaliland, 99% Muslim, has allegedly eliminated radicalism and has aligned itself with the U.S. and Israel, leading Cruz to tell Fox News Digital, «They’re a Muslim country, in a very dangerous part of Africa, showing real courage. I will continue to push for deepening the U.S.-Somaliland partnership, including through the Africa Subcommittee in the Senate, and I expect that my colleagues on both sides of the aisle will be receptive to doing so.»
‘PEACEMAKER’ TRUMP CAN END AFRICA’S BIGGEST WAR, FORMER WHITE HOUSE ADVISOR SAYS
Sen. Ted Cruz has urged President Trump to recognize Somaliland as an independent state. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
Earlier this month, Cruz wrote to President Trump about Somaliland, stating, «it requires the status of a state. I urge you to grant it that recognition.»
Somaliland’s president, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi , is optimistic, telling the British Guardian newspaper on May 30, «Recognition is on the horizon.» He added, «It’s a matter of time. Not if, but when».
Somaliland’s port at Berbera is the jewel in any Washington deal. Analysts say it is in such a strategic position that both Russia and China have tried to acquire it. Right next door to it is one of Africa’s five longest runways, offering the U.S. the possibility of both a sea and air base that can strike Houthi rebels to the north and Al Shabaab terrorists to the east.
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)
In his letter to the White House, Cruz wrote, «Somaliland has emerged as a critical security and diplomatic partner for the United States, helping America advance our national security interests in the Horn of Africa and beyond. It is strategically located along the
Gulf of Aden, putting it near one of the world’s busiest maritime corridors. It possesses capable armed forces and contributes to regional counterterrorism and piracy operations. It has proposed hosting a U.S. military presence near the Red Sea along the Gulf of Aden.»
US AFRICA COMMANDER HIGHLIGHTS TERROR GROWTH IN SAHEL AND COMPETITION WITH CHINA FOR INFLUENCE
This handout screen grab captured from a video shows Yemen’s Houthi fighters’ takeover of the Galaxy Leader Cargo in the Red Sea coast off Hudaydah, on November 20, 2023 in the Red Sea, Yemen. (Photo by Houthi Movement via Getty Images)
The U.S.’s largest military base in Africa is just up the coast in Djibouti. But there are security and surveillance issues at the Camp Lemonnier U.S. base where the Chinese and other nations have opened their own bases and monitoring stations nearby.
Somaliland is also offering the White House access to rare earth minerals essential for high-tech industries, such as lithium and silicon quartz.
The U.S. has described Somalia, with large numbers of both ISIS and al-Qaida-linked operatives, as a terrorist safe haven. Now the increasing presence of China and military forces from countries such as Turkey is reportedly leading some in Washington to be increasingly unhappy with its «one Somalia» policy, where Somaliland continues to be recognized only as a part of Somalia.
People walk in front of a mosque in the city of Hargeisa, Somaliland, on September 16, 2021. (Eduardo Soteras/AFP via Getty Images)
For now, a State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital the official position: «The United States recognizes the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Somalia, which includes the territory of Somaliland. The State Department is not in active discussions with Somaliland’s representatives about a deal to recognize Somaliland as a state.»
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
But, Somaliland’s foreign minister worked Washington’s corridors and politicians in April, and several African sources, including the influential Horn Observer news outlet, have reported that President Abdullahi is expected to come to D.C. «soon». U.S. officials, including the U.S. ambassador to Somalia, Richard Riley, are said to have been to Somaliland to meet with the president at least three times this year.
africa,donald trump,national security,terrorism,trade
INTERNACIONAL
Dura amenaza de Donald Trump: “Todo Irán podría ser eliminado en una noche y podría ser la de mañana”
INTERNACIONAL
CENTCOM commander directed strike against an IRGC headquarters in underground facility: sources
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
High-level sources have informed Fox News that during rescue efforts in Iran after a U.S. fighter jet was shot down, the commander of U.S. Central Command directed an attack against an underground Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps headquarters.
While the airman rescue was going on, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper directed a strike on an IRGC headquarters in an underground facility near Tehran — it was done with B2 bombers, using Massive Ordnance Penetrators, the same weapon used last year in Operation Midnight Hammer, according to the sources. Fox News is told the headquarters was obliterated.
U.S. military B1 bombers (BONES) dropped a hundred 2,000-pound bombs during the rescue operations to keep Iranians away from the rescue area during the operation, according to a senior U.S. defense official.
A senior military source told Fox News, «we delivered the heat» on the IRGC.
RESCUE EXPERT SAYS MOST DANGEROUS MOMENT COMES AFTER ‘JACKPOT’ CALL IN RECOVERY BEHIND ENEMY LINES
Adm. Brad» Cooper, commander of Central Command, speaks during a joint press conference with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth at CENTCOM headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, on March 5, 2026. (Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images)
CENTCOM noted in a press release that U.S. forces had rescued two service members after their F-15E was downed.
Fox News was told that the operation took place between the two rescues: Cooper ordered the B2s to fly round trip from Whiteman Air Force Base in the U.S. because they received time-sensitive intelligence about the location of a large number of IRGC commanders inside this underground bunker in Tehran, and the Massive Ordnance Penetrators, bunker buster bombs, were dropped by the B2 warplanes.
AIRMAN RESCUE SHOWS US CAN PENETRATE ENEMY TERRITORY ‘ANYWHERE’ IN IRAN, FORMER PENTAGON OFFICIAL WARNS
Wreckage is seen from what Iranian authorities say is a U.S. military helicopter that crashed during a mission to rescue the missing American pilot of an F-15E that was downed, in a handout image provided on April 5, 2026, in an unspecified location in Iran. (Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance/Handout via Getty Images)
Following the rescues, President Donald Trump declared in a Truth Social post, «We have rescued the seriously wounded, and really brave, F-15 Crew Member/Officer, from deep inside the mountains of Iran. The Iranian Military was looking hard, in big numbers, and getting close. He is a highly respected Colonel. This type of raid is seldom attempted because of the danger to ‘man and equipment.’ It just doesn’t happen!»
RETIRED F-16 PILOT SAYS RESCUED US AIRMAN’S SURVIVAL IN IRAN HIGHLIGHTS INTENSE EVASION TRAINING
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
«The second raid came after the first one, where we rescued the pilot in broad daylight, also unusual, spending seven hours over Iran. An AMAZING show of bravery and talent by all!» he said.
war with iran, iran, donald trump, military, world
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
President Donald Trump touted the «historic» rescue of the downed F-15E airmen behind enemy lines and issued a warning to Iran to make a deal before Tuesday night’s 8 p.m. ET deadline or face being «taken out.»
«This is a rescue that’s very historic,» Trump told the White House press corps in a Monday news conference. «It’ll go down to the books.»
«Late Thursday night, an American F-15 fighter jet went down deep inside enemy territory in Iran while participating in Operation Epic Fury, where we’re doing unbelievably well. Well, at a level that nobody’s ever seen before.»
Trump quickly paused his hailing of the rescue to add a warning for Iran to come to peace.
TRUMP REVEALS IRAN MADE ‘SIGNIFICANT PROPOSAL’ AFTER ULTIMATUM, BUT ‘NOT GOOD ENOUGH’
President Donald Trump describes the ‘historic’ mission to rescue two stranded airmen behind enemy lines. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
«The entire country can be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night,» Trump said.
Trump continued to press Iran to come to a peace deal, hours after saying the offers thus far are «not enough,» and War Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed the heaviest bombing of Iran to date.
TRUMP SAYS IRAN ‘NO LONGER A THREAT’ AFTER 32 DAYS — OUTLINES NEXT PHASE OF US WAR
«By the way, per the president’s direction, [Monday] will be the largest volume of strikes since day one of this operation,» Hegseth vowed, taking the mic just before Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan «Raizin’» Caine.
«Tomorrow, even more than today. And then Iran has a choice,» Hegseth added. «Choose wisely, because this president does not play around. You can ask Soleimani, you can ask Maduro. You can ask Khamenei.»
Trump, responding to a question from Fox News, noted there were military leaders warning against the dangerous exfiltration of the two airmen, citing the risks to a multitude of troops.
«There were military people, very professional, that preferred not doing it: These two were totally on board, which was very important,» Trump said, noting Hegseth and Gen. Caine.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth warned Iran to ‘choose wisely’ as President Donald Trump has ordered the two heaviest days of bombings on the regime. (Kent Nishimura / AFP)
IDF CONFIRMS IRGC INTEL CHIEF KILLED; QUDS FORCE COMMANDER ALSO ELIMINATED IN STRIKE
«But, no, there were military people that said, ‘You just don’t do this; you don’t go into the heart of a very powerful military.»
Trump noted that «half the people are wearing uniforms» in Iran, exacerbating the challenges of extracting the American airmen.
«I was surprised somebody said it’s the only time it’s ever been done,» Trump continued. «I said, that’s not possible, but it is possible because you’re going into hundreds of thousands of soldiers along the path. I mean, look at some of the helicopters, how they got hit.»
Trump, in a moment that went from serious to lighter, asked Caine «how many» people conducted the rescue.
INSIDE THE DARING RESCUE OF AIRMAN BEHIND ENEMY LINES: HOW CIA ASSISTED WITH ‘DECEPTION CAMPAIGN’
«I’d love to keep that a secret,» Caine shot back.
«I’ll keep it a secret, but it was hundreds and hundreds of these people,» Trump said.
«Hundreds of people went into this journey. Hundreds of people could have been killed. Forget about the equipment. A lot of equipment. Nobody cares of it. Hundreds of people could have been killed,» Trump added.
«So we had people that were within the military that said, ‘This is not a wise move,’» Trump said.
«And I understood that, but I decided to do it.»
Gen. Dan Caine (right) said he wanted to keep some details of the historic rescue secret to preserve future missions as President Donald Trump (left) and War Secretary Pete Hegseth (center) vowed the two heaviest days of bombing to come in Iran. (Andrew Harnik)
US ‘OBLITERATED’ IRGC HEADQUARTERS WITH BUNKER BUSTER BOMBS DURING RESCUE
For now, Tuesday night’s 8 p.m. ET deadline looms for Iran to make a deal to Trump’s satisfaction.
«I can’t talk about ceasefire, but I can tell you that we have an active, willing participant on the other side,» Trump said, acknowledging Iran has been «excellent negotiators» because they have been able to delay peace for decades. «They would like to be able to make a deal. I can’t say any more than that.»
«I can tell you they’re negotiating, we think, in good faith,» Trump said. «We’re going to find out. We’re getting the help of some incredible countries that want this to be ended, because it affects them.
HEGSETH REVEALS COVERT VISIT TO TROOPS FIGHTING IN OPERATION EPIC FURY
The «plan,» short of an imminent peace deal, Trump expounded, would be devastating for a country that would require a century to rebuild.
«We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding, and never to be used again,» Trump vowed. «I mean, complete demolition by 12, and it’ll happen over a period of four hours if we wanted to. «We don’t want that to happen.»
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
«So do I want to do that? No. Do I want to destroy their infrastructure? No,» Trump concluded. «It will take them 100 years to rebuild. Right now, if we left today, it would take them 20 years to rebuild their country. And it would never be as good as it was. And the only way they’re going to be able to rebuild their country is to utilize the genius of the United States of America.»
heroism, donald trump, us air force, war with iran, iran
El Banco Central sumó 60 días consecutivos con compra de dólares y roza los USD 4.500 millones en 2026
Olvidate del trapo de piso: el electrodoméstico que mantiene tu casa limpia y sin esfuerzo
La Casa Rosada les negó el acceso a los periodistas de los medios involucrados en la campaña rusa contra Milei
Créditos hipotecarios del Nación: los diputados libertarios cierran filas y acuerdan no alimentar la polémica en redes
Dura amenaza de Donald Trump: “Todo Irán podría ser eliminado en una noche y podría ser la de mañana”
CENTCOM commander directed strike against an IRGC headquarters in underground facility: sources
La Armada sorteará 30 lugares en el buque que escoltará la salida de la Fragata Libertad: cómo anotarse
La nueva advertencia de Donald Trump a Irán: «El tiempo se acaba, quedan 48 horas antes del infierno»
Círculo rojo: intrigas en el gabinete, desgaste por el caso Adorni y movimientos inquietantes en el Poder Judicial
Caputo habló sobre los créditos del Banco Nación que tomaron sus funcionarios: “No hay nada ilegal ni inmoral”
INTERNACIONAL2 días agoLa nueva advertencia de Donald Trump a Irán: «El tiempo se acaba, quedan 48 horas antes del infierno»
- POLITICA2 días ago
Círculo rojo: intrigas en el gabinete, desgaste por el caso Adorni y movimientos inquietantes en el Poder Judicial
- ECONOMIA9 horas ago
Caputo habló sobre los créditos del Banco Nación que tomaron sus funcionarios: “No hay nada ilegal ni inmoral”
