Xidig Hassan

Researcher|Horn of Africa political analyst|Passionate Environmentalist|Social Entrepreneurship. tweets are mine! RTs not endorsement

[UEFA Foundation @UEFA_Foundation]

Eight-year-old Ali is about to experience a night he'll never forget as he takes part in the UEFA Super Cup medal ceremony in Salzburg.

Born in Austria to Somali parents, Ali loves football for two simple reasons: "running and shooting." Now, he'll have a front-row seat to the action and the chance to meet some of the stars of the game.

Ali is supported by Breaking Grounds, a UEFA Foundation for Children partner in Austria that uses sport to promote inclusion, empowerment and social change.

Because football is more than a game. It's about opening doors, building confidence and creating opportunities for every child. 💙

#SuperCup #EveryChildIsAChampion🏆

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Somalis have shown never ‘say die attitude’ and resilient without fear or intimidation against left wing extremist, Ilhan Omar win by a landslide victory and Artan Omar officiated one of the most prestigious football match ever….thus the only none European referee ever!!

[Naaji @EngNaaji]

Somalia Still Shines 🇸🇴

At a time when Somalia is going through an unusually difficult period, with division, hatred and negative narratives surrounding the country, Somalia continues to produce people who shine on the world stage.

In Minnesota, Ilhan Omar has once again won her Democratic primary with more than 80% of the vote.

And in Europe, Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan has just stood at the centre of one of football’s biggest stages — officiating the UEFA Super Cup between Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa. UEFA called him one of the world’s top referees.

No matter how much political rhetoric, propaganda or negative stereotyping is directed at Somalia and Somalis, **Somalis continue to rise, succeed and make their mark around the world.**

Somalia is not only the problems we see today.
**Somalia is also its people — and its people are making progress. 🇸🇴❤️**

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Only tribalistic folks have deep on knowledge how to divide onions.

[Cabdulfataax Ismaaciil Daahir @CabdulfataaxD]

Somalia holds a seat at the United Nations, a recognised flag and a constitution that claims 637,000 square kilometres. It holds far less of the territory itself. Recognition has functioned for three decades as a substitute for capacity, and that substitution is now reaching its limit. Three scenarios are forming across the Somali peninsula, and each begins precisely where Mogadishu’s claim runs thinnest.

Begin with south-central Somalia, where Al-Shabaab is preparing for another opportunity to seize the state. African Union forces remain the substantial line of defence across much of the Hawiye and Digil and Mirifle territories, and that line grows more fragile as Western financial and political commitment recedes. The recession has a domestic cause. Somalia’s leadership stays absorbed in disputes it has failed to settle for over a decade, and donors have begun to notice that they underwrite one clan’s elite rather than an inclusive state.

A wholesale withdrawal of external funding has become a real prospect. Western governments now hesitate to finance indefinitely a security arrangement that shields a political system whose principals prefer deadlock to compromise, treat institution-building as a threat to their leverage, and postpone elections year after year. Should the political class in the south continue on this path, Western capitals may eventually conclude that little remains worth protecting.

What follows from that conclusion deserves plain statement. Hawiye and Digil and Mirifle territories could be left as an experimental political space in which Al-Shabaab’s capacity to govern is tested by default. External actors would then weigh whether the movement delivers greater administrative order than the corrupt, fragmented and confused elite currently occupying Mogadishu. Were Al-Shabaab to demonstrate some administrative competence, certain governments might explore indirect engagement or a negotiated relationship.

Turkey has assured President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of its commitment to protecting Mogadishu. That assurance rests on conditions Ankara controls only partially. Absent Western backing and absent a genuine change of guard in Mogadishu, which the incumbents so far resist, Turkish protection will struggle to hold even the capital, let alone the corridors beyond it.

A further consequence sits inside this scenario. Sustained contestation against Hawiye political dominance would push the Digil and Mirifle toward alternatives, and one alternative is closer alignment with Ethiopia. In that case Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s search for sea access acquires something it presently lacks, namely Somali community backing. A demand that Mogadishu currently frames as aggression would be reframed as partnership by the very communities whose territories the corridor crosses.

You may read rest in Substack as space is limited here in X 👇🏾

[Salah Jama @SalahJama]

From Somalia to the world! 🇸🇴

Congratulations to Omar Artan on making history at the @UEFA #SuperCup and delivering on one of football’s biggest stages. A proud moment for Somalis and African football.

[Hassan Gesey @HAliGesey]

Have you ever watched a football match just because of the referee? ⚽️

Tonight, all eyes from Mogadishu are on Somali referee Omar Artan as he takes charge of PSG vs Aston Villa. One of our own commanding the pitch and representing Somalia on the international stage. 🇸🇴🔥

[Olivier J.P. Nduhungirehe @onduhungirehe]

Omar Artan has shown to the whole world how a good referee he was. An excellent game by this son of Somalia and Africa👏🏾!

@UEFA #Supercup

[Gianluigi Buffon @gianluigibuffon]

Congratulations to PSG on another great achievement! 🏆

And a special congratulations to Omar Artan.
Tonight, football gave him the stage he deserved. 👏⚽

[beIN SPORTS @beINSPORTS_EN]

🇸🇴 The first Somali to officiate at the Africa Cup of Nations in 2024, Omar Artan is now set to referee his first match in Europe.

He looks ahead to taking charge of the UEFA Super Cup clash between PSG and Aston Villa ⤵️
https://t.co/9AS8etpRej

[UEFA @UEFA]

"Don't ever stop dreaming." ✨

🇸🇴🏆From Somalia to the UEFA Super Cup, Omar Artan continues to break new ground.

As the first non-European referee appointed to take charge of the Super Cup, Omar proved that ambition, belief and hard work can take you anywhere.

“I was lucky, but I have worked hard to be here and I’m really proud.”

Full interview: https://t.co/TyDC7ncA0o

#SuperCup

[Prof Hussein Warsame @ProfHusseinWar]

During the last 15 days of July 2026, I was in Mogadishu, Somalia. It is a complicated city. Some of its buildings are as tall as the tallest ones in my hometown of Calgary, Canada. Yet there is also widespread poverty.

The economy is highly U.S. dollarized, but people seldom seem to carry U.S. cash. Instead, the use of mobile money is remarkably widespread.

On one of those days, I visited a popular high-end coffee shop. I ordered a large cappuccino, which cost US$2.82. I pulled out a US$5 bill to pay. The other customers were so surprised that I was using cash that a middle-aged man came forward and offered to pay for my coffee. I thanked him but declined his generous offer and handed the cash to the cashier instead. The cashier told me to wait while he looked for enough cash to make change. I told him that I would come back for it (I never did).

As I waited, I looked around and watched how everyone else was paying for their coffee and drinks. Nobody was using cash. Everyone was paying with a mobile phone. Occasionally, people would glance at me and smile. I felt completely out of place. There were a couple of men who were older than I was, but they too were using their mobile phones to pay for everything. The only places where paying with cash did not seem to raise eyebrows were when leaving tips in restaurants and paying taxi drivers.

[Abdirahman Mustaf @ARahmanMustaf]

H.E. Prime Minister @HamzaAbdiBarre has announced a series of reshuffles involving the Directors General of various ministries as part of efforts to enhance and accelerate the operations of government ministries and national institutions.

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Spurs

[Ahmed Mohamed ((ASMALi)) @Asmali77]

Happy new month.

The Premier League kicks off this month.

Arsenal again?

[Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan]

“The Fake ‘Invasion’ of Spain: What You Need to Know”

9 things you should know about the so-called ‘crisis’ of Moroccan migrants forcing their way into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta – and the hysterical response from the right in the U.S., UK, and EU.

https://t.co/p1xxBUdfVO

[Pedro Sánchez, Presidente del Gobierno ___ PARODIA @sanchezcasrejon]

El Gobierno de España no tomará medidas ni acción alguna ante vídeos de supuestos invasores en Ceuta creados con IA por la ultraderecha. Basta ya de bulos y fango.
Casi son las 11 y no he desayunado.

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Who is pouring these illegal immigrants into Spain 🇪🇸.

[JD Vance @JDVance]

Thank God @POTUS was elected and our country’s border no longer looks like this.

These images out of Spain are an unfortunate reminder of the consequences of mass migration and the radical left-wing globalist policies that have enabled the Invasion of the West.

@BillMelugin_: "Just look here, do you see any women or children? I mean most people would call these folks so-called asylum seekers. These are young guys just flooding into the country and overwhelming what if any border there is."

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Then you should join the JSP and start your campaign over there.

[Hodan Ali @hodansomali]

THE MOOD WHEN I HEAR OR SEE THE AMAZING JOY COMING OUT OF CEELDHEER. 🫶🏾

I vividly remember my ayeeyo talking about Ceeldheer, Masagaway, Budbud, and Mareeg - always with so much love and pride.

Insha’Allah, I will visit every one of them soon. ❤️

[Andy Burnham @andyburnham]

Let me say this very directly.

Football does not belong to investors. It belongs to the people who fill the stands and who stand on the touchline week in, week out, rain or shine.

The World Cup is not a product. It is the greatest competition in world sport, and it was never anyone's to sell. Dress the deal up however you like. Once you have sold a piece of it, you have sold out.

Football belongs to the fans. It always has, and it always will.

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Stupid.

[Xidig Hassan @Xidigvip]

Only?

[Congressman Randy Fine @RepFine]

You are a Muslim terrorist.

[Boeing Airplanes @BoeingAirplanes]

We're welcoming @UG_Airlines to the Boeing family!

Uganda Airlines will expand its fleet with eight new fuel-efficient airplanes.

✈️ Four 737 MAX
✈️ Four 787 #Dreamliner jets

This order supports growing travel demand across Africa and on routes to the Middle East, Asia and Europe. #FIA2026

Release: https://t.co/YxYbezp9tV