June 2025 Somalia Control Map & Timeline: Al Shabaab Resurgence, ISIS Retreat, Jubaland Defiant (Subscription)

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Map by Evan Centanni, from basemap by onestopmap.com 

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Several significant shifts in territorial control have affected Somalia since December 2024. Most recently, forces of Somalia's Al Qaeda affiliated rival government, Al Shabaab, began sweeping across Middle Shabelle region on the heels of an African Union troop reduction and mission downgrade, erasing most of the pro-federal coalition's 2022 gains there. It's also captured key areas in Hiran and Lower Shabelle regions, leading to fears that capital city Mogadishu could be at risk.

Before that a small but deadly conflict between the federal government and Jubaland state left the southern region essentially outside the country's main coalition. Then, Puntland state carried out a remarkably effective offensive (known as "Operation Hilaac") gutting the core of so-called "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL) control in the northern mountains, likely uprooting the global network's central financial hub.

See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional Somalia control map, which includes a summary and timeline of territorial changes and key events since our previous Somalia map report illustrating the situation in June 2024, with sources cited.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

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Exclusive map report includes:

• Illustration of current territorial control across all areas claimed by Somalia in late June 2025, color-coded for the federal government coalition (including AUSSOM peacekeepers - formerly ATMIS), autonomous unionist forces (Puntland, SSC-Khatumo, and now Jubaland), separatist Somaliland, Al Qaeda affiliate Al Shabaab, and fighters aligned with the so-called "Islamic State" (formerly ISIS/ISIL). Areas of mixed or unclear control indicated separately. Colorblind accessible.
• Boundaries and labels for Somalia's official regions and states, including the self-proclaimed independent Republic of Somaliland and federal states Puntland, Galmudug, Jubaland, South West, and Hirshabelle. Illustrates the claims of both sides in the Somaliland-Puntland border dispute, as well as actual control.
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including many relevant smaller towns and villages.
• Locations of recent fighting and other important events, including El Baraf (Ceel Baraf), Bal'ad (Balcad), Masajid Ali Gadud (Masaajid Cali Gaduud), Adan Yabal (Adan Yabaal), Aborey (Aboorey), Awdhegle (Aw Dheegle), and Ras Kamboni (Raas Kambooni), as well as Dhadar (Dhaadaar), Tasji' (Tasjiic, Tisjiic), Turmasale (Tuur Masaale), and other sites in the Almiskat (Cal Miskaad) Mountains, plus many more.
• Beginner-friendly summary of major shifts and milestones in Somalia's civil war from mid-2024 to mid-2025
• Detailed timeline of territorial control changes and selected key political and military events from June 28, 2024 to June 19, 2025, with sources cited. Includes events related to claims of Al Shabaab control in neighboring Kenya, as well as developments in Somalia's membership in international organizations.
• Chronicle of key developments in the self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland's quest for international recognition as an independent country (events included as part of timeline)
  

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June 2024 Somalia Control Map & Timeline: Height of ISIS Control, Al Shabaab Stalemate

(To see other maps in this series, view all Somalia updates.)

This is the second of a set of three Somalia reports published in June 2025 covering the past two years of Somalia's civil war, here mapping the situation as of late June 2024. See also our simultaneously-published reports illustrating the situation as of August 2023 and June 2025.

Base map by Koen Adams of onestopmap.com, with design and control by Evan Centanni. To use this map in your own materials, please contact us to arrange permission.

Article and timeline by Evan Centanni

Mapping Somalia in 2024: Al Shabaab Stalemate and the Height of ISIS Control

This report covers the period in Somalia’s civil war from August 26, 2024 to June 28, 2023, before the events of early 2025, which would see a major Al Shabaab resurgence in central Somalia, as well as the retreat of the so-called “Islamic State” (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) during Puntland state’s “Operation Lightning’” (Hilaac) in the remote mountains of the north. In retrospect, the time from mid-2023 to mid-2024 now looks like a period of relative calm – particularly as the war between Somaliland and SSC-Khatumo settled into a state of frozen conflict - but there were still a number of important developments, which are summarized in the following paragraphs and covered in more detail in the event timeline further below (where additional sources are cited in the form of in-line links). In brief, this period included:

• The rollback of recent pro-federal gains in central Somalia's Galgadud region after the coalition's defeat at Osweyne, returning Al Shabaab’s area of control there to its previous extent from 2022 (including Elbur and, for a time, Eldher as well)
• Federal-aligned forces’ temporary capture, lasting for several months, of the most prominent settlements held by Al Shabaab in neighboring Mudug region (Ba’adweyn, Amara, and Qey’ad), and lasting control of Bulo Haji, a key outpost in Lower Juba
• The defeat of Al Shabaab in northern Somalia's Almiskat Mountains at the hands of the so-called "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL), which was then able to consolidate power and reach roughly its all-time peak of control in Somalia
• Progress in the planned reduction of the African Union’s ATMIS “peacekeeping” force, with the number of bases handed over or closed reaching at total of 18 out of roughly 70
• Political turmoil as the Somali federal government turned against ally Ethiopia over a deal struck with self-proclaimed independent Somaliland
• A major escalation in the “Hiran State” movement, with its supporters clashing with federal forces and capturing key sites in Beledweyne city
• The end of the “Ga’an Libah” insurrection in central Somaliland
• Self-governed Puntland state’s latest exit from federal politics, announcing that it would act “independent” even while continuing to say it was part of Somalia

August 2023 Somalia Control Map & Timeline: Peak of Federal Control, SSC-Khatumo Triumph (Subscription)

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Map by Evan Centanni, from basemap by onestopmap.com 

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Mid-2023 saw a 15-year low point in control by Somalia's Al Qaeda-affiliated rival government Al Shabaab in its war against the coalition represented by the country's internationally-recognized federal government. On the very same day, history recorded a striking victory for the SSC-Khatumo movement, which overnight achieved its major objective of breaking away from self-proclaimed independent Somaliland, with the goal of joining federal Somalia as a state of its own.  

During the same period, forces of the so-called "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL) turned the tables on Al Shabaab fighters in the north's Almiskat (Cal Miskaad) Mountains, beginning to retake control from the vindictive rival group. In southern and central Somalia, the international troops of the African Union's ATMIS force completed the first planned phase of their partial withdrawal from the country. And two small insurrections sprung up, with dissidents declaring a "Hiran State" (also spelled "Hiiraan State") separate from Somalia's Hirshabelle, while "Ga'an Libah" (Gacan Libaax) militias carried out an insurgency in central Somaliland.

See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional Somalia control map, which includes a timeline of territorial changes and key events since our previous Somalia map report illustrating the situation in January 2023, with sources cited.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

Want to see before you subscribe? Check out our latest FREE SAMPLE Somalia map!

Exclusive map report includes:

• Illustration of current territorial control across all areas claimed by Somalia in late August 2023, color-coded for the federal government coalition (including ATMIS peacekeepers), autonomous unionist forces (Puntland and SSC-Khatumo), separatist Somaliland, Al Qaeda affiliate Al Shabaab, and fighters aligned with the so-called "Islamic State" (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL). Areas of mixed or unclear control indicated separately. Colorblind accessible.
• Boundaries and labels for Somalia's official regions and states, including the self-proclaimed independent Republic of Somaliland and federal states Puntland, Galmudug, Jubaland, South West, and Hirshabelle. Illustrates the claims of both sides in the Somaliland-Puntland border dispute, as well as actual control.
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including many relevant smaller towns and villages.
• Locations of recent fighting and other important events, including Lasanod (Las Anod, Laas Canood, Laascaanood), Gumays (Guumeys), Elbur (Ceel Buur), Osweyne (Oswein, Cowsweyne), Goja'ade (Goojacadde), Run Nirgod (Ruun-Nirgood), Garasyani (Garasiyaani), Shebab (Sheebaab), Bulo Marer (Buulo Mareer) and many more.
• Beginner-friendly summary of major shifts and milestones in Somalia's civil war during early to mid-2023
• Detailed timeline of territorial control changes (including airspace) and selected key political and military events from January 17, 2023 to August 25, 2023, with sources cited. Includes events related to claims of Al Shabaab control in neighboring Kenya, as well as developments in administration of Somali airspace and Somalia's membership in international organizations.
• Chronicle of key developments in the self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland's quest for international recognition as an independent country (events included as part of timeline)
  

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Photos: PolGeoNow's 2022 Visit to the Somaliland Office in Taiwan

Important Note: PolGeoNow does not take any position on whether Taiwan or Somaliland should be diplomatically recognized as independent countries, and does not take sides in the disputes they have with the governments of Somalia and China. During our visit to the Somaliland office in Taipei, we made clear to all parties that we were there strictly for neutral journalistic purposes. PolGeoNow has continued to report freely on developments both favorable and unfavorable to the self-declared Somaliland government in the time since our visit.

East Africa's self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland has an embassy-like representative office in the East Asian city of Taipei, semi-official capital of Taiwan. Somaliland and Taiwan are not accepted as independent countries by the United Nations (UN) - but neither are they controlled by the UN member countries that claim them (Somalia and China respectively).

All photos by PolGeoNow

Map modified by PolGeoNow from graphic by Wikimedia user Addicted04 (CC BY-SA)

As part of PolGeoNow's mission to report neutrally on the realities of world geography, we're especially interested in so-called "de facto states" - places that are governed like independent countries, but aren't openly accepted as independent by most other governments. And in August 2022, we were lucky enough to visit an unusual site linking two of the best-known of these unrecognized countries: Somaliland and Taiwan. While in Taipei, Taiwan's semi-official capital, we were invited to visit the representative office of the self-declared Republic of Somaliland, and to meet its head diplomat at the time, Mohamed Hagi.

We reported on our 2022 visit soon afterwards with a thread on Twitter (now X)*, and today we're publishing this more complete account for future reference and historical interest. 

*We're now also active on Mastodon, BlueSky, and Threads 

Somalia Supplement: Did Puntland Declare Independence?

This article is a supplement to PolGeoNow’s series of professional reports on territorial control in Somalia’s decades-long civil war. For more context, see that report series. However, this article is written to be accessible to general audiences.

Puntland's Not-quite "Declaration of Independence" 

Close-up of PolGeoNow's 2024 Somalia control map, showing Puntland state and surroundings. Click on the image to see the full map, complete with detailed legend (free for all readers). The larger blue area on the right represents land solidly controlled by Puntland, while the state's official claimed borders are marked by the dotted while line through Mudug region in the south, and by the left-hand side of the western zone labeled "Area claimed by both Somaliland and Puntland".

As Somalia’s original self-governing state – founded in the chaos of the 1990s before today's Somali federal government even existed – Puntland is in many ways the equivalent of an independent country. Somalia’s federal military has rarely been allowed to operate there, the federal government has little influence over the selection of state or local Puntland officials, and the state government tends to pick and choose to what degree it participates in the federal system. However, unlike neighboring Somaliland, which declared independence in 1991, Puntland has insisted since its founding that it's part of Somalia.

It caught the attention of political geography enthusiasts, then, when in March 2024, Puntland’s government was quoted as saying that it would operate with the “full powers of an independent state”. This came amid a dispute over constitutional reforms in Somalia's federal government – a government whose legitimacy Puntland said it no longer recognized. And it’s followed through in practice, refusing to even attend political talks on Somalia’s political future in year since, continuing its own international relations with countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and fighting a successful war against an important branch of the so-called “Islamic State” (ISIS/ISIL) all on its own (except for some air support from the UAE and US).

Somalia Supplement: Is there an Al Shabaab presence in SSC-Khatumo?

This article is a supplement to PolGeoNow’s series of professional reports on territorial control in Somalia’s decades-long civil war. Reading it should require minimal prior knowledge, but for much more background, see our August 2023 and June 2024 Somalia reports.

Close-up of PolGeoNow's 2024 Somalia control map, showing areas of control and influence by SSC-Khatumo as the smaller area of blue on the left, and areas solidly controlled by Somaliland in green. Click on the image to see the full map, complete with detailed legend (free for all readers). Areas of known Al Shabaab presence are shown in the north, outside SSC-Khatumo's are of influence.

In 2023, militias in the northern area of Somalia’s claimed territory rose up in rebellion against the self-declared independent Republic of Somaliland, which has claimed since 1991 to be a separate country from Somalia. These militias and their supporters are trying to instead join Somalia as one of its federal states, which they call “SSC-Khatumo” (SSC-Khaatumo in Somali). The “SSC” stands for the three regions they claim governance over: Sool, Sanaag, and “Ayn” (spelled Cayn in Somali, though to most English speakers the C sounds silent).

As part of Somaliland’s opposition to SSC-Khatumo, various allegations have been made that the insurrectionists are linked to Al Shabaab, the Al Qaeda affiliated organization that governs much of rural southern Somalia. These allegations have been largely ignored outside of Somaliland, but we’re still sometimes asked why our maps don’t appear to take them into account. To address this, we’ve written up this article to explain in detail what’s going on, what we know about it, and what the reasoning is behind our mapping of the situation.

Sudan Control Map & Timeline: Former Rebels Join Fight - June 2024

(To see other maps in this series, view all Sudan articles on PolGeoNow.)

This marks the first fully up-to-date edition of our new Sudan map series, after several retrospective reports on the situations in previous months. The latest of those, featuring a map of control at the end of January 2024, is being published alongside this one. 

To access our full catalog of map reports covering control in Sudan and many other countries, sign up for our Control Map Subscription Service - popular with major government and international organizations, but available to individual subscribers at just US$19.99 per month!

Map by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic, starting from base map by Koen Adams of onestopmap.com. "Neutral Joint Force" has been redefined to exclude Darfuri former rebel groups who have joined the fight against the RSF, now subsumed under "Govt./SAF & allies". See below for a detailed accounting of which groups are included in each territorial control category. To use this map in your own materials, please contact us to arrange permission.

Timeline by Djordje Djukic and Evan Centanni

Darfur's Joint Force Enters War Against RSF, Kicking off Battle of El Fasher

In the four months since the date depicted on PolGeoNow's previous Sudan control map, lines of control have remained mostly stable, except for a major SAF breakthrough within the city of Omdurman and the RSF's takeover of Mellit, the headquarters of Darfur's Joint Force coalition. Other changes to the map have been made to show where new evidence has emerged of RSF presence (or lack thereof), but these don't represent major victories or defeats. The bigger story has, instead, been a critical realignment in alliances.

The leaders of Darfur's most prominent "Joint Force" former rebel groups, the SLM-MM and JEM-Jibril, have been outspoken against the RSF since November 2023, even recruiting and training new SAF-allied forces in eastern Sudan. But until recently, their field commanders based in Darfur, where the core of each group's forces were stationed, had kept unofficially neutral in the war, helping preserve a year-long, citizen-mediated ceasefire in the city of El Fasher. That all changed after Joint Force troops started fighting alongside the SAF around Khartoum in late March, leading to RSF retaliation across Sudan. By mid-April, the group's major commanders in Darfur had joined the fight, kicking off a devastating, full-scale battle for the region's capital.

A few months ago, "neutral Joint Force" was a useful label for most of the former rebel forces in Darfur, but today it can only fairly apply to the minority of factions who refused to enter the battle, and now say they're launching an official "Neutral Joint Force" separate from the larger SAF-allied one. Our map has been changed accordingly, now subsuming SAF-allied groups within "Govt./SAF and allies", while reserving the "Neutral Joint Force" symbols from the January map for the new strictly neutral coalition. Nearly every Darfuri former rebel group has split into factions over the question of whether to ally with the SAF (the longtime leaders of the SLM-TC and GSLF, alongside their loyalist factions, head the neutral camp).

Sudan Control Map & Timeline: RSF Takes Eastern City - Jan. 2024 (Subscription)

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Map and article by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic

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In December 2024, Sudan's defiant Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary made waves by invading new parts of Sudan's eastern heartland, capturing the major city of Wad Medani and most of Gezira (Al-Jazirah) state. Meanwhile, a new battle was brewing in Darfur as tensions reached a peak in El Fasher, where our map now shows areas of control and presence for the neutral former rebel groups of the Joint Force.

(This edition of our new Sudan map series depicts control at the end of January 2024 based on research conducted through mid-June.)

See all this and more in the latest update to PolGeoNow's rigorously-researched and exhaustively cited Sudan control map and report - the most precise and accurate available online. Besides the updated map, the report also includes a brief who's-who of Sudan's rebel and former rebel groups, plus a detailed chronicle of changes and events since December 5, 2023, the date illustrated by our previous Sudan control map.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Control Maps Subscription Service.

Want to see before you subscribe? Check out our most recent FREE SAMPLE Sudan map report!

Exclusive map report includes:

• Up-to-date illustration of current territorial control in Sudan's new civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (official government military) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group, rigorously corroborated, with areas of ambiguity clearly indicated. 
• Detailed and carefully-researched illustration of territorial control by Sudan's two major "holdout" rebel forces from before the 2023 war: SPLM-N El Hilu in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, and the SLM-AW (SLA-AW) in Darfur's Jebel Marra. 
• NEW: Indication of power centers and area of presence for Darfur's neutral Joint Force of former rebel groups
• Brief who's-who guide to all the major groups and factions among Sudan's rebels and former rebels
• Detailed explanation of what each color represents on the map, and which forces are included as "allies" of each side
  
• Thoroughly-researched depictions of each disputed territory claimed by Sudan along the Egyptian and South Sudanese borders, marking which parts are controlled by the other countries and which parts by other groups (e.g. UN peacekeepers and the Ngok Dinka "Abyei Area Administration").
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including key towns and other locations important to current events
• Locations of recent control changes and other important events, including El Giteina (Gitaina), Al Hasaheisa, Rufaa, Bara, Habila, Nertiti, Umbro (Umm Baru), Tina border crossing, Shendi, Jebel Moon, Babanusa, Um Rawaba, and many more
  
• Detailed timeline of important events and changes to territorial control from December 5, 2023 through January 31, 2024, with links to sources.

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This map and report are not available for automated purchase to non-subscribers. If you need access or republication rights for only this map report, contact service@polgeonow.com for options.

Sudan Control Map & Timeline: RSF Takes Darfur Cities - Dec. 2023 (Subscription)

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Map and article by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic

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From October to December of 2023, the defiant Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group accomplished a massive consolidation of control in western Sudan's Darfur region. By early December, the country’s official military had lost its footholds in four out of five of the region's state capitals - though the RSF's control of Darfur was still not as complete as most reports implied.

(This second edition of our new Sudan map series depicts control in early December 2023, based on research conducted through January of 2024. Another edition, showing the current situation in 2024, will be coming in the near future.)

See all this and more in the latest update to PolGeoNow's rigorously-researched and exhaustively cited Sudan control map and report - the most precise and accurate available online. In addition to the updated map, the report also includes a detailed chronicle of changes and events since October 9, 2023, the date illustrated by our earlier Sudan control map.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

Want to see before you subscribe? Check out our most recent FREE SAMPLE Sudan map report!

Exclusive map report includes:

• Up-to-date illustration of current territorial control in Sudan's new civil war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (official government military) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group, rigorously corroborated, with areas of ambiguity clearly indicated. 
• Detailed and carefully-researched illustration of territorial control by Sudan's two major "holdout" rebel forces from before the 2023 war: SPLM-N El Hilu in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states, and the SLA-AW (SLM-AW) in Darfur's Jebel Marra.
  
• Thoroughly-researched depictions of each disputed territory claimed by Sudan along the Egyptian and South Sudanese borders, marking which parts are controlled by the other countries and which parts by other groups (e.g. UN peacekeepers and the Ngok Dinka "Abyei Area Administration").
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including key towns and other locations important to current events
• Locations of recent control changes and other important events, including Nyala, Zalingei, Ed Daein, Ardamata, Balila oil field, Shag Omar oil field, Babanusa, Um Rawaba, and more.
  
• Detailed timeline of important events and changes to territorial control from October 9 to December 5, 2023, with links to sources.

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Sudan War Control Map & Timeline - October 2023

There are later versions of this map available. To see them, view all Sudan articles on PolGeoNow.

PolGeoNow proudly presents the first edition of our new Sudan war map series, meticulously researched over many months. We believe these to be the most accurate Sudan control maps available anywhere.

This edition of the map depicts control in early October 2023, based on research conducted through January of 2024. A map of control in December 2023 has been released to our paid subscribers, and we intend to publish another free edition soon showing the current situation in 2024.

Map by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic, starting from base map by Koen Adams of onestopmap.com. See article below for a detailed accounting of which groups are included in each territorial control category. To use this map in your own materials, please contact us to arrange permission.

Timeline by Djordje Djukic and Evan Centanni

Unknown Territory: Sudan’s New Civil War 

In April 2023, a new civil war broke out in Sudan (officially “the Sudan”)*, pitting the country’s official military, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), against the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a powerful government-affiliated paramilitary group. Sudan has fought more than one civil war before, but never in its traditional heartland along the River Nile. This new conflict is said to be the first in “at least a hundred years” where control of the capital city, Khartoum, is clearly in the balance. 

Unlike previous wars, the new conflict is essentially a power struggle among members of Sudan’s majority cultural group, the “Arab” people - and yet, analysts say it’s still a continuation of the long-running clash between the country’s central core and outer regions. The RSF’s leadership, and most of its fighters, come from the nomadic Arab communities of Sudan’s Darfur region in the west, who were integrated into Arab culture later in history than the Nile elites, and until recently held little power in the national government. (See below for further discussion of these and other conflict dynamics.)

With at least 13,000 dead as of December 2024, the war is also one of the deadliest in the world today, on par with the Myanmar conflict and only far-surpassed in 2023 by the wars in Ukraine and Israel/Palestine. Many thousands of civilians are among the dead, with the United Nations documenting indiscriminate SAF airstrikes in major cities, while also describing an apparent campaign of genocide by the RSF and allies against non-Arab citizens of West Darfur state.

Map Update: Record Number of African Union Members Suspended (Sep. 2023)

Map by Evan Centanni, from blank map by Eric Gaba. License: CC BY-SA

AU Suspensions at All-time High

There are now a record of six member countries banned from participation in the African Union (AU), after Niger and Gabon were both suspended in August 2023. AU suspensions are almost always a response to a government overthrow in a member country, implying that coups in Africa are now at their highest point in the organization's 21-year history. The number is also up drastically from our previous African Union map update in June 2021, when we reported that only two countries were currently suspended.

Map: Which Countries are in the African Union?

Correction (2023-09-04): This article was still displaying the previous version of the map after its text was updated yesterday. It has now been fixed.

This map and explainer will be updated whenever there's a change in AU membership, including suspensions and reinstatements. News about each change will be published in separate articles, which you can find listed below, or by viewing all African Union content on PolGeoNow.

Map by Evan Centanni, from blank map by Eric Gaba. License: CC BY-SA

What is the African Union?

Launched in 2002 as a replacement for the earlier Organization of African Unity (OAU), the African Union (AU) is an intergovernmental organization that works on increasing cooperation, stability, and development within the continent of Africa. The organization is headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. (Ethiopia is the only African country that the European empires never colonized, and is also the second most populous country on the continent.)

Somalia Control Map & Timeline: Al Shabaab in Retreat - January 2023 (Subscription) - Final Version

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Map by onestopmap.com, Evan Centanni, and Djordje Djukic

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Pro-federal forces, including local militias and other allies, have made remarkable gains against Al Shabaab in recent months, despite their advances in mid-2022 having been exaggerated. Al Shabaab has recently been driven out of several major towns that it governed unopposed for many years - potentially the biggest achievement of the pro-federal coalition in almost a decade.

See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional Somalia control map, which includes a timeline of territorial changes and key events since our previous Somalia map report of December 2021, with sources cited.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

Want to see before you subscribe? Check out our most recent FREE SAMPLE Somalia map!

Exclusive map report includes:

• Up-to-date illustration of current territorial control in Somalia, color-coded for the federal government coalition (including ATMIS peacekeepers), autonomous unionist forces, separatist Somaliland, Al Qaeda affiliate Al Shabaab, and fighters aligned with the so-called "Islamic State" (IS; formerly ISIS/ISIL). Areas of mixed or unclear control indicated separately. Colorblind accessible.
• Boundaries and labels for Somalia's official regions and states, including the self-proclaimed independent Republic of Somaliland and federal states Puntland, Galmudug, Jubaland, South West, and Hirshabelle. Illustrates the claims of both sides in the Somaliland-Puntland border dispute, as well as actual control.
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including many relevant smaller towns and villages.
• Locations of recent fighting and other important events, including Bo'o (Booco), Ali Gadud, Masagaway, Harardhere, Eldher, Bahdo (Baxdo), Qayib, and many more.
• Detailed timeline of territorial control changes and key political and humanitarian developments since December 14, 2021, with sources cited. 
• Summary of the conflict situation and changes to the map over the past four months.
• Chronicle of the self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland's international relations in its quest for recognition as an independent country (events included as part of timeline)
  

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Ethiopia Control Map: Tigray War Revival & New Truce - Nov. 2022 (Subscription)

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(To see other maps of this conflict, view all Ethiopia articles on PolGeoNow.) 

Research by Djordje Djukic. Map by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic.

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Since the breakdown of Ethiopia's April ceasefire, and with intensified Eritrean involvement, many of the northern state's major towns have come back under the control of the Ethiopian government and its allies. Now, a new truce claims it will bring an end to the Tigray war.

However, the wide-ranging insurgency in Oromia state, and a smaller one in Benishangul Gumuz state, continue elsewhere in the country.

See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional northern Ethiopia control map, which includes a timeline of changes since our previous Ethiopia map report of April 22, with sources cited.

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Exclusive map report includes:

• Up-to-date illustration of current territorial control in northern Ethiopia (southern Ethiopia not shown), color-coded for the Ethiopian government and allies on one side and the Tigray Defense Forces (aka TPLF) on the other side, with areas of uncertainty indicated. Colorblind accessible.
• Symbols showing where Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) rebels (aka OLF-Shane) have plausible - but unproven - claims of territorial control, and labels for important sites in the neighboring Benishangul-Gumuz state insurgency
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including key towns and other locations important to current events
• Locations of recent control changes and other important events, including Sheraro, Adi Awala, Mai Tsebri, Alamata, Mizyiga, Mandura, and more
  
• Detailed timeline of important events and changes to territorial control since April 22, 2022, with links to sources.

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Central African Republic Control Map & Timeline - May 2022 (Subscription)

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Research by Djordje Djukic, with additional reporting by Evan Centanni. Map by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic

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Pro-government forces led by the Russian Wagner Group have accelerated their campaigns in the eastern CAR, carving out new chains of government-held towns deep inside the once-rebel-dominated northeast. Meanwhile, the UPC, perhaps the country's most powerful rebel faction, has rejoined the larger anti-government coalition.

See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional CAR control map, which includes a timeline of changes since our previous CAR map report of July 2021, with sources cited.

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Exclusive map report includes:

• Up-to-date illustration of current territorial control in the Central African Republic, color-coded for the government and allies, the CPC rebel coalition, "Anti-balaka" militias, and other rebel groups, with areas of uncertainty indicated. Colorblind accessible.
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including key towns and other locations important to current events
• Locations of recent control changes and other important events, including Tiringoulou, Ouanda Djallé, Nzakoundou, Nzacko, Kaita, and more
  
• Detailed timeline of important events and changes to territorial control since July 15, 2022, with links to sources.

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Ethiopia Control Map: Tigray War on Pause - April 2022 (Subscription)

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Research by Djordje Djukic. Map by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic

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Since January, Tigray forces have expanded their control a bit farther into neighboring Afar state, before eventually settling into an informal humanitarian truce with the Ethiopian government. Meanwhile, the insurgency in Oromia state continues.

See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional northern Ethiopia control map, which includes a timeline of changes since our previous Ethiopia map report of January 24, with sources cited.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

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Exclusive map report includes:

• Up-to-date illustration of current territorial control in northern Ethiopia, color-coded for the Ethiopian government and allies on one side and the Tigray Defense Forces (aka TPLF) on the other side, with areas of uncertainty indicated. Colorblind accessible.
• Symbols showing where Oromo Liberation Army (OLA) rebels (aka OLF-Shane) have plausible - but unproven - claims of territorial control.
  
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control, including key towns and other locations important to current events
• Locations of recent control changes and other important events, including Koba, Berhale, Erebti, Chercher, Gidami, Bandira, and more
  
• Detailed timeline of important events and changes to territorial control since January 24, 2022, with links to sources.

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Mozambique Control Map: Cabo Delgado Insurgency Shifts West - February 2022 (Subscription)

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Map by Evan Centanni and Djordje Djukic. Timeline by Djordje Djukic, with additional reporting by Evan Centanni

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After being driven from the key northeastern towns of Palma and Mocímboa da Praia by Rwandan-led forces, Mozambique's insurgents have dispersed westward as far as Meluco and Mueda districts, as well as the neighboring province of Niassa. Meanwhile, they've also increased cross-border raids into Tanzania.

 

See all this and more on the newest update to PolGeoNow's Mozambique territorial control map report, which includes a timeline of changes and important events since our previous Cabo Delgado map report at the end of last August. While the main map is focused in on Cabo Delgado province, events in Niassa province are labelled on a supplementary full-country map included in the report.

This map and report are premium content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

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Exclusive map report includes:

• Detailed illustration of approximate current territorial control in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province, color-coded for insurgents affiliated with the so-called "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL) vs. the Mozambican government and allies (including Rwandan and the SADC's SAMIM troops). Colorblind accessible. 
• Detailed indication of city-by-city control status, including for many relevant smaller towns and villages.
• Detailed indication of which towns and villages have subject to insurgent raids or pro-government military operations since the end of August 2021, including sites across the border in Tanzania.
  
• Contextual details including district boundaries, rivers, major roads, and terrain.
  
• Sites of international economic interest: Total's suspended LNG site, offshore natural gas fields, and Montepuez ruby mine.
  
• Key locations from the news, including Ngapa, Nova Zambezia, Chitoio, Quinto Congresso, Nambungali, and many more.
• Supplementary map showing the insurgency's location within Mozambique as a whole, also labeling towns in Niassa province that have come under attack, such as Mecula, Naulala, and Chimene.
  
• Accompanying article with detailed timeline of territorial control changes and key political and military developments since late July, with sources cited. 

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