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Ballots replace bullets as Mogadishu elects local leaders

Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud casts his ballot during local council elections in Mogadishu on December 25, 2025. [AFP]

Mogadishu was virtually under lockdown on Thursday as thousands of Somali nationals turned out in their numbers to exercise their democratic right to pick representatives to the regional council for the first time in almost 60 years.

The streets were sealed off to vehicles while the airport, port and businesses remained closed as the city residents cast their votes in a historic move.

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