Federal Independent Agencies
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Uzbek Artist Saodat Ismailova Makes Her U.S. Museum Debut at the Smithsonian
WASHINGTON, May 15 -- The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Asian Art issued the following news release:
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Uzbek Artist Saodat Ismailova Makes Her U.S. Museum Debut at the Smithsonian
National Museum of Asian Art Presents Artist's First Major U.S. Solo Exhibition, Blending Film, Photography and Archival Imagery To Explore Central Asian History
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The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art presents "Saodat Ismailova: Melted into the Sun," the first major solo museum exhibition in the United States by acclaimed contemporary Uzbek artist Saodat Ismailova. Featuring a series of
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 15 -- The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Asian Art issued the following news release:
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Uzbek Artist Saodat Ismailova Makes Her U.S. Museum Debut at the Smithsonian
National Museum of Asian Art Presents Artist's First Major U.S. Solo Exhibition, Blending Film, Photography and Archival Imagery To Explore Central Asian History
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The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art presents "Saodat Ismailova: Melted into the Sun," the first major solo museum exhibition in the United States by acclaimed contemporary Uzbek artist Saodat Ismailova. Featuring a series ofrecent video works and photographic prints, the exhibition immerses visitors in the expansive landscapes, layered histories and cultural memory of Central Asia. The exhibition is on view Saturday, June 13, through Sunday, Nov. 29.
"Melted into the Sun" arrives at a moment of growing international recognition for Ismailova, whose work has been featured at multiple Venice Biennales and other major global exhibitions and has earned three international awards in 2025 alone. For the first time in the United States, her contemporary works will also be showcased alongside historical objects from the museum's collections, offering a glimpse into the artistic and cultural heritage.
"Ismailova's work moves fluidly between the personal and historical, challenging us to reconsider how histories are told," said Chase F. Robinson, director of the National Museum of Asian Art. "Through this first-time collaboration with the artist, we continue to expand upon Central Asian stories as part of the museum's commitment to broadening perspectives, understanding and access to the arts and cultures of Asia."
Working across film, photography and installation, Ismailova draws on archival footage, landscape and oral histories to explore Central Asia's complex past, from the Silk Road to the Soviet era and into the decades following independence. Her work examines themes of time, collective memory, environmental changes and the transmission of cultural knowledge across generations, weaving together the modern and the historical to create layered, immersive narratives.
Exhibition Highlights
* The exhibition opens with the video, "18,000 Worlds," which weaves together ghostly documentary film of 1920s Central Asia with images of modern-day Central Asian landmarks, such as the world's space launch facility in Kazakhstan and Asia's largest solar furnace in Uzbekistan.
* "Her Right" draws on older Uzbek films and a soundtrack by composer Seaming To in a montage dedicated to the sacrifices made for the freedom of contemporary Uzbek women. The work will be projected onto horsehair, a material traditionally hung near saints' tombs and woven into women's veils in Uzbek culture.
* The exhibition's titular film installation "Melted into the Sun" reimagines the mysterious eighth-century figure al-Muqanna--known as "The Veiled One"--who declared himself an incarnation of the divine. The film follows this figure through ancient ruins set against footage of modern industrial landscapes.
* In "The Letters," a series of photographic prints based on portraits of the artist's family members are overlaid with poetry, religious texts and intimate thoughts in a range of languages.
* Special to this exhibition, Ismailova has selected two 19th-century Ikat textiles from the museum's Asian art collection. Among the most distinctive forms of artistic expression from Uzbekistan, these vibrant fabrics underscore a parallel between filmmaking and weaving: both practices assemble fragments into complex patterns of meaning.
Additional works delve further into these themes.
"By layering and juxtaposing the past and present, Ismailova evokes the profound sense of rupture and transformation that defines Central Asia's histories, as well as the resilience of cultural knowledge across generations," said Carol Huh, the museum's associate curator of contemporary Asian art and lead curator of the exhibition.
On Saturday, June 13, ahead of the exhibition's opening, Ismailova will participate in a film screening and discussion, which will be open to press.
Credit
Support is provided by Richard Price and Yung Chang.
About Saodat Ismailova
Born in Uzbekistan in 1981, Ismailova is an Uzbek filmmaker and artist living and working between Paris and Tashkent. She graduated from the Tashkent State Art Institute and Le Fresnoy--National Studio of Contemporary Arts in France. In 2021, she initiated Davra, a research collective dedicated to developing the Central Asian art scene. Ismailova participated in both the 59th Venice Biennale and documenta fifteen in 2022. The same year, she received The Eye Art & Film Prize (Amsterdam). In 2025, she received Foundation Pernod Ricard's Nouveau Programme Award, was named an Art Basel Golden Awardee and received the Han Nefkens Award for a new commission together with the Reina Sofia Museum (Madrid), Walker Center (USA) and the Singapore Museum of Arts. Her works are included in the collections of Tate Modern, London; Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam; Centre Pompidou, Paris; TBA21; FRAC Corsica; the Victoria & Albert Museum, London; and the Almaty Museum of Arts, Kazakhstan; among others.
Credit
Support is provided by Richard Price and Yung Chang.
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About the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art
The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art opened in 1923 as the United States' first national art museum and the first Asian art museum in the country. It now stewards one of the world's most important collections of Asian art, with works dating from antiquity to the present. The museum also hosts an unparalleled collection of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American art.
Through an ambitious program of collecting, conservation, exhibitions, programming and research--both on-site and online--the museum serves as a global and national resource for understanding the arts and cultures of Asia and their interaction with America, past and present. By presenting the arts and cultures of Asia in their extraordinary richness, the museum furthers cross-cultural understanding and aims to exemplify foundational ideals of curiosity, creativity and respect.
Located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the museum is free and open 364 days a year (closed Dec. 25). The Smithsonian is the world's largest museum, education and research complex and welcomes millions of visitors yearly. For more information about the National Museum of Asian Art, visit asia.si.edu.
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Original text here: https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/releases/uzbek-artist-saodat-ismailova-makes-her-us-museum-debut-smithsonian
Trustee Carolyn Brehm Makes Record Setting Gift Funding Museum Education Leadership Role at National Museum of Asian Art
WASHINGTON, May 15 -- The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Asian Art issued the following news release:
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Trustee Carolyn Brehm Makes Record Setting Gift Funding Museum Education Leadership Role at National Museum of Asian Art
Gift Recognizes National Reach and Expanded Access of Museum's Educational Programs
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The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art announced a record setting gift from Carolyn Brehm, vice chair of the museum's board of trustees, funding a museum education leadership role. The gift establishes the Ambassador Richard A. Boucher Museum Educator position
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WASHINGTON, May 15 -- The Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Asian Art issued the following news release:
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Trustee Carolyn Brehm Makes Record Setting Gift Funding Museum Education Leadership Role at National Museum of Asian Art
Gift Recognizes National Reach and Expanded Access of Museum's Educational Programs
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The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art announced a record setting gift from Carolyn Brehm, vice chair of the museum's board of trustees, funding a museum education leadership role. The gift establishes the Ambassador Richard A. Boucher Museum Educator positionfor a five year term, appointed to Jennifer Reifsteck, a longtime educator at the museum. By extension, the gift supports the national expansion and extended access of the museum's education programs.
Reifsteck has led several of the museum's most innovative education initiatives including the development of Artful Movement, the museum's first educational program focused on teaching social-emotional skills through art.
"Expanding educational initiatives is a core part of the museum's strategic plan to ignite curiosity and promote understanding of the arts and cultures of Asia in future generations," said Chase F. Robinson, director of the National Museum of Asian Art. "Carolyn's gift recognizes the museum's direction toward the next generation of art education--one that meets the needs of educators today and is accessible onsite and online, locally and nationally."
Developed during the COVID 19 pandemic in collaboration with mindfulness education nonprofit Create Calm, Artful Movement teaches students to engage deeply with works of art through slow looking, physical movement, emotional awareness and reflective observation. The program responds to a growing need for classroom tools that foster social connection and emotional regulation.
"It all started with the Thunder God--the perfect metaphor for the pent-up emotions and uncertainty of the pandemic," said Reifsteck referencing a 19th century painting by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) from the museum's Japanese collection. "Students would use words like 'danger' and 'devil' to describe this red figure, but their interpretations and emotional responses shifted when they learned that in East Asian cultures, red is a color of vitality, growth and luck."
That moment inspired Reifsteck to incorporate meditation, movement and social emotional reflection into art education. Initially serving Washington, D.C., schools, Artful Movement has since become a national model, leading to a three-year expansion grant supported by the Smithsonian's "Together We Thrive" initiative.
Through this grant, Artful Movement will expand to eight states, with a focus on under resourced and rural schools, through partnerships with nine Smithsonian affiliate museums and their educator networks. Reifsteck will lead the program's national implementation through 2028 in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service | Smithsonian Affiliations (SITES | Affiliations). All program resources will also be made available online for future classroom use.
"Artful Movement demonstrates how museums can support learning that extends far beyond gallery walls," said Brehm. "This gift honors Jennifer's leadership and supports the museum's broader effort to help students use art as a tool for reflection, empathy and connection."
Brehm's gift is made in honor of her late husband, Ambassador Richard A. Boucher (1951-2025), and his lifelong dedication to education and global engagement. Her previous gifts to the museum were instrumental in funding virtual museum educator roles during the pandemic and significantly expanding national student engagement.
During the 2024-2025 school year, the National Museum of Asian Art engaged more than 10,000 students and educators through onsite and virtual field trips and professional development programs.. The museum is also among the few to invest in full-time educational outreach within its conservation department, expanding access to art conservation research for young audiences.
This summer, from Monday, July 27, to Thursday, July 30, museum educators and schoolteachers from Iowa, Illinois, Maryland, Ohio, Oregan, Texas, Washington and Wyoming will be traveling to the museum to attend an Artful Movement training summit. The summit will be open to press.
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Credit
Brehm's gift benefits the National Museum of Asian Art's Second Century Campaign, part of the Smithsonian Campaign for Our Shared Future, which advances a bold vision to strengthen education, research, and public engagement across the Smithsonian's museums, libraries, research centers and the National Zoo.
The three-year grant Artful Movement: Social-Emotional Wellness from Coast-to-Coast is supported through Youth Access Grant funds from the Smithsonian Institution's Together We Thrive initiative. SITES | Affiliations is a partner for the grant.
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About Carolyn Brehm
Founder and CEO of Brehm Global Ventures LLC, Brehm is currently a retired corporate executive and lecturer with more than 40 years of experience in global government relations, public policy and international business. She worked at two Fortune 100 companies and several nonprofits and business associations over the course of her career in Washington and Asia. She currently advises clients on commercial advocacy, government affairs, public policy and political risk.
She also co-chairs the board of global health NGO Health x Partners and is a trustee of the National Museum of Asian Art. She sits on the board of governors at the University of New Haven and the board of advisors of Georgetown University's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy. She has taught as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University and University of Michigan and was a regular lecturer on the Washington campus.
Brehm is a 1977 graduate of Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service with a concentration in Asian studies and holds a Master of Business Administration in international business from the University of New Haven's program in Nicosia, Cyprus. She was an AFS International exchange student in Mumbai, India, in 1972. Brehm speaks Mandarin and has studied French.
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About Richard A. Boucher (1951-2025)
Richard Alan Boucher was an assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia and ambassador to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. He earned the esteemed rank of Career Ambassador in 2008 during his 32-year tenure in the United States foreign service and served in numerous posts under six different secretaries of state, becoming the longest serving spokesperson in the history of the U.S. State Department. After his retirement from federal service in 2009, Boucher held the title of deputy secretary-general of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development before working as a visiting professor at multiple universities, where he instructed the next generation of diplomats.
Boucher graduated from Tufts University in 1973, where he studied English and French comparative literature. Shortly after graduating, he joined the Peace Corps, spending two years in Senegal and a year with USAID in Guinea before joining the State Department in 1977. He was fluent in Mandarin Chinese and French and proficient in German, Italian, Russian and Wolof.
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About the Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art
The Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art opened in 1923 as the United States' first national art museum and the first Asian art museum in the country. It now stewards one of the world's most important collections of Asian art, with works dating from antiquity to the present. The museum also hosts an unparalleled collection of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American art.
Through an ambitious program of collecting, conservation, exhibitions, programming and research--both on-site and online--the museum serves as a global and national resource for understanding the arts and cultures of Asia and their interaction with America, past and present. By presenting the arts and cultures of Asia in their extraordinary richness, the museum furthers cross-cultural understanding and aims to exemplify foundational ideals of curiosity, creativity and respect.
Located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., the museum is free and open 364 days a year (closed Dec. 25). The Smithsonian is the world's largest museum, education and research complex and welcomes millions of visitors yearly. For more information about the National Museum of Asian Art, visit asia.si.edu.
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Original text here: https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/releases/trustee-carolyn-brehm-makes-record-setting-gift-funding-museum-education
Office of Finance Publishes the First Quarter 2026 Combined Financial Report of the Federal Home Loan Banks
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank System Office of Finance issued the following news release:
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Office of Finance Publishes the First Quarter 2026 Combined Financial Report of the Federal Home Loan Banks
The Office of Finance is announcing the publication of the First Quarter 2026 Combined Financial Report of the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks). This report has been prepared from the unaudited financial information of the FHLBanks.
Each of the FHLBanks has filed its First Quarter 2026 Form 10-Q with the SEC. Current financial reports and other SEC filings for
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrep) -- The Federal Home Loan Bank System Office of Finance issued the following news release:
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Office of Finance Publishes the First Quarter 2026 Combined Financial Report of the Federal Home Loan Banks
The Office of Finance is announcing the publication of the First Quarter 2026 Combined Financial Report of the Federal Home Loan Banks (FHLBanks). This report has been prepared from the unaudited financial information of the FHLBanks.
Each of the FHLBanks has filed its First Quarter 2026 Form 10-Q with the SEC. Current financial reports and other SEC filings forindividual FHLBanks can be obtained by searching the EDGAR database.
The First Quarter 2026 Combined Financial Report for the FHLBanks has been filed with the Federal Housing Finance Agency. A copy of this Combined Financial Report can be obtained on the Office of Finance website at: https://www.fhlb-of.com/ofweb_userWeb/pageBuilder/fhlbank-financial-data-36.
The FHLBanks have delivered innovation and service to the U.S. housing market since 1932, and currently have approximately 6,300 members serving all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.
Please contact Tom Heinle at 703-467-3646 or theinle@fhlb-of.com for additional information.
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Original text here: https://fhlb-of.com/ofweb_userWeb/resources/PR2026-0514-Q1CFRAnnouncement.pdf
NTSB Releases Study on Drug Presence Trends Among Fatally Injured Pilots
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrep) -- The National Transportation Safety Board issued the following news release:
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NTSB Releases Study on Drug Presence Trends Among Fatally Injured Pilots
Potentially impairing drugs found in more than 1 in 4 pilots
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The National Transportation Safety Board published a safety research report that found that 52.8% of fatally injured pilots tested positive for at least one drug of any type, and 27.7% tested positive for two or more drugs, continuing an upward trend.
The study examined drug presence identified through toxicology testing of pilots killed in U.S.
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrep) -- The National Transportation Safety Board issued the following news release:
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NTSB Releases Study on Drug Presence Trends Among Fatally Injured Pilots
Potentially impairing drugs found in more than 1 in 4 pilots
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The National Transportation Safety Board published a safety research report that found that 52.8% of fatally injured pilots tested positive for at least one drug of any type, and 27.7% tested positive for two or more drugs, continuing an upward trend.
The study examined drug presence identified through toxicology testing of pilots killed in U.S.civil aviation accidents between 2018 and 2022. The report, 2018-2022 Update to Drug Use Trends in Aviation (https://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-studies/Pages/DCA24SS011.aspx), updates earlier NTSB studies examining drug presence among fatally injured pilots from 1990-2012 and 2013-2017.
Among drug categories identified, the most commonly detected included cardiovascular medications, sedating antihistamines, nonsedating over-the-counter drugs, cholesterol-lowering medications, prostate or erectile dysfunction drugs and illicit drugs.
Detection of potentially impairing drugs increased slightly to 28.6%, with the sedating antihistamine medication diphenhydramine remaining the most detected potentially impairing drug. Illicit drug detection increased to 7.4%, driven primarily by increases in delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9-THC), the primary psychoactive chemical in marijuana.
Researchers also found that drug prevalence varied by pilot age, certification level and type of operation. Drug presence was lower among pilots conducting Part 135 operations than among those operating in general aviation, lower among pilots with an active medical certificate than pilots without an active medical certificate, and lower among pilots holding airline transport and commercial pilot certificates than among pilots holding private, sport or student certificates, or no certificate.
The report emphasizes that the presence of drugs identified through toxicology testing does not necessarily indicate pilot impairment. Instead, the study documents trends in drug detection and provides context for understanding factors that may affect aviation safety.
The safety research report is available on the NTSB website (https://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-studies/Pages/DCA24SS011.aspx).
To report an incident/accident or if you are a public safety agency, please call 1-844-373-9922 or 202-314-6290 to speak to a Watch Officer at the NTSB Response Operations Center (ROC) in Washington, DC (24/7).
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Original text here: https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/NR20260514.aspx
Commission on International Religious Freedom: Threats to Religious Freedom in Somalia
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrpt) -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued the following news release:
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Threats to Religious Freedom in Somalia
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released the following report on Somalia:
Religious Freedom in Somalia - In 2026, the Federal Republic of Somalia faces ongoing challenges to religious freedom as the insurgent group al-Shabaab expands across the country, wielding its violent religious ideology against converts to Christianity and dissenting Muslims.
This publication outlines major issues affecting
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrpt) -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued the following news release:
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Threats to Religious Freedom in Somalia
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released the following report on Somalia:
Religious Freedom in Somalia - In 2026, the Federal Republic of Somalia faces ongoing challenges to religious freedom as the insurgent group al-Shabaab expands across the country, wielding its violent religious ideology against converts to Christianity and dissenting Muslims.
This publication outlines major issues affectingfreedom of religion or belief (FoRB) in Somalia, including the breakaway states of Somaliland and Puntland.
In its 2026 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the United States redesignate al-Shabaab as an Entity of Particular Concern (EPC) for its particularly severe violations of religious freedom.
USCIRF's 2023 Factsheet on Religious Freedom in the Horn of Africa highlighted these and other ongoing threats to freedom of religion or belief in Somalia.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan legislative branch agency established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a Commissioner, please contact USCIRF at media@uscirf.gov.
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REPORT: https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/USCIRF_2026_AR_3326_NEW.pdf
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Original text here: https://www.uscirf.gov/news-room/releases-statements/threats-religious-freedom-somalia
Commission on International Religious Freedom: Religious Freedom and Rule of Law in Syria
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrpt) -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued the following news release:
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Religious Freedom and Rule of Law in Syria
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released the following report:
Syria Country Update - This report highlights how the Syrian transitional authorities have failed to protect freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) and implement rule of law to protect religious minorities. Both state and nonstate actors have committed acts of sectarian violence, including extrajudicial killings against Alawis,
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 15 (TNSrpt) -- The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued the following news release:
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Religious Freedom and Rule of Law in Syria
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released the following report:
Syria Country Update - This report highlights how the Syrian transitional authorities have failed to protect freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) and implement rule of law to protect religious minorities. Both state and nonstate actors have committed acts of sectarian violence, including extrajudicial killings against Alawis,Druze, Christians, and other religious groups.
Similarly, the Islamic State group continues to threaten FoRB in Syria, attacking houses of worship and killing worshipers.
In its 2026 Annual Report, USCIRF recommended that the U.S. Department of State designate Syria as a Country of Particular Concern for particularly severe violations of religious freedom.
In 2025, USCIRF published an issue update on post-Assad Syria and held a hearing on religious freedom conditions in Syria.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan legislative branch agency established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief. To interview a commissioner, please contact USCIRF at media@uscirf.gov.
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REPORT: https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/USCIRF%202026%20Annual%20Report%20Syria.pdf
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Original text here: https://www.uscirf.gov/news-room/releases-statements/religious-freedom-and-rule-law-syria
Commission on International Religious Freedom: Religious Freedom In Somalia
WASHINGTON, May 15 -- U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued the following fact sheet:
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RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN SOMALIA
In 2026, the Federal Republic of Somalia faces ongoing challenges to religious freedom due to the simultaneous threats of violent insurgencies across the country and declining political control over the semi-autonomous Republic of Somaliland and the State of Puntland. The federal government currently controls only the capital, Mogadishu, and a few satellite towns as it suffers from ineffective military strategies in battling multiple armed groups that
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 15 -- U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued the following fact sheet:
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RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN SOMALIA
In 2026, the Federal Republic of Somalia faces ongoing challenges to religious freedom due to the simultaneous threats of violent insurgencies across the country and declining political control over the semi-autonomous Republic of Somaliland and the State of Puntland. The federal government currently controls only the capital, Mogadishu, and a few satellite towns as it suffers from ineffective military strategies in battling multiple armed groups thatespouse a violent interpretation of Islam and represent significant threats to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) in Somalia today. These groups include al-Shabaab--a longstanding terrorist group in the south and central parts of the country--as well as an emerging Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) affiliate in the north. By contrast, Somaliland has long maintained relative political and economic stability.
This publication outlines major religious freedom issues in the Federal Republic of Somalia, including the breakaway states of Somaliland and Puntland. This report also assesses the significant religious freedom violations of insurgent nonstate actors, especially al-Shabaab, which USCIRF continues to recommend for designation as an Entity of Particular Concern (EPC).
State and Societal Limitations on FoRB
The Federal Republic of Somalia has consistently failed over the years to transition to a stable democracy due to its weak rule of law, the persistent presence of insurgent groups, a state commitment to tribal secularism, and the influence of ambitious warlords who undermine governance while acting with neither legal nor popular authority. Somalia's 1960 Constitution established Islam as the official religion but limited the application of Shari'a law to the personal status of Muslims. However, the current constitution, introduced in 2012, enshrines Islam as the sole religion; it declares "the Holy Quran and the Sunna of our prophet Mohamed (PBUH)" as its foundation and states that "no religion other than Islam can be propagated in the Federal Republic of Somalia"--while simultaneously prohibiting discrimination against any person on the basis of religion. The constitution also requires all laws to comply "with the general principles of Shari'a"; forbids conversion from Islam; compels the teaching of Islam in public and private schools while exempting non-Muslim ones; and requires the president to be a Muslim.
Of Somalia's approximately 19 million people (2024), an estimated 0.5 percent are Christian, of which the majority are converts from Islam. Currently, no churches operate in the country and Christians use extreme caution when meeting in groups, often in private homes. The constitution does not permit any form of religious conversion and the government restricts evangelization. While available sources do not provide details on the government's detention of people on religious grounds, some reports suggest that the government does not intervene on behalf of converts to Christianity who face death threats and stigmatization from their family members or neighbors.
Governmental and social adherence to Islamic law and often strict interpretations of it in Somalia affect women in particular. Women's conversion to Christianity draws intense social penalties resulting in little interference in family affairs. Girls and young women already face ongoing pressure to conform to Islamic practices, with some confronting the additional prospect of forced marriage, sexual violence, and even death if they consider converting to Christianity. Given that widows often face public humiliation or economic discrimination, including loss of jobs or inheritance, families may force Christian widows to marry Muslim men.
For example, in 2025, after a woman claimed to see a vision of Christ and began listening to Christian worship music, her family began to beat her and held her and her child captive at home. The same year, another convert showed videos about her faith to her father and mother, leading her husband to order her to renounce her faith or he would divorce her. He forced her into exile with her children under the threat of death from her family. The police reportedly did not intervene in the matter. In January 2026, a Muslim social media influencer in Somalia posted a video claiming that Christians posed a threat to Somalians, especially "vulnerable people like women and children and the poor people," resulting in public comments calling for Allah to "destroy the people underground" and that "the infidels should be caught and hanged." No available evidence suggests that the government investigated these threats of violence. In February 2026, the European Center for Law and Justice submitted a written statement to the United Nations Human Rights Council requesting that the Somalian federal government better protect Christians from persecution.
The government of Somalia has also infringed on the religious freedom of its Muslim-majority population, notwithstanding its recent relaxation of restrictions on a religious holiday. In September of 2025, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs reinstated the public holiday, which celebrated the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad (mawlid al-nabi). The ministry had previously banned the holiday out of fear that Islamist insurgents-- whose interpretation of Islam generally prohibits such celebrations as aberrant "innovations"--would launch attacks against celebrants gathered for the occasion. Violent groups have, in fact, previously targeted Sufi Muslims, for whom mawlid celebrations play an important communal role, and forced many of them to leave the country. Despite this concession to popular religious practices, Somalia's preoccupation with eradicating the threat of al-Shabaab has had an overall negative effect on FoRB. For example, while officials remain vigilant toward threats from insurgents, they often fail to prevent or rectify attacks on religious freedom within Somali society. Community members may interpret the police's reported failure to investigate crimes against converts as a license to monitor and regulate the religious practices of their family and friends. The government's narrow focus on potential insurgencies has also manifested in its constant surveillance of the populace and measures to curb perceived religious zealotry within it. For example, in August 2024, the government ordered security forces in the southern city of Kismayo to seize hundreds of niqabs (full face coverings) from female residents. Officials reportedly justified this restriction on Muslim women's choice of religious garb as a way of curbing the potential spread of al-Shabaab's religious ideology and out of fear that insurgents could exploit such coverings to carry out clandestine attacks.
Al-Shabaab as Particularly Severe Threat to FoRB
Al-Shabaab and similar violent insurgent groups currently pose the greatest threat to ethnic Somalis from all religious communities across the Horn of Africa. Formally known as Harakat al-Shabaab al-Mujahideen (the Mujahidin Youth Movement), al-Shabaab is a terrorist insurgent group that is loosely affiliated with al-Qaeda and has been active in Somalia since 2006. The group rejects democracy and religious freedom in its pursuit of a long-term goal of uniting ethnic Somali-inhabited areas of East Africa into a Somali caliphate under violent interpretation of Islamic law. Al-Shabaab considers the Somali government an illegitimate, apostate entity dependent on foreign powers; the group therefore calls for religious violence against the government along with its perceived global enemies. The group also uses local sympathizers to manage a territorywide surveillance apparatus that reinforces actual control of all religious expression and practice. Any attempt on the part of a given individual to convert to Christianity, for example, quickly meets with accusations of so-called betrayals of clan and identity and risks mob violence as a result. Finally, al-Shabaab regularly uses assassinations and arrests of clan elders to coerce and intimidate the population.
Al-Shabaab's insurgency escalated with its capture of and religiously oppressive rule over central and southern Somalia from 2008 to 2011. During that time, it administered corporal punishments (hudood), imposed strict behavioral and dress norms, and viewed even the possession of a Bible as evidence of apostasy and therefore deserving of a death sentence. Even since that period, however, the group has maintained its operations, levying taxes and violently attempting to impose its harshly enforced version of Shari'a on local communities. Reportedly, al-Shabaab continues to forcibly conscript young Muslim men into its ranks. The group also demands that families within its territories send their relatives who have converted to Christianity to Islamic centers for indoctrination. Al-Shabaab fighters have also targeted Muslim worshipers at mosques as potential recruits as part of their campaign to regain or seize control of Somalia, and in 2022 it "declared war" on all non-Muslims in the country. In 2021, the Puntland government executed 21 members of al-Shabaab for their participation in terrorist attacks over the years in that state.
In May 2025, the group claimed responsibility for an attack that killed at least 10 people, mainly military recruits registering at the Damanyo base near Mogadishu. By November, its forces were threatening to capture the capital, forcing foreign embassies and others to evacuate.
Religious Freedom Conditions in Somalia's Breakaway States
Republic of Somaliland
Somaliland, one of five Federal Member States in Somalia, declared itself an independent state in 1991, but most international bodies and governments, including the United States, do not recognize it as such. Even so, Somaliland's administration conducts an independent foreign policy and engages in diplomatic relations with several foreign governments, including Ethiopia, Taiwan, the United Arab Emirates, and Israel--the latter of which, in fact, recognizes its claim of sovereign independence. Somalia's federal government, in response, has continued to reject any further steps toward the secession and independent statehood of Somaliland. Somalia also disapproves of Somaliland's ongoing relations with Israel and has pressured Muslim religious leaders to denounce the breakaway state. In January 2026, the federal Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs ordered mosque leaders in Somalia to dedicate sermons to "the importance of Somali unity and the dangers of Jewish interference"--a reference to Israel's recognition of Somaliland's independence.
While Somaliland's relative economic and political stability stand in contrast to the Somali Federal Republic's continual security crises, both political entities share some intersections of religion, law, and policy. For example, Somaliland has declared itself an Islamic republic; enshrined Islamic principles in its constitution; applied Shari'a; and criminalized apostasy, blasphemy, and proselytization. Some advocates have also identified deficiencies in the territory's protection of its small Christian minority, representing only an estimated .05 percent of the population of 6.3 million. In 2017, Somaliland officials closed the only Catholic church in the country, Saint Anthony of Padua in Hargeisa, the capital, and as of this writing they have not permitted it to reopen. Witnesses have reported that over the past few years, authorities also detained an unspecified number of Christian converts on apostasy grounds but eventually released them and dropped the charges. Both mass protests and government interference, meanwhile, have stymied Christians' recent efforts to make use of historic religious sites. However, overall, the breakaway republic currently offers a more promising environment for religious freedom than its federal counterpart--largely due to the absence of armed nonstate actors that use religious justifications for their violence.
State of Puntland
Puntland, like Somaliland, is a territory in northeastern Somalia. After declaring its autonomy from Federal Somalia in 1998, Puntland formed a separate government that international bodies have yet to recognize as a sovereign country. Its constitution declares Islam as the "only religion of Puntland State of Somalia," and "with the exception of Islam, no other religion shall be propagated in Puntland State." The constitution adds that the "laws and culture of the people shall be based on the Islamic religion while prohibiting any law and any culture that contravenes Islam." The political system is based on "the guiding principles of Islamic Sharia" which take precedence over "any personal liberties of any individuals" and must direct any policies related to education and the rights of women.
In Puntland, religious police monitor suspected converts to Christianity. One interlocutor reports that lack of international recognition has helped both Puntland and Somaliland conceal their FoRB violations. The tiny Christian community in Puntland--an estimated .05 percent of 4.9 million people--remains highly vulnerable to social hostility and surveillance by Muslim family members and neighbors, as well as legal prohibitions on any public activities including perceived proselytization.
While the very active and well-financed al-Shabaab dominates most of federal Somalia, ISIS in Somalia (ISIS-S), a small affiliate, operates strictly in Puntland, primarily in the Golis mountains. The group, numbering perhaps 400 fighters, has avoided contact with the federal Somalian army, typically battling Puntland State's security forces. These forces recently succeeded in confining ISIS-S to several villages where it coerces businesses for "tribute" to pay fighters and support the group's activities, including recruitment. Anyone refusing to pay this extortion money faces grave violence. Since U.S. forces bombed ISIS positions in early 2025 and Puntland police captured one of the group's leaders, the affiliate has reportedly lost control of up to half of its territory. Its surviving leaders, largely in hiding, have also been left with degraded command and control capabilities and diminished recruitment pipelines.
In March 2026, Morocco captured an ISIS cell within its borders, exposing the transnational group's network of assets and resources across Africa, which stretch all the way into the Horn region, including Somalia. Through its affiliates, ISIS continues to grow its threats to religious communities in East Africa, where it circulates its members via diaspora communities, potentially moving them toward active combat zones, including Puntland, while threatening the whole of federal Somalia.
Conclusion
Societal norms, government action, and geostrategic matters all play substantial roles in impeding substantial improvements of religious freedom in Somalia. Amid the looming threat of al-Shabaab's national-scale imposition of its violent religious ideology, Somalia's government in its current, precarious form continues to impose its own restrictions on the religious freedom of both the Muslim-majority population and members of the socially stigmatized Christian community.
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The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan legislative branch agency established by the U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief.
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Original text here: https://www.uscirf.gov/sites/default/files/2026-05/2026%20Somalia%20Factsheet.pdf
