Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud. File photoMOSCOW, May 16The Somali Parliament elected former President Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud as the new head of state, the Somali Guardian newspaper reports. the newspaper said on Twitter. It is noted that Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud, who led Somalia from 2012 to 2017, became the first politician in the history of the country who was elected to the presidency twice. Earlier, Dalsan radio, citing the results of the vote, reported that the Somali parliament was unable to elect a president in the first round of voting, the four candidates with the highest number of votes advanced to the second round. The ex-president was third in terms of the number of votes. The media wrote that on Sunday the airport came under mortar fire. Somalia ceased to exist as a single state in 1991 with the fall of the dictatorial regime of Siad Barre. The international community recognizes the only legitimate authority in the country as the federal government, which controls the capital city of Mogadishu and a number of other areas. The remaining parts of Somalia are under the control of unrecognized state entities or are self-governing territories. In particular, the unrecognized Republic of Somaliland is located in the northern part of the country, and the Puntland region, which declared autonomy in 1998, is located in the eastern part of the country. Malian government announces withdrawal from the Sahel Five
