Hargeisa (KAAB TV) – Somaliland has intensified its crackdown on independent media through a series of arrests, detentions, and intimidation of journalists, with the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) reporting several cases involving questionable court proceedings.
According to the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS), at least 10 journalists were arrested between March and July 2025.
On May 11, police arrested journalist Mohamed Abdi Hassan on charges of “inciting violence” after he reported on a clan conflict in the Sanaag region.
On May 23, independent journalist Abd Qadir Mohamed Aw-Hasan was sentenced to six months in prison for “insulting the president” after posting a satirical video online.
On May 29, journalist Warsame Kafi Abdirashid Aden was detained following an interview with a woman who accused a senior judge of assault.
On June 9, Syed Musa Farah, a journalist from Erigabo, was fined after reporting on alleged mismanagement at the local TB Hospital.
On June 22, Abdirisaq Qasim of Saab TV was arrested in Berbera for allegedly broadcasting accusations against senior officials online. He was later transferred to Hargeisa and released following community mediation.
On July 1, police in Hargeisa arrested journalist Yasir Ahmed Abdillahi after he criticized President Abdirahman Abdillahi Irro’s visit to Qatar. The Maroodi-jeh Regional Court later acquitted him of any wrongdoing.
These incidents highlight a growing pattern of politically motivated arrests, judicial harassment, and censorship aimed at silencing journalists and restricting public scrutiny of Somaliland’s authorities.
In late September, a new wave of arrests took place. On September 27, 2025, police in Erigabo (Sanaag region) arrested four journalists who questioned Education Minister Ismail Yusuf Duale about the closure of local schools.
They were detained for seven hours before being released without charges, while a fifth journalist was reportedly injured and escaped.
On the same day, Gabiley police detained journalist Mohamed Wadaad after he reported on the arrest of community elders protesting government land seizures in Wajale.
He remains imprisoned without an arrest warrant, a clear violation of Somaliland’s constitution.
Earlier in September, Burco police arrested Abdicasis Saleeban Sulub of KF Television for 18 days under orders from the Togdheer regional governor, following his coverage of a sensitive report. Although later acquitted, he remains in detention pending appeal.
On September 11, three journalists in Borama were briefly detained after reporting on local criticism of the regional governor during President Irro’s visit.
Meanwhile, journalist Ahmed Mohamud Dool has been imprisoned for 30 days in Hargeisa after alleging police involvement in murder cases.
Despite promises of reform under President Irro’s leadership, press freedom in Somaliland continues to deteriorate.
The SJS reports 24 arrests of journalists and the banning of two media outlets in the past nine months—evidence of growing intolerance for dissent and erosion of civil liberties.
In another blow to media independence, on August 9, 2025, the Maroodi Jeex Regional Court of Appeal reinstated restrictions against Hadhwanaag News, ordering local internet service providers to block access to its websites—hadhwanaagnews.co, hadhwanaagnews.ca, and hadhwanaagtv.com.
The court also sentenced each journalist at the outlet to six months in prison and fined them 500,000 Somaliland shillings (approximately $50).
Hadhwanaag News had previously been suspended in September 2019 after publishing allegations of corruption involving former Central Bank Governor Ali Ibrahim Jama (Ali Baghdadi).
The site was reinstated in February 2025 following a court decision, but the renewed restrictions signal an ongoing campaign to silence critical voices in the region.