On Friday afternoon, Abdillahi was reporting on a demonstration in Mogadishu’s Yaqshid district. Residents had gathered to protest planned relocations and land grabbing in the area. Armed police attempted to disperse the protesters by opening fire, tragically killing two civilians, including a 20-year-old peaceful protester, according to media reports. The order to disperse and shoot the protesters is reported to have come from the Banadir Regional Police Commissioner, Mahdi Omar Mu’min, known as Macalin Mahdi.

Witnesses informed SJS that police beat and arrested Abdillahi while he was reporting on the demonstration. Omar Yusuf Mohamed, a colleague, managed to escape. Abdillahi was initially detained by police and then transferred to the Yaqshid District Station, where he remained in custody until Monday afternoon. His family was denied access to him. Abdillahi told SJS that on Saturday, 22 November, he was forcibly questioned by a police prosecutor without a lawyer present.

On Monday, 24 November, Abdillahi was brought before the Banadir Regional Court and charged with “organizing protesters” and “inciting the public.” He was later released due to a lack of evidence. During the court hearing, it became clear that Abdillahi had been specifically targeted because of his affiliation with Himilo Media.

Abdillahi further reported that Police Prosecutor Nouradin Mohamed Hussein (Jim’ale) confiscated his phone and demanded its password. The prosecutor allegedly expressed anger, stating repeatedly that Banadir Regional Police Chief Macalin Mahdi “hates journalists working at Himilo Media.”

Although Abdillahi was released, Himilo Media management informed SJS that their equipment—including digital cameras, microphones, tripods, and lighting—would not be returned. When staff attempted to retrieve the equipment late on Monday, they were told it had been ordered kept by Police Chief Maallin Mahdi.

A disturbing trend of targeting vulnerable groups has emerged recently. Various sources indicate that President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and his political and business associates are involved in exploiting public land sales, government property, and sometimes even private lands, often forcibly taking them from rightful owners. Journalists reporting on evictions are frequently targeted, while many local media outlets remain silent to avoid repercussions.

The incident on 21 November occurred on land in Yaqshid district that was originally government-owned and converted into a residential area in 1960. Many local residents possess ownership documents issued by the former Somali government. Local media, including Himilo TV, reported that businessmen and government officials were attempting to illegally occupy the land and evict the community.

“This arrest, the detention, and the baseless trial of our colleague Abdillahi Mohamed Ali (Sawey) of Himilo Media constitute an unacceptable attack on press freedom. Reporting forced relocations—an issue of public interest and human rights—is not a crime; it is a fundamental duty of journalists,” said SJS General Secretary Abdalle Muumin.

He added, “We demand that the Mogadishu Police and their leadership immediately stop this campaign against journalists. The abuse of government power to silence media outlets like Himilo TV, which expose corruption, must end. We also call for the immediate and unconditional return of all confiscated equipment held illegally by Police Chief Maallin Mahdi. Journalists will not remain silent in the face of illegal detention or seizure of their tools.”

Earlier, on 16 November, a group of journalists—including Abdillahi Mohamed Ali and Abdullahi Abd Qadir Ahmed of Himilo Media, freelancer Abrahman Mohamed Waberi, and Ali Hassan Guure, a cameraman from Risala Media, along with his colleague Hamda Ahmed Hassan—were stopped by National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) officers while collecting vox-pop interviews about disputed elections in Somalia. The journalists were initially taken to a nearby police station but released before arrival. They reported that they were required to pay for the taxi used to reach the station, after which they were released.

The post SJS Condemns Repeated Attacks on Himilo Media appeared first on Kaab TV.

According to him, the Court’s decision is binding. Under Article 128 of the Provisional Constitution, executive and security agencies are obligated to comply with judicial rulings.

In addition, the Somali Media Law guarantees that media organizations have full rights over their equipment and operations unless a court order states otherwise.

However, Sawey’s work equipment remains in the custody of Yaqshid Police Station, and the Court’s order has yet to be implemented—an act that violates the country’s legal obligations and judicial procedures.

Himilo TV demands the immediate return of the media equipment.

The command of the Banadir Police Department is responsible for ensuring the enforcement of the Court’s order and for halting any actions that violate press rights or media property.

“Himilo TV will protect its right to operate and will fully rely on the laws of the country,” the station said in a statement.

The post Himilo TV Videographer Released by Court but Illegally Denied Access to Equipment appeared first on Kaab TV.

Armed police officers, acting on the orders of the Somali Police Commissioner, Asad Osman Abdullahi, and the Banadir Regional Police Commander, Mahdi Omar Muumin (commonly known as Moalim Mahdi), raided the Himilo Media studio in Mogadishu’s Maka al-Mukarama Avenue. According to the station’s management, the journalists locked themselves inside the studio, prompting the police to leave temporarily.

Later in the day, officers from the Waberi Police Station phoned Himilo Media Director Ahmed Mohamed Adan and reporter Khadar Abdirahim Ibrahim, summoning them to the station. Upon their arrival, both journalists were arrested and placed in detention. They were told that their arrest was linked to Himilo Media’s reports on forced evictions in Mogadishu.

In the evening, Director Ahmed Mohamed Adan was released without charge while reporter Khadar Abdirahim Ibrahim remained in police custody.

A source at the station informed SJS that Moalim Mahdi, the Commander of Mogadishu Police and a former defector from the Al-Shabaab militant group, demanded that Himilo Media delete three recently published reports on the forced evictions of vulnerable families, including women and children, in Mogadishu.

One of the reports featured an interview with an elderly man, Ahmed Siicow Mohamed, who was beaten and dragged by police officers and the national intelligence and security (NISA) agents during a forced eviction operation in the Siinaay neighborhood on 24 September. The other two reports highlighted an injured man whose house was demolished and several vulnerable women who were left homeless.

The director of Himilo Media told SJS that the outlet refused to comply with this demand.

SJS strongly condemns the arrest of the two Himilo Media journalists. Himilo Media has been repeatedly targeted over the past few months for its courageous reporting on government human rights violations, including the ongoing forced evictions affecting Mogadishu’s most marginalized communities.

We demand the immediate release of Khadar Abdirahim and call for an end to the harassment, intimidation, and censorship against journalists working for Himilo Media.

“The actions by the Somali police against Himilo Media and its journalists represent a blatant abuse of power and a serious violation of press freedom and human rights,” said Abdalle Ahmed Mumin, Secretary General of SJS  “Arresting journalists and ordering the deletion of news reports on forced evictions is an unacceptable attempt to silence critical reporting and conceal abuses against vulnerable communities in Mogadishu.”

“We call for the immediate and unconditional release of journalist Khadar Abdirahim Ibrahim and urge the authorities to end all forms of intimidation, harassment, and censorship targeting Himilo Media and other independent journalists,” Mr. Mumin adds.

The post Mogadishu Police Raid Himilo Media Studio and Arrest Two Journalists for Reporting on Forced Evictions of Vulnerable Families appeared first on Kaab TV.