Human Rights

Somali govt forces execute eight young health workers in Middle Shabelle

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) Somali national army on Wednesday executed eight young professionals in a cold blooded manner following an al-Shabaab attack in Gololey village in Bal'ad District, Middle Shabelle region, relatives and eyewitnesses told Horn Observer.

JOINT STATEMENT: Phone of a radio editor held incommunicado accessed

MOGADISHU, Somalia, 26 May, 2020 – We, Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS), Somali Media Association (SOMA) and Somali Independent Media Houses Association (SIMHA) express our grave concern by the use of detained Radio Hiigsi editor, Mohamed Abduwahaab Nuur Abuuja's phone number to register with…

Ahead of general elections, Somalia's AG threatens media and journalists with dire consequences

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) Somalia's Attorney General (AG) Sulayman Mohamed Mohamud has been threatening media and journalists trying to report the abuses and human rights violations committed by the Somali police and state officials ahead of the country's general elections later in the year.

A plane with humanitarian aid shot and nearly downed in southern Somalia town of Qansah-Dhere

NAIROBI (HORN OBSERVER) - A SalaamAir chartered plane ferrying humanitarian aid was nearly downed in the southern Somalia town of Qansah-Dhere in Bay region on Monday after it was shot with DSHK machine gun, local security and witnesses said.

REPORT: Somalia security remains volatile with 1,086 attacks recorded in four months

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) The security situation in Somalia remained volatile, with 1086 attacks by the al-Qaeda-linked militant recorded in the past four months of the year, according to a new report by the United Nations Secretary General released to the Security Council this week.

Somali media fraternity concerned by intimidation and threats by the Somali police to deny journalists' justice

MOGADISHU, Somalia 22 May, 2020- Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) and Somali Media Association (SOMA) jointly condemn the physical assault against SBC TV journalist, Abdullahi Mohamed Sheikh on Thursday by Hamar Jajab police commissioner and we express our concern by the measures to block the journalists…

CPJ: Ethiopian police ignore court orders to free journalists held since March

Nairobi, May 22, 2020 -- Ethiopian police should immediately and unconditionally free journalists Dessu Dulla and Wako Nole and media worker Ismael Abdulrzaq, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

SOMA condemns physical assault on SBC TV & Radio journalist in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia 21 May, 2020- Somali Media Association (SOMA) condemns in the strongest terms possible the assault against SBC TV & Radio journalist Abdullahi Mohamed Sheikhdon by a senior police officer while covering a COVID-19 related incident in Mogadishu's Hamar-jajab district.

Somali police officer assaults TV journalist during Covid-19 assignment in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia 21 May, 2020- Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) strongly condemns the physical assault and the brief detention against SBC TV journalist, Abdullahi Mohamed Sheikhdon during assignment to cover Covid-19 awareness campaign in Mogadishu's Hamar Jajab District on Thursday 21 May,…

Somaliland: Female singers face criminal charges for traveling to Mogadishu

HARGEISA, Somaliland - (Horn Observer) Somaliland authorities arrested female singers Hamda Yousuf Ibrahim and Barwaaqo Mohamed Hashi in April and face criminal charges only for traveling to Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, Human Rights Centre Somaliland in Hargeisa said in a statement.

Somalia journalists union welcomes EU Parliament's call to end continuous attacks on journalists and restrictions on media freedom

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) welcomes the statement on Tuesday 19 May, by Maria Arena, Chair of the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Human Rights, on the continuous attacks on journalists and restrictions on media freedom in Somalia.

EU pays tribute to Somali journalists, calls govt to investigate killings

BRUSSELS (HORN OBSERVER) The Chair of the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Human Rights, Maria Arena on Tuesday spoke on the continuous attacks on journalists and restrictions on media freedom in Somalia.

Somali media fraternity condemns recent violations against media and journalists in Mogadishu and Beledhawo

MOGADISHU, Somalia 19 May, 2020- The Somali media fraternity: Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS), Federation of Somali Journalists (FESOJ), Somali Media Association (SOMA) and Somali Independent Media Houses Association (SIMHA) outrageously condemns the recent violations against journalists and the…

Somali media and journalists' representatives call for free press and end of impunity in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia (Horn Observer)- Representatives from Somali Journalists union and employers associations jointly condemned the continued enforced disappearance against Radio Hiigsi editor, Mohamed Abduwahaab Nuur (Abuuja) since 7th March in Mogadishu and the acts of pressure and intimidations by…

Kenya shuts border with Somalia, Tanzania to stop increased import of COVID19 cases

NAIROBI (HORN OBSERVER) Kenya has on Saturday announced a new directive to close down its international border with Somalia and Tanzania following increased import of COVID19 cases.

How Covid-19 pandemic disrupts ongoing interventions in Somalia's health sector

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) Somalia now has the second highest number of confirmed COVID19 in the Horn of Africa region. From 3-14 May, the number rose from 722 to 1,284 with 53 deaths and 135 recoveries, according to the data released by the Ministry of Health on Thursday.

Al-Shabaab summons more than 70 Mogadishu businesses owners over unpaid taxes

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) More than 70 Mogadishu business leaders have been summoned by the al-Qaeda-linked militant group on Monday this week, five of the business leaders and a Somali security source privy to the matter told Horn Observer on Thursday.

EU announces €105.5 million of Covid-19 response support for Horn of Africa countries

BRUSSELS (HORN OBSERVER) The European Union (EU) is providing an additional €105.5 million to countries in the Horn of Africa as the coronavirus pandemic risks worsening the humanitarian situation across the region where many continue to suffer from armed conflict, displacement, and recurrent droughts…

Why Elections Are a Pillar of Stability in Somalia

Despite the inordinate challenges confronting Somalia for decades now, one pillar has kept the country from relapsing into civil war and further disintegration: national elections every four years. In some ways, it's nothing short of a miracle that, since 2000, when the Somali state was reconstituted…

Somalia records 1,219 Covid-19 cases after confirming 49 new cases

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) Somalia on Wednesday recorded 1,219 Covid-19 cases across the country after confirming 49 new cases, according to a data released by the Ministry of Health.