Saudi officials stopped Somalia immigration boss for passport blunder

by: Horn Observer Contributor | 13 January 2024 23:52

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Saudi officials stopped Somalia immigration boss for passport blunder

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) - Saudi Arabia's immigration officials at Jeddah Airport have stopped the Somali Immigration Director Ahmed Said shortly after arriving at the Jeddah Airport on Monday January 8.

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Somali Immigration Director Ahmed Said after his release from Jeddah Airport brief detention.

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) - Saudi Arabia's immigration officials at Jeddah Airport have stopped the Somali Immigration Director Ahmed Said shortly after arriving at the Jeddah Airport on Monday January 8.

The decision came after Said landed at Jeddah Airport without a passport, according to sources from the Somalia embassy.

Said had boarded a Daallo Airline flight from Mogadishu's Aden Adde airport but overlooked the necessity of ensuring he had the proper travel document. Surprisingly, airport officials and airline staff failed to request his passport.

An anonymous immigration officer at the airport revealed, "It is common for such high-profile officials to bypass airport staff due to the power they wield, so nobody asked the immigration director to show his passport."

The Somali embassy in Saudi Arabia intervened after Jeddah airport immigration authorities halted Said and even threatened to send him back. The embassy managed to escort Said to an airport hotel, assuring authorities that his passport would be brought from Mogadishu on the next day's flight.

The Turkish company Favori, which manages the airport, had previously complained about weak security procedures involving high-profile government officials and their aides who resist searches or producing valid documents like passports or visas during international travel.

Saudi officials are now asserting that Ahmed Said violated travel rules by journeying without a passport, though the Somali embassy managed to bring the document via another flight from Somalia.

When reached for comment, a Daallo Airline representative in Mogadishu redirected inquiries to airport and immigration officials. The potential impact of this incident on the airline's operations remains unclear.

Daallo Airline, a Somali company, operates direct flights between Mogadishu and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

It's worth noting that Daallo Airlines had faced a security incident on February 2, 2016, when an explosion occurred on board Flight 159, 20 minutes after takeoff from Mogadishu airport. The aircraft safely returned to the airport, and an investigation later revealed that the explosion resulted from a bomb hidden in a laptop.

Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility, leading to convictions of ten individuals, including members of the Somali National Security Agency and airport staff, in connection with the plot.