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Journalist detained after conducting interview

DATE POSTED : 31.10.2026

Expression

On 29th August 2026, journalist Abdiqani Hussein Abokor, also known as Baylood, was detained in Somaliland without charge following an interview with a well-known local poet, Ismail Yusuf Abd, also known as Jiheeye. On 27th August, Abdiqani published a video interview with Ismail, who recited a poem warning Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi that he would be cursed if he did not intervene in the authorities’ illegal seizure of two plots of land belonging to the poet. Ismail was then arrested the following day by Hargeisa security forces and Abdiqani was detained on 29th August when he responded to a summons to the Criminal Investigation Department’s (CID) headquarters.

Civic Space Developments
Country
Somaliland
Country rating
Repressed
Category
Latest Developments
Tags
censorship,  journalist detained, 
Date Posted

31.10.2026

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