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On 27th June 2023, the Somaliland police arrested journalist Abdiqani Hussein Abokor (Baylood) from Horyaal24 TV. His arrest is linked to a recent report which exposed errors on voting cards in several regions of Somaliland and caused dissatisfaction among members of the Somaliland Electoral Commission. On 1st July 2023, authorities in Hargeisa remanded him in police custody for an additional week. The next day, the Somaliland Electoral Commission issued a statement announcing legal proceedings against Horyaal24 TV and journalist Abdiqani.
#ALERT: Maroodi Jeh court in #Hargeisa handed down a disappointing verdict today, sentencing Somali-British journalist Busharo Ali Mohamed to a one-year jail term following a brief court appearance earlier this morning.
— Somali Journalists Syndicate - SJS (@sjs_Somalia) August 15, 2023
Acc. to the defense lawyers, the judge ruled for the… pic.twitter.com/2f59lp27Es
On 15th August 2023, following a brief court appearance, Maroodi Jeh court sentenced Somali-British journalist Busharo Ali Mohamed to one year in jail. Despite the absence of substantial evidence or findings of wrongdoing, the judge ordered the sentence to commence from her arrest on 15th May 2023. The court allows for a potential sentence reduction through a financial arrangement, considering her time served in prison. As previously documented on the Monitor, prior to her arrest, Busharo had been actively covering Somaliland's declining democracy and had referred to the current leader as "an autocratic" figure.