New York, (HornPost) October 28, 2026 — The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on Somaliland authorities to release journalist Abdirahman Mohamed Ege, who has been held without charge in Hargeisa since October 22 after interviewing a candidate aspiring to become president of Somalia.
“Abdirahman Mohamed Ege has committed no crime, and the fact that he has been arrested for doing his job is a worrying sign that Somaliland authorities do not respect press freedom,” said Muthoki Mumo, CPJ’s Africa program coordinator. She called for his unconditional and immediate release.
According to the Somaliland Journalists Association (SOLJA) and Abdikarim Saed Salah, deputy chairperson of Horn Cable TV, where Ege works, the journalist was summoned to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters in Hargeisa on the morning of October 22. He was detained upon arrival.
Abdikarim, who has visited Ege several times in detention, told CPJ that authorities questioned the journalist about an interview he conducted on October 15 with Abdiqadir Sharay. Sharay has announced plans to run for president of Somalia in the country’s 2027 elections.
Sharay was arrested on October 16 in connection with the interview, according to media reports.
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but has not received broad international recognition. Israel recognized Somaliland in December 2025, according to the report.
CPJ said Somaliland authorities have intensified restrictions on press freedom over the past year, citing multiple arrests of journalists and media workers.
Another journalist, Abdiqani Hussein Abokor, remains in detention after being arrested on August 29 following an interview with a poet, CPJ said.
The press freedom organization added that emails sent on October 26 to Somaliland’s Ministry of Information and the Office of the President seeking comment had received no response by the time of publication.
Source: Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
