SJS Urges NISA to Withdraw Officers and Halt Intimidations that Drove Himilo Somali TV Editor into Hiding
In the bustling city of Mogadishu, a storm brews over the press’s freedom, stirring deep concerns within the journalist community. The Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS) sounded the alarm on November 8, 2024, highlighting a troubling trend against Himilo Somali TV journalists. These brave souls found themselves in the crosshairs of the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA), reportedly due to their frank reporting on Mogadishu’s volatile security climate.
Mogadishu’s atmospherics have been electric, fueled by tales of threats forcing Himilo TV’s editor into hiding.
On the last day of October, editor Nur Abdirahman Nur dared to voice the chilling reality: local businesses shutting down amid a growing wave of businessman assassinations. Fingers point to the notorious al-Shabaab, presumed to be retaliating against those complying with government directives to install surveillance cameras. “Business owners are gripped by fear, wary of becoming targets of al-Shabaab’s shadowy amniyat unit,” Nur’s report succinctly stated, as reviewed by the SJS.
The himsy ordeal took a darker turn when NISA personnel stormed the TV station’s headquarters, intent on finding the vanished journalist. The team was absent at the time; however, according to insiders, the agency’s reach extended beyond physical presence, manifesting through phone calls demanding the deletion of the controversial report. Succumbing to this coercion, the station reluctantly purged the piece.
“It’s become a sinister farce,” confessed one anonymous journalist, rattled by the daily surveillance and unnerving calls probing into Nur’s whereabouts, penned in secrecy for safety.
Naturally, the editor’s disappearance mirrors an R-rated thriller—scared stiff, he’s taken refuge in anonymity, keeping low to dodge harm.
Flashback to October 31, 2024: Himilo Somali TV, locked in a precarious game, aired its explosive exposé on Mogadishu’s crumbling security facade, a narrative strong-armed off the air post haste.
This saga took a bizarre turn as NISA reportedly disseminated Nur’s identity across chat groups, urging folks to cough up leads on his hideout. Just this week, whispers arose of undercover agents brandishing his photo raiding a relative’s abode, hungry for his trail.
Meanwhile, a few days prior, on October 28, disgrace, disbelief, and physical violence flared anew. Two Himilo Somali TV staffers, Ibrahim Abdiweli Guled and Yahye Mohamud Hersi, found themselves manhandled and detained for daring to cover the merchant murders within the turbulent Daaru Salam quarter.
The SJS vehemently decries the onslaught of threats and intimidation tactics overshadowing Himilo TV’s crew and leadership. They’ve implored NISA to clip the witch hunt for Nur Abdirahman Nur and stand down their unyielding surveillance of the network’s premises. The SJS champions freedom for their beleaguered colleagues, underscoring the media’s recent—and undue—paranoia rocket ride.
“It beggars belief,” mused SJS Secretary General Abdalle Mumin, “that instead of safeguarding Mogadishu’s populous and commerce, Somalia’s intelligence arm opts to clamp down on journalists simply for spotlighting security oversights.” He urged NISA to cease these intimidation tactics and withdraw their operatives looming ominously outside broadcast studios. “The onus on Somalia’s agencies should be to shield citizens, not muzzle media voices,” Mumin asserted.
“For journalists to probe and publish on pressing public issues—like security lapses—they must cloak themselves in a sense of safety. These narratives are vital, not just for the affected business sect but for all society,” he elaborated, noting how these are the very logs keeping the community’s flame of information glowing bright amidst the turmoil. Journalists, the lone echo through these echoing corridors.
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
Axadle international–Monitoring
