MOGADISHU — Three Somali journalists were arrested on Friday evening at a restaurant in central Mogadishu by members of the country's US-trained counter-terrorism police unit and released in the early hours of Saturday morning. Mohamed Bulbul, Abdihafid Nor Barre, and Abdishakur Mohamed Mohamud said they were assaulted before being taken for questioning.

At police headquarters, the three reporters said Mogadishu police chief Mahdi Omar Mumin threatened them with consequences if they continued to report on planned protests expected to take place on Sunday. According to a statement by the Somali Journalists Syndicate, Mumin told the journalists he was tired of arresting reporters and said that if they did not remain silent about the protests and developments in Mogadishu, including the case of Sadia Moalim Ali, the only option remaining would be death.

Bulbul's detention was believed to be linked to his reporting on the case of Ali, a 27-year-old rickshaw driver imprisoned for peaceful protest and social media activism. On Thursday, the Guardian published a story by Bulbul in which Ali said she was stripped naked by two male guards in a room monitored by CCTV, kicked, beaten with a baton, and left for two days in a small cell without food. The article was shared across Somali media, Facebook, and X.

Bulbul has spoken out about security forces' violations and forced evictions in Mogadishu. The three journalists had faced sustained threats and intimidation in recent weeks.

Somali Stream condemned the arrests as an illegal and politically motivated attack on independent journalism. AbdiKani Hamud Abokor, managing director, said: "Somali Stream strongly condemns the unlawful detention of Abdishakur [Mohamed] Mohamud, Abdihafid Nor [Barre], and Mohamed Bulbul. This is a deliberate attempt to terrorise journalists, suppress independent reporting and instil fear across Somalia's media community."

Abdirahman Abdishakur, an MP and leader of the opposition Wadajir party, linked the arrests to broader political conditions ahead of the end of the presidential term on 15 May. "Instead of addressing the growing public anger over forced displacement, land grabbing, and pursuing an inclusive political settlement to guide the country through this fragile transitional period, the administration has intensified repression against journalists, activists and outspoken young people," he said.

On 6 May, at least five local journalists were arrested and had their equipment confiscated, according to the Somali Journalists Syndicate. Broadcast journalists Ja'far Mohamed Jim'ale and Nur Hasan Ali remain in detention and their whereabouts are unknown.

Somalia ranks 126th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index. According to Reporters Without Borders, journalists in Somalia work in an environment of great insecurity, more than 50 media professionals have been killed in the country since 2010, and Somalia is one of the most dangerous countries for journalists in Africa.