Somalia: Journalist Suways Jama Mohamud faces up to three years in prison over a 15-second report

Three years in prison for a 15-second video. That is the sentence journalist Suways Jama Mohamud could face. Better known as Suways Gacayte, she is the founder of the Facebook news page Suways Media, which regularly publishes videos on social issues. She was arrested on 2 July as she was leaving her home and was detained at Garowe Central Prison in the Puntland State before being released on bail on 15 July.

The journalist is being prosecuted for "spreading false information," "defamation," "insulting public authorities" and "disturbing public order" following the publication of a short video showing armed men in uniform, accompanied by a caption claiming that soldiers had "informed residents living near General Jimcaale neighbourhood that they had to evacuate." The post was published on 29 June amid heightened political and military tensions between the Federal Government and the Puntland authorities, who are contesting Mogadishu's appointment of a general to head an army unit based in the region.

When Suways Jama Mohamud appeared on 13 July before the Garowe First Instance Court, in the capital of Puntland, her defence challenged both the legal basis of the charges and the court's jurisdiction. "A journalist cannot be prosecuted under the Penal Code for acts related to the exercise of their profession," her lawyer, Qareen Abdiweli, told RSF, noting that the reporter is currently being tried under Somalia's 1962 Penal Code. The defence has filed a motion requesting that the case be referred to the Puntland Media Council, the media regulatory body. The court has not yet made its ruling.

Escalating repression

Suways Jama Mohamud's case is part of a series of arrests of journalists in Somalia, which ranks 126th out of 180 countries and territories in RSF's 2026 World Press Freedom Index. "journalists who report on issues of public interest are increasingly being targeted. The Puntland case is a clear example. It is deeply political," said journalist Omar Faruk Osman, who also serves as Secretary General of the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ).

In one month, at least five journalists have been arrested. The most recent case is that of freelance journalist Mohamed Jama Mohamud, who was arrested on 14 July in Bosaso, in the Bari region of northeastern Somalia, by the Puntland Intelligence Service (PISA). According to the NUSOJ, his arrest came two days after he published a report on his Facebook news page, Mohamed Jaamac, about protests by business owners in Bosaso. A month earlier, freelance journalist Mohamed Abdinasir Hussein, also known as Nagashe, was arrested at a café in the town of Qardho, also in the Bari region, after publishing a report on 8 June on his Facebook page, Mohamed Nagashe, highlighting business owners concerns over worsening insecurity. He was released on bail after five days in detention.

In the Somali capital, Mogadishu, Iftimiye TV journalist Mohamed Ali Mohamud, also known as Qadaaye, was arrested on 26 June after broadcasting an interview with a police officer who alleged that another officer had suspended his salary and removed him from his job. The media outlet said the journalist had received threats of arrest before being detained. The previous day, Somali Stream Media journalist Abdullahi Abukar Ali, also known as Diirshe, was arrested while covering a hearing at the Banadir Regional Court. Authorities accused him of Facebook posts criticising a court ruling in the trial of activist Sadia Moalin Ali. Both journalists were released without charge on 28 June.