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Somalia: Journalist shot and killed in Mogadishu

Publisher Committee to Protect Journalists
Publication Date 6 June 2016
Cite as Committee to Protect Journalists, Somalia: Journalist shot and killed in Mogadishu, 6 June 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/579afe4d6.html [accessed 5 June 2023]
DisclaimerThis is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

New York, June 6, 2016 – Somali authorities should thoroughly investigate the killing on Sunday of journalist Sagal Salad Osman and bring those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

The 24-year-old journalist, who worked as a producer and presenter for the state-run Radio Mogadishu, was leaving her university campus in the Hodan neighborhood of Mogadishu when three gunmen shot her in the head and the chest, killing her, police Major Nur Ali told Reuters. The gunmen fled the scene, according to news reports.

"Somalia has long been among the worst offenders for allowing the killings of journalists to go uninvestigated and unpunished," said CPJ Deputy Executive Director Robert Mahoney "Sagal Salad Osman's death comes as a painful reminder of that legacy of impunity, and we call on Somali authorities to bring her killers to justice."

The motive for the murder was not immediately apparent, and no one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, according to news reports. Members of the state-run media are often threatened and attacked by militants in the region, including Al-Shabaab, CPJ research shows. CPJ could not immediately determine if Sagal had received threats prior to Sunday's attack.

At least four journalists and one media worker affiliated with Radio Mogadishu have been killed in direct relation to their work since 2010, CPJ research shows.

Somalia is the deadliest country in Africa for journalists, according to CPJ research.

Copyright notice: © Committee to Protect Journalists. All rights reserved. Articles may be reproduced only with permission from CPJ.

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