Two arrested over journo killings

MOGADISHU – Somalia’s military have arrested two men over the killings of two prominent Somali journalists, the interim government said yesterday.

Gunmen shot dead HornAfrik journalist Mahad Ahmed Elmi outside his radio station’s offices on Saturday morning. Hours later, the founder and co-owner of HornAfrik, Ali Iman Sharmarke, died when his car ran over an explosive device as he returned from Elmi’s funeral.”Government troops last night arrested two men in Yaqshid (north Mogadishu), one of whom has confessed to being involved in both attacks,” Mogadishu Mayor Mohamed Omar Habeeb ‘Dheere’ told journalists.The government gave no further information on either man.The Somali journalists’ union has said the killings were assassinations meant to scare local media away from reporting on the country’s conflict.”We condemn the killing of Ali Iman Sharmarke and of journalists,” Dheere said.”I urge the media not to be intimidated by such terrorist acts.”In a statement late on Saturday, the International Federation of Journalists said: “These savage killings are an indicator of the perilous conditions facing journalists in Somalia, where chaos and lawlessness threaten independent journalism.”Clashes between insurgents and Ethiopian-backed government troops have intensified this month, even as Somalia hosts a peace conference aiming to bring its warring factions together.HornAfrik is one of the most popular media groups in Somalia, providing radio, TV and Internet news to many Somalis.It is closely monitored by foreign media, making it one of the few windows to the outside world from a country which foreign journalists are reluctant to visit and where local reporters suffer harassment and violence.It has published reports that upset both the government and Islamist insurgents in Mogadishu, though no one has pointed the finger of blame at either for Saturday’s attacks.HornAfrik was shelled in April, apparently from Ethiopian positions, leading Sharmarke to complain to the government.Hours before his death, Sharmarke expressed outrage at the shooting of his colleague, saying the killers were criminals trying to stop the world hearing about their crimes.Somalia has been without a functioning government since military ruler Mohamed Siad Barre’s regime collapsed in 1991.Nampa-ReutersHours later, the founder and co-owner of HornAfrik, Ali Iman Sharmarke, died when his car ran over an explosive device as he returned from Elmi’s funeral.”Government troops last night arrested two men in Yaqshid (north Mogadishu), one of whom has confessed to being involved in both attacks,” Mogadishu Mayor Mohamed Omar Habeeb ‘Dheere’ told journalists.The government gave no further information on either man.The Somali journalists’ union has said the killings were assassinations meant to scare local media away from reporting on the country’s conflict.”We condemn the killing of Ali Iman Sharmarke and of journalists,” Dheere said.”I urge the media not to be intimidated by such terrorist acts.”In a statement late on Saturday, the International Federation of Journalists said: “These savage killings are an indicator of the perilous conditions facing journalists in Somalia, where chaos and lawlessness threaten independent journalism.”Clashes between insurgents and Ethiopian-backed government troops have intensified this month, even as Somalia hosts a peace conference aiming to bring its warring factions together.HornAfrik is one of the most popular media groups in Somalia, providing radio, TV and Internet news to many Somalis.It is closely monitored by foreign media, making it one of the few windows to the outside world from a country which foreign journalists are reluctant to visit and where local reporters suffer harassment and violence.It has published reports that upset both the government and Islamist insurgents in Mogadishu, though no one has pointed the finger of blame at either for Saturday’s attacks.HornAfrik was shelled in April, apparently from Ethiopian positions, leading Sharmarke to complain to the government.Hours before his death, Sharmarke expressed outrage at the shooting of his colleague, saying the killers were criminals trying to stop the world hearing about their crimes.Somalia has been without a functioning government since military ruler Mohamed Siad Barre’s regime collapsed in 1991.Nampa-Reuters