On December 1, 2025, police arrested Eyob Shimelis, founder of and reporter with TikTok-based Sidama News, at around 10 a.m. outside his home in the regional capital Hawassa, and took him to the city’s Addis Ketema sub-city police station, two people with knowledge of the case told CPJ, on condition of anonymity, citing safety concerns. Eyob was questioned about his recent reporting on alleged abuses by regional officials, they said.
When Eyob appeared before Hawassa City First Instance Court on December 3, it approved investigators’ request to keep him in remand until December 9, which it then extended until December 17, according to the two individuals.
Eyob has faced repeated threats and intimidation, which have forced him into hiding throughout 2025, and fled to neighboring Kenya and Uganda for months, only returning after receiving informal assurances that he would not be harmed, those two individuals said.
On September 29, Eyob was detained on allegations of defamation, which is a civil, not a criminal, offense in Ethiopia. He was released on October 4, without appearing in court, on condition that he apologize publicly — which he did. In his statement, Eyob asked regional leaders for forgiveness for his “use of words that were demeaning” and promised to “continue to be the voice of the public by reporting only the truth and doing so in a way that is far removed from emotional bias.”
CPJ’s December 2025 requests for comment, sent via messaging app, to the Sidama police and the region’s communications affairs bureau did not receive responses. An email address provided by the bureau through its Facebook page returned an error message.