On February 25, 2025, armed police arrested journalist Saed Ali Osman, also known as Xaalays, in Somaliland’s central city of Burao, over his Facebook video of a local politician, according to the Somaliland Journalists Association (SOLJA) and the journalist, who spoke to CPJ after his release.
Saed, who publishes news on his Facebook page, where he has about 28,000 followers, was detained at Burao police station, alongside two other journalists who had worked on the report with him, Ayanle Ige Duale and Abdiasis Saleban Sulub.
Police informed them that the Togdheer regional administration took issue with the video in which Saed asked the Governor of Togdheer Region, Mohamud Ali Salebaan, also known as Ramaax, to clarify his stance on clan militias, which Somaliland authorities have at times described as local defense forces. The governor declined to respond and left the scene, appearing upset.
On February 27, 2025, authorities released the three journalists without charge, following intervention by clan elders and representatives of SOLJA.
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 but has not been recognized internationally, except by Israel in December 2025.
CPJ did not receive responses to April 2026 emails to the police and Office of the Attorney General, requesting comment on several cases of journalists detained since January 2025, including Saed. Similar emails to the ministry of information and the presidency returned error messages, and calls to those offices were unanswered in early May 2026.