Reporter shot dead in Mogadishu is fourth journalist killed this year in Somalia

Reporters Without Borders expresses its deepest sympathy to the family and colleagues of the journalist Abdisalan Sheikh Hassan, shot dead yesterday by a man in military uniform in the Hamar Jajab district of Mogadishu. “We are shocked by this latest tragedy, which demonstrates once again that the enemies of press freedom in Somalia are prepared to shoot and kill journalists,” the international press freedom organization said. “Abdisalan Sheikh Hassan is the fourth journalist killed in the country this year and the 25th since 2007. “We condemn this crime in the strongest terms and ask the authorities to do their utmost to ensure it does not go unpunished. “The perpetrator, who should be easily identified by those who witnessed the incident, must be found, tried and appropriately punished.” Hassan, a freelance journalist also know as “Xiis”, worked for the radio station Hamar Radio and for the TV station Horn Cable TV. He was gunned down while he was in a car with colleagues near his work place. A man armed with an AK-47 assault rifle and wearing the military uniform of the federal transitional government pointed his weapon at him and fired without any warning. The reporter, badly wounded in the head, was rushed to the Madina Hospital where he died of his injuries. In a move widely criticised by other members of parliament and not acknowledged internationally, some Somali parliamentarians met recently to oust the assembly’s spokesman. Hassan was the only journalist to have recorded the gathering and the video was broadcast by Horn Cable TV. Several people had asked him for a copy of the recording. His killing may be linked to the event. Photo : Abdisalan Sheikh Hassan.