On Monday, two journalists from a regional media network Hirshabelle TV were injured when a landmine exploded in the town of Jirta Qabno, in the Hiran region, central Somalia.
According to Somali police, Abdilkarim Shabello and Khaled Mohamud Osman were injured after a landmine exploded. The journalists were part of the convoy of Hiran regional president, Ali Jiti Osman.
The mine was planted by the side of a road, the police have reported.
Khaled Osman is the director of Hirshabelle TV, and Abdilkarim Shabello is a reporter for the network.
The General Secretary of the Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS), Abdullah Momen, has confirmed that the two journalists were injured. Through its Twitter account, the SJS has reported that they are both currently receiving medical treatment.
Battles between the Al-Shabaab armed group and government forces have been seen across central Somalia over the last period.
More generally, the country is suffering from worsening drought and is now facing catastrophic levels of malnutrition, food insecurity, and famine, according to the United Nations.
Somalia is experiencing one of the worst droughts in nearly 40 years, “which have left 386,000 children in acute need of life-saving treatment for severe malnutrition in Somalia alone”, the UN reports.
