Somaliland’s military courts are making a brutal example of those who cross the armed forces. A rickshaw driver has been sentenced to death for fatally shooting a security officer in Gabiley, marking the latest in a wave of hardline rulings aimed at reinforcing state authority.
The First Degree Military Court found Salah Isaaq guilty of murdering Road Transport Officer Buuh Mowlid Ismail after a dispute turned deadly. The verdict was swift and merciless—death by execution. Four others convicted of assisting in the crime were hit with prison sentences ranging from four to thirteen years.
This follows another death sentence just a day earlier, when a Somaliland soldier was condemned for killing his superior. Authorities are making one thing clear: kill a security officer, and you’ll pay with your life—no leniency, no appeal, no second chances.
These rapid-fire military verdicts signal a shift towards an iron-fisted approach. The Somaliland government isn’t just responding to crime—it’s declaring war on anyone who challenges state power. With every execution order, the message is getting louder: the state will not tolerate defiance.
Is this true justice, or a regime flexing its muscle? The fear is real, and the crackdown has only begun.
