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Somalia Salvation Forum to sue President Hassan Sheikh over corruption and rights abuses

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Tuesday September 23, 2025

Former Somali President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, flanked by former Prime Ministers Mohamed Hussein Roble (far left) and Hassan Ali Khaire (center behind Sharif), speaks during a press conference in Mogadishu. On Tuesday, the Somalia Salvation Forum announced lawsuits against President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s government over alleged constitutional violations, corruption, and forced evictions.
Mogadishu (HOL) — The Somalia Salvation Forum and lawmakers from both houses of parliament said Tuesday they will file lawsuits against President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, his government, and senior officials, accusing them of constitutional violations, corruption, and human rights abuses, including forced evictions of poor families.
The lawsuits are expected to be filed in Somali courts and international jurisdictions. The group alleged the government unlawfully amended the 2012 federal constitution, delayed state elections, weakened operations against Al-Shabaab, and carried out illegal land sales that displaced vulnerable citizens.

“The Federal Republic of Somalia is facing a sensitive political and constitutional crisis that threatens state-building, security, and the country’s political trajectory,” the forum said in a joint statement.
The Forum said the government has eroded public trust by pushing through controversial amendments first adopted in March 2024, which expanded presidential powers and strained ties with federal states. A deal reached last month between Villa Somalia and part of the opposition walked back some of those changes, restoring parliament’s authority to confirm or dismiss a prime minister and granting national party status to any political group securing at least 10 percent of parliamentary seats.
However, the agreement has divided the opposition. Four senior group leaders, including former Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke and former parliamentary speakers Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan and Mohamed Mursal, signed the electoral framework with the government. Other Forum figures, including Wadajir Party leader Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame, rejected it, warning the president’s electoral timeline was “unrealistic under current conditions.”
It further criticized the government for failing to organize elections in Galmudug, Hirshabelle, and South West states, where mandates expired between 2022 and 2024, and for lacking a credible framework ahead of the 2026 transition.
The group had previously accused the president of attempting to extend his mandate, which is due to expire on May 15, 2026. In a September statement, the group said it would not accept any delay to elections and described the 2024 electoral law and the National Independent Electoral Commission as “a blatant deception.”
In an exclusive interview with the BBC on the day the potential lawsuit was announced, Mohamud ruled out extending his term in office and defended his government’s handling of constitutional reforms, saying Somalia must press ahead with one-person, one-vote elections despite mounting opposition and lawsuits.
The Tuesday statement said political disputes and mismanagement have weakened Somalia’s fight against Al-Shabaab. “We urge the president and government to end political disputes and mismanagement that have distracted from defeating Al-Shabaab,” it read.
The Forum’s lawsuit will also target what it calls the unlawful transfer of public land to private business interests and the forced eviction of families in Mogadishu and other regions.“These actions constitute corruption, abuse of power, and violations of human rights,” the statement said, warning that using security forces to expel women and children was a breach of both national and international law. In a statement earlier this month, the Forum accused the government of “selling public land while neglecting the fight against terrorist groups.”
The forum urged Somalis at home and abroad to organize peaceful demonstrations against what it described as widespread corruption and abuse of power. “The Somali people have the legal right to self-defence, and their unified voice is the key to safeguarding the country’s survival and future,” the statement added.
The press release was endorsed by the National Rescue Forum along with a broad coalition of members of parliament, civil society groups, academics, traditional elders, women, youth, the Somali diaspora, and business leaders.

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