6/13/2025
Today from Hiiraan Online:  _
advertisements
Google
Puntland authorities investigate assault of two young displaced girls in Garowe
855 Shares
    FacebookFacebook messengerTwitterWhatsAppLinkedInTelegramEmail


    Monday May 12, 2025


    FILE - Garowe General Hospital, located in Puntland’s administrative capital, where two young sisters from a displaced family were admitted following an alleged assault outside the city. The case has sparked widespread concern over the safety of vulnerable children in Somalia’s displacement camps.

    Garowe (HOL) — Two young sisters from a displaced family were hospitalized over the weekend after suffering an alleged assault on the outskirts of Garowe, highlighting growing concerns over the safety of children living in Somalia’s informal settlements.

    The girls, aged 8 and 10, were brought to Garowe General Hospital on Sunday. Medical staff confirmed signs of abuse following examination, according to hospital officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

    The siblings had been collecting plastic waste for recycling—a task they often undertook to help supplement their family’s income. Their family lives in one of Garowe’s internally displaced persons (IDP) settlements, home to hundreds of families uprooted by conflict or drought.

    Local sources said a civilian man allegedly enticed the girls into his vehicle and drove them to a remote area outside the city, where the assault reportedly occurred. He then abandoned the girls at the scene.

    The Puntland Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has opened a case, but no arrests have been made as of Monday. Requests for comment from CID officials were not returned.

    The case has shocked the local community and prompted renewed scrutiny of a troubling pattern: children, especially girls from impoverished or displaced backgrounds, being forced into informal work that exposes them to violence and exploitation.

    In Puntland, as in other parts of Somalia, economic hardship continues to push vulnerable families to send children into unsafe working conditions. Advocates warn that the absence of effective child protection systems means that abuses often go unreported or unpunished.

    Human rights groups are also calling on local officials to improve legal protections and enforcement mechanisms to prevent future incidents.

     





    Click here