Mogadishu (WDN) – Political tensions have increased in Mogadishu after opposition groups accused the Somalia Federal Government of obstructing peaceful demonstrations by deploying security forces across the capital, shutting down major roads, and severely restricting public movement.

The growing political confrontation comes as President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud continues to publicly affirm that Somalia respects the right to peaceful protest and freedom of expression. However, facts and developments on the ground tell a different story, with opposition groups insisting that, despite repeated public assurances, authorities have consistently blocked protests organized by government oppositions.

“The president is known for speaking out of both sides of his mouth,” an opposition member told WardheerNews

Several senior officials within Somalia’s Federal Government, including Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre and Defense Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, have launched a fierce verbal offensive against anti-government demonstrations being organized in Mogadishu, as political tensions continue to spiral dangerously out of control.

Fiqi whose ministry oversees security forces increasingly accused of being used to suppress displaced civilians and silence dissent, failed to address the heavily armed crackdown mounted against peaceful opposition protesters. Instead, the minister appeared to openly justify the militarization of the capital at a time when Somalia is already teetering on the edge of severe political instability.

Across Mogadishu, armored vehicles, tanks, and heavily armed troops were deployed at major intersections and strategic roads to block demonstrators from reaching locations officially designated for peaceful protests. The capital resembled a city preparing for war rather than one respecting democratic freedoms and constitutional rights.

At the same time, residents expressed outrage after groups allegedly mobilized by the government were allowed to move freely through the city while openly threatening opposition leaders with violence if they refused to abandon the protests and “return to their homes.” Unlike opposition supporters, these pro-government groups faced no security restrictions, roadblocks, or intimidation.

The situation escalated further after armed forces reportedly surrounded the homes of nearly all major opposition leaders using combat vehicles and heavily armed personnel, intensifying fears that the outgoing administration is resorting to intimidation tactics as its mandate nears collapse.

Many observers now view Minister Fiqi as emblematic of a government increasingly accused of weaponizing national security forces against its own citizens instead of using them to defend the country and maintain public safety.

Public shock has also focused on MP Mohamed Ibrahim Moalimuu, a former BBC Somali Service journalist who has recently emerged as a vocal defender of the administration. Once known for criticizing abuses of power and speaking against repression, Moalimuu has now turned his fire on opposition politicians, dismissing them as power-hungry opportunists.

His transformation has stunned many Somalis. Critics note the irony that a veteran journalist — who once risked his life reporting on Al-Shabaab violence and government failures — is now using rhetoric similar to the very political actors he once challenged during his years in independent media.

As the crisis deepens, fears are rapidly growing that Somalia may be drifting toward a dangerous replay of the chaos that consumed the country in 1991. Many citizens believe no government should be allowed to use national forces to crush democratic expression or intimidate political opponents.

Some political voices are now warning that if the government continues deploying soldiers to suppress protests, arrest demonstrators, and intimidate civilians, opposition groups may eventually conclude that self-defense is their only remaining option — a prospect that has alarmed many Somalis still haunted by memories of civil war.

MP Moalimuu has also come under growing criticism amid allegations that some politicians defending the government benefited from disputed land deals tied to the ongoing demolitions and displacement campaigns. Critics argue that, at a moment when the administration stands accused of corruption, land seizures, and constitutional violations, inflammatory rhetoric from government loyalists risks pushing the country even closer to collapse.

With only days reportedly remaining in the government’s mandate, Somalia increasingly appears trapped in a deepening political breakdown where public trust, democratic norms, and the foundations of state authority are eroding at an alarming pace.

WardheerNews