HARGEISA, Nov (Horndiplomat) – Somaliland’s Ministry of Civil Aviation and Airports has announced new restrictions preventing airlines from routing passengers through Mogadishu, citing heightened security risks for travelers. The directive will take effect on December 1, 2025, and applies to both outbound and inbound international passengers.
Under the new rules, travellers departing from Hargeisa to third-country destinations, as well as passengers flying into Hargeisa from abroad, will no longer be permitted to transit through Mogadishu. Somaliland’s government said the move is designed to safeguard passengers in line with international aviation standards.
“The decision is issued in accordance with Somaliland’s obligations under ICAO Annex 17 regarding aviation security and passenger safety,” the ministry said in a statement. “Protecting the security of Somaliland citizens and international travellers remains our top priority.”
Airlines operating in Somaliland have been instructed to remove all Mogadishu-linked connections from their ticketing systems and flight schedules. The ministry said the order is binding on all carriers serving Hargeisa’s Egal International Airport.
Somaliland said it will continue to enforce both international and national aviation safety requirements despite its lack of formal international recognition.
“The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Airports remains committed to upholding international and domestic aviation security regulations,” the statement added.
The decision comes weeks after a major cybersecurity breach in Somalia’s newly introduced e-Visa platform, which exposed the personal data of more than 35,000 travellers, including foreign nationals, aid workers and diplomats. The U.S. Embassy in Somalia and the UK Foreign Office issued public alerts warning citizens of the breach, citing risks related to identity theft, data misuse and insecure processing systems. Analysts say the incident has raised broader concerns about Somalia’s ability to meet basic aviation security, data protection and passenger-safety standards.
Aviation experts say the long-running dispute between Somaliland and Somalia has intensified amid accusations that Somalia is mismanaging shared airspace arrangements and using administrative tools—including the e-Visa platform—to exert control over travellers to and from Somaliland. These actions, they say, have increased fears about passenger rights, safety and political interference in freedom of movement.
