On Saturday, a teenage autorickshaw driver was shot and killed by police in Mogadishu, sparking protests near the Howl-Wadaag intersection.
After a brief argument, the young man, named as Mohamed Hayle, was shot by Mogadishu police while inside his ‘Bajaj’ autorickshaw taxi. The cause for his murder is still unknown.
Hayle’s mother and sister were reportedly in his taxi at the time of the incident but were unharmed.
According to his pals, the deceased was a resident of Daynille’s Gubta neighborhood.
Within minutes, several other Bajaaj drivers arrived on the scene and began arguing with local cops who were allegedly attempting to remove Hayle’s body from his truck.
The Bajaj drivers began a protest calling for the arrest of the cop who killed Hayle.
A disgruntled young man stated that his life as a Bajaj driver has become intolerable.
“Every morning, I go to work to feed my children, but the troops block the road and take $15 a day while killing us. It’s gotten too much.”
The police and security forces used live ammunition to disperse the protestors.
Government officials have yet to respond to the protests.
In April 2019, security authorities killed at least four protestors in Mogadishu as hundreds of autorickshaw taxi drivers went to the streets after an officer shot and killed a Bajaj driver.