SOMALI GOVERNMENT SHUTS DOWN RADIO STATION

Police in Somalia stormed the Mogadishu headquarters of the independent radio station, Shabelle, forcing it off the air. The authorities said they were taking back possession of the building, which belonged to the government. The radio station is well known for being critical of senior officials. The move is the latest in a series of attacks on independent journalists by the government and the Islamist group, Al-Shabab. The station had previously been ordered to leave the building. Radio Shabelle reported on its website that police forced their way into the studio and beat journalists. Witnesses said that radio employees were seen being loaded into trucks. A police officer said that the raid had "nothing to do with Radio Shabelle's current activities," the agency reported. The Somali interior ministry says that the building housing Radio Shabelle was previously occupied by the national airline, and so should revert to the government. Radio Shabelle says it was occupying the building, which is near Mogadishu's airport and in a secure area, legally after an agreement with the previous government. It isn’t news how  journalists working in Somalia face "extreme dangers". Eighteen journalists were killed in Somalia in 2012 alone, and 10 Radio Shabelle journalists have been murdered since 2007.