Journalist Mica Reddy and his assistant disappear in Djibouti — Daily Maverick
South African investigative journalist Mica Reddy and his local assistant, Kuki Mahmoud, have disappeared in Djibouti. They have been out of contact since midday on Saturday, Daily Maverick reports.
Reddy works as the Africa projects coordinator for the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, ICIJ. According to his editor, Fergus Shiel, the journalist arrived in Djibouti from Johannesburg on Thursday evening, changing planes in Addis Ababa. He planned to spend no more than three days in the country and was staying at the Escale International Hotel.
Contact was lost after a planned meeting
Shiel said that Reddy was due to meet Mahmoud at 1:00 p.m. local time on Saturday. Before that, the journalist sent a message saying that he was fine and that his assistant was arriving, after which he made no further contact.
According to the ICIJ editor, Reddy was not working on a story about Djibouti. He was trying to obtain information for a long-running investigation, the details of which Shiel did not disclose for security reasons. The editor suggested that the journalist may be in custody and called on Djiboutian authorities to disclose his whereabouts. This assumption has not been confirmed by the country's authorities.
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Response from governments and media organizations
The governments of South Africa and the United Kingdom attempted to contact Djiboutian authorities to establish the fate of Reddy and Mahmoud. According to Shiel, the British side launched a missing person search procedure, while South African authorities promptly promised assistance. U.S. and Djiboutian authorities were also approached for information about the missing men.
The Committee to Protect Journalists, CPJ, called on Djiboutian authorities to immediately clarify the whereabouts of Reddy and Mahmoud, confirm that they are safe, and not obstruct journalists' work. The South African investigative journalism agency amaBhungane, where Reddy previously worked, made the same demand.
In its Freedom in the World 2026 report, Freedom House classified Djibouti as not free, giving it 24 out of 100 points for political rights and civil liberties. In Reporters Without Borders' 2023 press freedom ranking, Djibouti placed 167th out of 180.
