Nairobi, June 26, 2026 — Kenya has deported Somalia’s Deputy Prime Minister Jibril Abdirashid Haji after immigration officers at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport linked him to a fraudulently acquired Kenyan passport.
Haji arrived at JKIA Terminal 2 on Wednesday, June 24, aboard a Saacid Airline flight from Mogadishu. He presented a valid Somali diplomatic passport, valid until September 2029, along with a proper Kenyan visa. During processing, officials grew suspicious about a Kenyan passport he allegedly possessed through fraudulent means. When asked to surrender it, he reportedly refused and insisted he would only produce it in court. He was held overnight in the VIP lounge before being deported the next morning on a Daallo Airlines flight back to Mogadishu.
The embarrassing episode comes just days after President William Ruto hosted Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud for bilateral talks, further straining already tense Kenya-Somalia relations.
Prominent constitutional lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi SC reacted sharply on X, declaring it “very disgraceful” and accusing President Mohamud of running a “mafia government” in Mogadishu.
While Ahmednasir targeted Somali leadership, the case exposes serious questions about Kenya’s own immigration and passport systems. How did a high-ranking foreign official allegedly obtain a Kenyan passport through fraud? This incident revives long-standing concerns about corruption in document issuance, especially in areas like Eastleigh, and potential national security vulnerabilities.
No official statements have emerged yet from either government on the full details or diplomatic fallout. Haji, a veteran politician with prior roles including Minister of Defence, had reportedly faced previous issues with Kenyan travel documents.
This is not the first time Kenyan passports have landed in questionable hands, underscoring persistent weaknesses in identity verification processes that no high-level diplomacy can easily conceal.
The full circumstances of how the deputy prime minister obtained the document remain under scrutiny. What is clear is that the scandal has delivered fresh ammunition to critics on both sides of the border.
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