GAROWE, Somalia — October 2, 2026 — Passengers at Garowe airport were unable to board a Freedom Airlines flight to Mogadishu and Nairobi on Friday after being told they needed identification issued by Somalia’s National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA), according to accounts from travelers.
Some passengers returned home after learning they could not travel without the required document. The disruption came one day after Somalia introduced identity verification for domestic air travel, with passengers at Garowe reporting difficulties boarding flights to Mogadishu.
WFP flights scheduled to travel to Garowe on Sunday were also reported to have been cancelled. The reason for those cancellations was not immediately clear.
The cancellations came as passengers and airlines faced the start of the new identification requirement. Travelers said the measure prevented them from boarding at Garowe, where people use air services to travel to Mogadishu and connect with onward flights, including international routes.
The requirement took effect on October 1. It requires domestic air travelers to present NIRA-issued identification for identity verification. Reports on the first day of implementation said passengers at Garowe were asked to show NIRA documents before boarding flights to Mogadishu.
At the airport on Friday, passengers on the Freedom Airlines service were reportedly told they could not proceed because they did not have a NIRA identity card. The flight was scheduled to travel from Garowe to Mogadishu and Nairobi, according to traveler accounts.
Some passengers left the airport after being turned away. There was no immediate information on how many people were affected or whether the airline offered them alternative travel arrangements.
New requirement takes effect
The domestic travel requirement forms part of the federal government’s national identification system, administered by NIRA. The rule was introduced through an agreement between NIRA and the Immigration and Citizenship Agency to verify the identity of domestic air travelers.
The government has said the national ID system is intended to provide a secure, verifiable form of identification and support access to public services. With the travel rule now in effect, passengers are required to meet the identification condition when flying within Somalia.
Reports on the rollout say acceptable NIRA documents include a National ID card or an identity certificate. However, passengers in Garowe said they were told they needed a NIRA card to board. The difference between the documents accepted under the policy and those requested at the airport was not immediately clarified by officials or the airline.
The requirement has created a practical difficulty for some passengers in Puntland, where NIRA registration services are not readily available. Travelers may therefore face challenges obtaining the document requested at the airport before making domestic travel plans. Reports published after the measure took effect described passengers in Garowe as unable to board because they lacked NIRA identification.
Puntland has its own identification authority and has opposed the federal NIRA system amid wider political disagreements with the federal government in Mogadishu. The travel disruption has brought that disagreement into focus for residents seeking to fly between Garowe and the capital.
Passengers left without travel
The affected Freedom Airlines passengers were scheduled to leave Garowe for Mogadishu, with some continuing to Nairobi. Traveler accounts said some were unable to proceed and returned from the airport.
The reported WFP flight cancellations add to concerns about access to air transport in the region, although no confirmed link between those cancellations and the NIRA requirement was available. Details, including the number of flights cancelled and the number of passengers affected, were not immediately reported.
Air travel connects Garowe with Mogadishu and other destinations, including routes used by people travelling for work, family needs and medical appointments. Previous accounts of the new requirement described passengers at Garowe being unable to continue journeys to Mogadishu and onward to Nairobi. The latest disruption has again left some travelers without a confirmed departure.
No public explanation from Freedom Airlines or the federal government was included in the reports reviewed. Further information was not immediately available about whether the passengers could rebook or whether airlines had issued guidance on alternative identification documents.
The disruption shows the immediate effect of applying an identity check to domestic air travel while access to NIRA registration remains limited in Puntland. Passengers who arrive at the airport without the document requested may be unable to board, even when they have booked and planned their journeys.
For now, travelers in Garowe have reported being turned away, while the status of the Sunday WFP flights remains unclear. The reported cancellations and boarding problems highlight how the new requirement is affecting air travel between Puntland and Mogadishu.