Mogadishu, Somalia
A man carries a shark through the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia, in September. The capital had seen some heavy shelling that month, part of the conflict between Islamist militants and pro-government troops. Sharks form a large portion of total Somali fish landings. The fish is not commonly eaten in Somalia, but shark meat is dried and salted for export.
Photo credit:
for Reuters
Feisal Omar speaks about the project:
“There are so many difficulties that journalists face in Somalia when shooting a photo. Harassment and denial are part of what we face on a daily basis. Like the photo that won, there were some gunmen very close to where the man with shark was coming from, and as soon as they recognized I was a journalist photographing him, they interrupted me by arguing I was not supposed to take a picture of someone walking around the area. It took me for about twenty minutes to convince them I did nothing wrong while they kept insisting to show them my camera and the pictures I took, which I did. Fortunately, there was an officer who intervened in my support and they did let me go finally. This is some of the troubles we face and some of the times we are being arrested or tortured for taking a picture of a place or an event. “