Mombasa family in distress over missing kin held in Ethiopia
On October 30, 2025, Abdulmaula Hussein left Kuwait aboard Etihad Airways, transiting through Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. He later called the family informing them that he had been stopped by airport security and removed from the plane
A Mombasa family is in a distressful situation, seeking to know the whereabouts of a relative, who was reportedly arrested by Ethiopian authorities in the capital, Addis Ababa while in transit back home to Kenya.
Twenty-eight-year-old Abdulmaula Hussein Abdulmaula, was on his way from Kuwait, where he had been employed since May 2025. Due to deteriorating health conditions, he was unable to complete his contract and requested an early return for further treatment.
The family says he has been suffering from mental disorders, experiencing anxiety, distress, fatigue, and lack of sleep.
On October 30, 2025, Abdulmaula left Kuwait aboard Etihad Airways, transiting through Abu Dhabi and then proceeding to Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, where he was scheduled to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Mombasa the same day.
“Later that day, we received a call from him informing us that he had been stopped by airport security and removed from the plane. Airline officials explained that this was due to him shouting and taking videos inside the aircraft before take-off,” said the family in a statement.
Four days later, on November 3, 2025, he managed to contact his brother, informing him that the police were taking his fingerprints and that he was being taken to a cell.
Since then, frantic efforts by the family seeking his whereabouts have proved fruitless, with no formal communication from Ethiopian or Kenyan authorities.
The issue was escalated to the Senate on Tuesday, November 12, 2025, by Mombasa Senator Mohammed Faki, who sought a formal statement from the Committee on National Security, Defence and Foreign Relations.
“I have personally tried to find out from the State Department of Diaspora Affairs, but no assistance has been accorded. I have also communicated with Kenya’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, George Orina and there is no information from our embassy in Addis Ababa regarding his whereabouts,” said the Senator.
The Senator urged the Committee to detail the specific measures the Kenyan Embassy in Addis Ababa is taking, emphasizing its mandate to safeguard citizens abroad.
“We would like to know the reasons for his continued detention and why he has not been arraigned in the courts or released if he is innocent,” he said, highlighting the agonizing 14-day ordeal faced by the family.