Muhammed İsa Abdullah, whose restaurant Saab Cafe in Ankara closed following police interventions and who was issued a deportation order, has returned to Turkey years later to serve as trade attaché at the Somali Embassy in Ankara.
Abdullah, who was forced to close his restaurant in 2022, came to public attention in his new role following a visit to the Hak Industrialists and Businesspeople’s Association (HAKSİAD) on October 30, 2026.
During the visit, Abdullah and Muhtar Abdullahi Ali, an executive at Somalia-based Aw Ali Company, discussed trade relations between Turkey and Somalia and opportunities for cooperation.
His restaurant was forced to close
Muhammed İsa Abdullah began running Saab Cafe, which served Somali and African cuisine, in Ankara’s Kızılay neighbourhood in 2019.
From 2021 onwards, however, the business made headlines over police inspections and changes to its sign.
The restaurant faced police interventions because it had a foreign name and its sign featured yellow, red and green.
In June 2022, police painted the restaurant’s sign white. The operators protested, saying they held the necessary legal permits.
The General Directorate of Security argued in a statement at the time that the name on the sign differed from the name on the business licence and that the sign did not comply with standards.
He faced a deportation order
Abdullah was detained on September 20, 2022, and taken to the Akyurt Removal Centre in Ankara.
He was released on October 25 following legal action by his lawyers.
After the interventions targeting his restaurant, however, Abdullah announced in December 2022 that Saab Cafe had closed.
Sharing a photograph of the closure on social media, Abdullah wrote: “Beginning–Middle–End!”
Court found discrimination in police conduct
In an April 2024 ruling, Ankara’s 5th Administrative Court found that police actions against the Somali business owner had been motivated by racist prejudice.
The court identified discrimination in the treatment of businesses run by migrants.
It also examined video recordings submitted by Abdullah that contained discriminatory remarks by police officers.
Speaking after the ruling, Abdullah said he had faced discrimination because he was a Somali citizen and that the court’s decision had established what he had experienced.
Another café with a foreign name opened at the same address
After Saab Cafe closed, a new business called “Verte Coffee House” opened at the same address in 2024.
Abdullah criticised the authorities, pointing out that his restaurant had been targeted over its foreign-language sign while another business with a foreign name was allowed to operate at the same location.
Describing his experience as “institutional racism,” Abdullah said he had been forced to close his restaurant.
Returning to Turkey on a diplomatic assignment
Abdullah arrived in Turkey to study in 2012 and attended Ondokuz Mayıs University in Samsun. He later completed a master’s degree at Bursa Uludağ University.
After finishing his education, Abdullah went into business in Ankara. He left Turkey following the administrative and legal proceedings he faced in 2022.
Abdullah has now reportedly been appointed trade attaché at the Somali Embassy in Ankara.
What happened?
Saab Cafe, which opened in Ankara’s Kızılay neighbourhood in 2019, became the subject of police interventions from 2021 onwards.
In June 2022, the business’s yellow, red and green sign was painted white. Later that year, Abdullah was issued a deportation order and held at a removal centre for a period.
In April 2024, Ankara’s 5th Administrative Court ruled that the police interventions had been discriminatory and motivated by racist prejudice.
Abdullah’s appointment as trade attaché at the Somali Embassy in Ankara in 2026 has brought renewed attention to his experience.
