Nairobi: Two journalists in northern Somalia's self-declared independent Somaliland region have been sentenced to three years in jail for false reports and defaming the government, reports have said, as rights groups condemned the sentence.

Yusuf Abdi Gabobe, owner of the Haatuf Media Network and its editor Ahmed Ali Egeh were sentenced to jail for "spreading false information and defaming government officials," according to media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF).