Yusuf Osman Samatar was married twice, first to Zeinab with whom he had three children and later in the 1970s to the daughter of prominent politician Muse Boqor.

[5] After returning to his native Somalia, Samatar became very active in the nationalist movement,[3] first joining the Somali Youth League and after independence establishing the first socialist party in the country.

[3] According to Amnesty International, Samatar suffered from chronic ill-health and was denied medical treatment,[3] family visits, access to any legal representative or correspondence of any kind.

[8] The organization routinely appealed to its supporters to write letters on behalf of Samatar to secure his release or at least improve his detention conditions.

At the time, President Ahmed's government represented the most serious effort to unite Somalia following 17 years of anarchy after the collapse of Somali state.