A Kenyan journalist who was freed from detention in Ethiopia has opted to stay there with friends, according to Kenya's foreign ministry.

Yassin Juma was arrested at Ethiopian opposition figure Jawar Mohammed's house in early July during violent protests following the killing of prominent singer Hachalu Hundessa.

He was released this month after the intervention of Kenya's foreign ministry and taken to a state-run isolation centre in Addis Ababa after testing positive for Covid-19 while in detention.

The journalist completed 14 days in quarantine and was discharged from the facility after testing negative, according to a statement from the Kenyan ministry.

In a letter published by Kenyan newspaper Daily Nation, the journalist said he had not seen his family in Kenya for more than a month.