JANUARY 5, 2005
Posted: January 19, 2005
Adil Aidan, Al-Arabiya
HARASSED, IMPRISONED
Aidan, a correspondent for news channel Al-Arabiya, was arrested after the station aired a disputed report of clashes between Kuwaiti government forces and militants.
Al-Arabiya News Director Nakhle al-Haj said Kuwaiti authorities did not provide a reason for the arrest, but he and Kuwaiti journalists told CPJ that it stemmed from an on-air news report in which Aidan, citing a Kuwaiti security source, said that militants had clashed with security forces.
The government later denied the report, and the station reported the denial, said al-Haj, speaking from the satellite channel’s Dubai headquarters.
Kuwaiti journalists staged a protest outside the Ministry of the Interior on January 6, calling for Aidan’s release.
Aidan was released on January 8 on bail and faces possible trial.