CPJ Middle East and North Africa Staff

Tunisia Mission

Journalists tell CPJ how Tunisia’s tough new constitution curbs their access to information

When a CPJ researcher sat down with Lotfi Hajji, Tunisia bureau chief of Qatari broadcaster Al-Jazeera at a coffee shop in Tunis in July, we noticed that a man sitting directly behind us was recording our conversation on his phone. When we stood up to take a selfie with him in the background, the man…

Read More ›

Inspired by Shireen Abu Akleh, journalist Shatha Hanaysha was an eyewitness to her killing  

Al-Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, whose body was laid to rest in Jerusalem Friday, was an inspiration to a generation of female Palestinian reporters – including one who witnessed Abu Akleh’s killing on May 11.  Shatha Hanaysha, a 29-year-old correspondent for news website Ultra Palestine and contributor to regional news website Middle East Eye, was next to Abu Akleh in the Israeli-occupied West…

Read More ›

An Iranian woman wearing a protective face mask chooses traditional items ahead of Nowruz, the national New Year celebration, at the Tajrish Bazaar in the capital Tehran on March 19, 2020, despite the heavy death toll due the novel coronavirus in the country. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the government has covered up crucial information and threatened journalists. (AFP/Stringer)

Amid coronavirus pandemic, Iran covers up crucial information and threatens journalists

In recent months, the stability of the Iranian government has been threatened by widespread protests in late 2019 and the shooting down of a Ukrainian civilian aircraft in January 2020 amid heightened tensions with the U.S. The latest threat is the coronavirus pandemic, which has hit Iran harder than any country except China or Italy.…

Read More ›

Campaign posters pictured in Tehran on February 20. Ahead of parliamentary elections, authorities increased pressure on Iran's journalists with arrests, detentions and legal action. (Supplied to Reuters via West Asia News Agency/Nazanin Tabatabaee)

Iran harasses, intimidates journalists ahead of parliamentary elections

Elections are always problematic for journalists in Iran, as the government attempts to threaten the press into silence. The parliamentary elections on February 21 are no exception.

Read More ›