Iraqi journalist Tawfiq al-Tamimi was kidnapped on March 9, 2020, in eastern Baghdad while on his way to work, according to his son, news reports and statements from his employer.
His son, Jaffar, told CPJ that gunmen intercepted Al-Tamimi’s car in the Ur neighborhood, stole mobile phones from him and a colleague, and abducted him at gunpoint, taking him to an unknown location. His colleague, journalist Ali Hamoud al-Hassan, was present during the incident but was not taken.
Jaffar said on April 30, 2026, that the family had appealed to the highest authorities but “so far, they have not obtained any leads regarding the kidnapping case.”
At the time of his kidnapping, Al-Tamimi was serving as a regional news editor for the state-run daily Al-Sabah. His editor-in-chief, Ali al-Fawaz, stated that al-Tamimi had no known personal disputes outside of his journalism work, and the motive for the kidnapping remained unclear.
The kidnapping occurred amid widespread protests in Iraq that began in October 2019 over unemployment, corruption, and lack of public services. Al-Tamimi had expressed support for the protests and called for the release of missing author Mazen Latif in a Facebook post two days before his abduction.
Al-Sabah reported that the abduction sparked widespread condemnation across journalistic, media, and parliamentary circles. In its coverage, the Iraqi Media Network stated that it “strongly condemns this irresponsible act, which violates the most basic human rights, including the right to life and freedom of expression,” and called on security authorities to “assume responsibility for pursuing the perpetrators and protecting journalists from such practices that threaten social stability and press freedom as guaranteed by the Iraqi constitution and international conventions.”
The Iraqi Interior Ministry did not provide immediate comment on the case.