Middle East & North Africa
2018
Three Palestinian photojournalists injured covering Gaza protests since November 19
Rashid Rasheed, a photojournalist and cameraman for the Associated Press news agency, was hit in his left leg by a live round fired by the Israel Defense Forces while covering a protest on a beach near the border fence west of the northern Gazan city of Beit Lahia on November 19, 2018, according to news…
Sudan must stop trying to censor newspapers, websites
Washington D.C, December 21, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Sudanese authorities to stop trying to stifle news coverage of this week’s widespread anti-government protests. Internet service in Sudan, including access to social media websites, was disrupted today, according to Access Now and NetBlocks, two organizations that track internet shutdowns. Yesterday, the local…
More journalists killed on the job as reprisal murders nearly double
Journalists from Saudi Arabia to Afghanistan to the U.S. were targeted for murder in 2018 in reprisal for their work, bringing the total of journalists killed on duty to its highest in three years. The number of journalists killed in conflict fell to its lowest level since 2011. A CPJ special report by Elana Beiser
Two Jordanian journalists jailed for 2 days for publication of photomontage
An Amman prosecutor on December 10, 2018, ordered the arrest of Mohammad al-Wakeel, the publisher and editor-in-chief of the news website Al-Wakeel News, and intern editor Ghadir al-Rabihat on charges of inciting sectarian strife after a complaint was filed over an altered image of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper” on the site’s Facebook account,…
Hundreds of journalists jailed globally becomes the new normal
For the third year in a row, 251 or more journalists are jailed around the world, suggesting the authoritarian approach to critical news coverage is more than a temporary spike. China, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia imprisoned more journalists than last year, and Turkey remained the world’s worst jailer. A CPJ special report by Elana Beiser
Militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham threatens to execute Syrian journalist Amjed al-Maleh
Beirut, December 11, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed grave concern about the fate of Syrian journalist Amjed al-Maleh. According to news reports, Syrian militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham threatened to execute al-Maleh, a Syrian freelance journalist and media activist from the southwestern Syrian city of Madaya whom the group had been holding captive…
Israel raids Palestinian news agency, detains journalist in the West Bank
Washington D.C., December 10, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists expressed concern at today’s raid on the offices of the Palestinian News and Information Agency (WAFA) by Israeli forces in the West Bank city of Ramallah and the detention of Al-Quds News Network writer and Quds Radio Tulkarm correspondent Sameh Manasra by Israeli authorities.
Lebanese authorities detain Syrian reporter who reports on refugees
Beirut, November 26, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the imprisonment without charge of Abdel Hafez al-Houlani, a correspondent for the Syrian pro-opposition news website Zaman al-Wasl in the northeastern Lebanese city of Arsal, and called on Lebanese authorities to immediately disclose charges against him or set him free.
Unknown gunmen kill prominent Syrian radio host and a photographer in northwestern Syria
Beirut, November 26, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the assassination of prominent radio host Raed Fares and photographer Hamoud al-Jnaid and urged local authorities in the northwestern Syrian city of Kafranbel to investigate the murder and bring those responsible to justice.
Damascus journalist has a million stories but none she can safely report
Joudy Boulos has a million stories she wants to write. But as a Syrian freelance journalist living in Damascus, her ability to report is severely limited by the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. It is so dangerous that “Joudy Boulos” is a pseudonym the journalist sometimes uses when reporting and to protect her safety.…