Iraq / Middle East & North Africa

  
A security officer is seen in Najaf, Iraq, on February 24, 2020. Najaf-based reporter Ali al-Haj was recently threatened over his reporting. (Reuters/Alaa al-Marjani)

Iraqi reporter Ali al-Haj threatened over reporting

On April 16, 2020, a person who described themselves as the Sheikh of the Al-Mayah tribe texted Ali al-Haj, a reporter for the Iraqi broadcaster Al-Sharqiyya in the southern Iraqi city of Najaf, demanding he stop his reporting and threatened him, according to al-Haj, who spoke with CPJ via messaging app.

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A security officer is seen in Sulaimaniya, Iraqi Kurdistan, on March 14, 2020. Kurdish Iraqi journalist Amanj Warte recently received anonymous threats. (Reuters/Ako Rasheed)

Kurdish Iraqi journalist receives anonymous threats over coverage

Since March 19, 2020, unidentified individuals have threatened Kurdish Iraqi freelance journalist Amanj Warte, who contributes to the broadcaster KNN and the news website Sbeiy, after he published an article in Sbeiy on March 18 about alleged plans for a Turkish military outpost in Kurdish Iraqi territory, according to Warte, who spoke to CPJ via…

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Security agents are seen in Sulaimaniya, Iraqi Kurdistan, on March 14. 2020. Regional authorities recently called for local broadcaster NRT to be closed. (Reuters/Ako Rasheed)

Iraqi Kurdish authorities call for closure of NRT broadcaster over COVID-19 report

New York, April 8, 2020 — Authorities in Iraqi Kurdistan should allow the NRT broadcaster to cover the COVID-19 pandemic freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Police officers are seen in Basra, Iraq, on March 31, 2020. Police recently attacked journalist Mohamed Kader al-Samarrai at COVID-19 checkpoint in Samarra. (Reuters/Essam al-Sudani)

Iraqi security forces beat journalist Mohamed Kader al-Samarrai at COVID-19 checkpoint

On March 31, 2020, two officers of the Iraqi Police Sixth Emergency Regiment assaulted Mohamed Kader al-Samarrai, director of the local broadcaster Al-Maliyah TV, after stopping him at a checkpoint to enforce the country’s COVID-19 curfew, according to a Facebook post by al-Samarrai and reports by the National Union of Journalists in Iraq and the…

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A medical worker is seen at Basra University Hospital, in southern Iraqi, on April 1, 2020. Iraq's media regulator recently suspended Reuters' license for three months over a report on the COVID-19 pandemic. (AFP/Hussein Faleh)

Iraqi regulator suspends Reuters’ license for 3 months over COVID-19 report

New York, April 3, 2020 — Iraqi authorities should immediately reinstate the license of the Reuters news agency, and allow all media outlets to cover the COVID-19 pandemic freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Security forces are seen in Sulaimaniya, Iraqi Kurdistan, on March 14. 2020. Unidentified individuals recently tortured and robbed journalist Adnan Rashidi in Iraqi Kurdistan. (Reuters/Ako Rasheed)

Journalist Adnan Rashidi tortured, robbed in Iraqi Kurdistan

New York, March 26, 2020 — Authorities in Iraqi Kurdistan should conduct a swift and thorough investigation into the torture and robbery of journalist Adnan Rashidi and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Members of a civil defense team disinfect the homes of people infected with coronavirus in Kirkuk, Iraq, on February 26, 2020. Security officers in Kurkuk recently confiscated the belongings of journalist Azad Shakur for allegedly violating a COVID-19 curfew. (Reuters/Ako Rasheed)

Iraqi security forces seize journalist’s belongings for allegedly violating COVID-19 curfew

On March 24, 2020, Iraqi National Security Forces officers stopped Azad Shakur, a reporter for the Iraqi Kurdish broadcaster Gali Kurdistan, and seized his belongings for allegedly violating a lockdown imposed to restrict the spread of the COVID-19 virus, according to Shakur, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview, and a report by the…

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Iraqi protesters lift a banner n Tahrir Square in the capital Baghdad on February 25, 2020, amid renewed anti-government demonstrations. An Iraqi journalist was kidnapped in Baghdad on March 9. (AFP/Sabah Arar)

Unknown gunmen abduct Iraqi journalist Tawfiq al-Tamimi in Baghdad

New York, March 17, 2020–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the abduction of Iraqi journalist Tawfiq al-Tamimi and urged Iraqi authorities to ensure his safety and to immediately open a transparent investigation and hold those responsible to account.

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Security forces and protesters are seen in Baghdad, Iraq, on February 22, 2020. Iraqi riot police recently shot AFP photographer Ahmad al-Rubaye with rubber pellets. (AP/Hadi Mizban)

AFP photographer Ahmad al-Rubaye shot with pellets while covering protests in Baghdad

On February 21, 2020, Iraqi riot police in Baghdad’s Al-Kilani Square shot Ahmad al-Rubaye, an Iraqi photographer for the French news agency Agence France-Presse, with rubber pellets that hit his back, legs, and right shoulder, according to news reports, a statement by the local press freedom group Journalistic Freedoms Observatory, and the journalist, who spoke…

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Security forces are seen in Baghdad, Iraq, on February 10, 2020. Al-Rasheed TV chief executive officer Nizar Thanoun was recently shot and killed in Baghdad. (AP/Hadi Mizban)

Al-Rasheed TV CEO Nizar Thanoun shot and killed in Baghdad

Beirut, February 12, 2020 — Iraqi authorities should conduct a swift and transparent investigation into the killing of Al-Rasheed TV chief executive officer Nizar Thanoun and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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