Middle East & North Africa

  

On the table

Why now is the time to sway Rouhani to meet his promises for press freedom in Iran President Hassan Rouhani came to power in 2013 on a platform of pledges to roll back the repressive policies of his predecessor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who decimated Iran’s once vibrant media. Rouhani, seeking to create space for political reform…

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On the table

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The Nile River in Cairo, Egypt on April 25, 2018. Egyptian authorities on May 23, 2018, detained prominent Egyptian blogger Wael Abbas, according to news reports. (Reuters/Mohamed Abd El Ghany)

Egyptian authorities detain blogger Wael Abbas

New York, May 23, 2018–Egyptian authorities should release immediately Wael Abbas, a blogger who has documented Egyptian police abuse, and end their senseless campaign against the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Police at dawn today detained Abbas at his Cairo home and took him to an undisclosed location, according to news reports,…

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Military forces in North Sinai, Egypt, in December 2017. A military court has sentenced freelancer Ismail Alexandrani, who reported on unrest in the region, to 10 years in prison. (Reuters/Mohamed Abd El Ghany)

Military court in Egypt sentences journalist to 10 years in jail

New York, May 22, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly condemned the sentencing today of Egyptian freelancer Ismail Alexandrani. A military court in Cairo found Alexandrani guilty of being a member of a banned organization and spreading false news, and sentenced the journalist to 10 years in prison, according to news reports.

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A Saudi woman gestures as she sits in a car during a driving class at a university in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on March 7, 2018. Saudi security forces detained blogger Eman Al Nafjan alongside six other people associated with the women's rights movement who have campaigned for an end to the ban on women driving, according to reports. (Reuters/Faisal Al Nasser)

Saudi blogger Eman Al Nafjan detained

New York, May 22, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed concern over the detention of Eman Al Nafjan, a Saudi blogger who writes about women’s issues, and urges the country’s authorities to confirm her whereabouts and release her immediately.

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Children play football in front of a damaged building in a rebel-held neighborhood of Daraa in southern Syria on May 7, 2018. Unknown gunmen killed journalist Ibrahim al-Munjar in Daraa on May 17. (Mohamad Abazeed/AFP)

Unknown gunmen kill Syrian journalist in eastern Daraa

Beirut, May 18, 2018–Two unknown gunmen killed Ibrahim al-Munjar, a correspondent for the Syrian news website Sy24 in the southern Syrian province of Daraa. Al-Munjar was killed in the city of Saida on May 17, according to his employer, news reports, and the Syrian Journalists Association.

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Justice Delayed

Mahmoud Abou Zeid (Shawkan) CPJ welcomes the release of Egyptian photojournalist Mahmoud Abou Zeid, also known as Shawkan, on March 4, 2019, after over five and a half years of arbitrary detention on anti-state charges. Despite walking out of jail, Shawkan is still not entirely free. For five years, the photojournalist will have to appear…

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A demonstration calling for LGBT rights in Trinidad and Tobago on April 12. Journalists covering LGBTQ issues say they often face retaliation for their work. (Reuters/Andrea de Silva)

Covering LGBTQ issues brings risk of threats and retaliation for journalists and their sources

To mark the annual International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, CPJ spoke with journalists and news outlets based in Argentina, Iran, Indonesia, the U.S., Uganda, and Russia, about the challenges they face reporting on LGBTQ issues.

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CPJ to release report on press freedom in Iran

New York, May 16, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists will release its report, “On the table: Why now is the time to sway Rouhani to meet his promises for press freedom in Iran,” on May 24, 2018. CPJ will mark the launch of the report with a panel discussion in Brussels.

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The sun sets over the Gaza Strip on May 14, 2018. Seven Palestinian journalists were injured by gunfire in Gaza protests on May 14, according to reports. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)

Seven Palestinian journalists injured by gunfire in Gaza protests

Beirut, May 14, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the use of gunfire by Israeli forces against journalists covering protests today in the Gaza Strip. At least seven Palestinian journalists have been injured by Israeli gunfire while covering today’s demonstrations, according to the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate (PJS), reports shared on social media by media outlets…

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