Middle East & North Africa

  
Photos of children who lost their documents while fleeing militants in Mosul are displayed at an Iraqi passport office. Many journalists fled the violence but the fate of those who remained is hard to determine. (AFP/Safin Hamed)

Chasing ghosts: Tracking Iraq’s missing journalists in Islamic State stranglehold of Mosul

Amar hasn’t left his house in five days. Every evening he fears a knock on the door will bring militants who have been searching for him. He hasn’t earned a salary in more than a year and relies on a few trusted neighbors to bring him food.

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Palestinian man impersonating journalist stabs Israeli soldier

New York, October 16, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the stabbing of an Israeli soldier today by a Palestinian man impersonating a member of the press, a move that further imperils journalists on dangerous assignments and has potential to further restrict freedom of the media in the region.

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Getting Away With Murder

CPJ’s 2015 Global Impunity Index spotlights countries where journalists are slain and the killers go free Published October 8, 2015 Elisabeth Witchel/CPJ Impunity Campaign Consultant The ambush of a convoy in South Sudan and the hacking deaths of bloggers in Bangladesh this year propelled the two nations onto CPJ’s Global Impunity Index, which spotlights countries…

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Sue Turton, Dominic Kane, center, and Peter Greste, at a press conference in CPJ's New York office. The Al-Jazeera journalists, who were convicted in absentia in Egypt, are calling on President el-Sisi to intervene in their cases. (AP/Julie Jacobson)

Beyond the pardons, press freedom still under threat in Egypt

Today the Committee to Protect Journalists hosted a press conference for three Al-Jazeera journalists who have been convicted in absentia in Egypt. The journalists expressed solidarity with other members of the press who have been charged by the Egyptian government, and called on President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to intervene in their cases.

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CPJ joins call for Morocco to end harassment of journalists

The Committee to Protect Journalists has joined the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies and three other human rights groups, in calling on the government of Morocco to stop its harassment of journalists and human rights defenders. The statement was delivered during the general debate at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on…

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As world leaders take to UNGA stage, CPJ highlights countries of concern

Press freedom records of Egypt, Russia, Iran, China, Nigeria, Mexico, Ecuador New York, September 25, 2015–Each year, the world’s leaders are invited to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, where they are given a platform to speak freely and openly. But while the leaders of many countries enjoy this privilege, their journalists back…

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CPJ urges Sisi to release all journalists jailed in Egypt

Dear President el-Sisi: The Committee to Protect Journalists is writing to express concern about the deteriorating climate for press freedom in Egypt, days before you address the United Nations General Assembly in New York next week.

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CPJ welcomes Al-Jazeera pardons, calls for all other journalists in Egypt to be freed

New York, September 23, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists welcomes the presidential pardon today of Al-Jazeera journalists Mohamed Fadel Fahmy and Baher Mohamed, who have been in prison since they were sentenced in a retrial on charges including “aiding a terrorist organization.” Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi pardoned 100 prisoners today, on the eve of the…

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CPJ Announces 2015 International Press Freedom Awards

Awardees from Ethiopia, Malaysia, Paraguay, and Syria New York, September 15, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists will honor journalists from Ethiopia, Malaysia, Paraguay, and Syria with the 2015 International Press Freedom Awards. The journalists have endured death threats, physical attacks, legal action, imprisonment, or exile in the course of their work.

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CPJ joins call for Canada to help free Al-Jazeera journalist Mohamed Fahmy

The Committee to Protect Journalists has signed a joint letter calling on Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to take immediate action to have jailed Al-Jazeera journalist Mohamed Fahmy deported from Egypt to Canada. CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon and Middle East and North Africa Program Coordinator Sherif Mansour signed the letter to Harper along with…

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