Middle East & North Africa

  

Mountain of impunity looms over Kurdistan journalists

CPJ to release report on the state of press freedom in Iraqi Kurdistan New York, April 15, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists will release a special report on press freedom in Iraqi Kurdistan. The report examines key attacks on journalists that have shaped the climate of impunity; the role of law enforcement and the judiciary;…

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Egypt detains more journalists as elections approach

New York, April 10, 2014–Two journalists were arrested in Egypt on Wednesday and new charges filed against three others, according to news reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Egyptian government’s renewed crackdown on the press as presidential elections approach in May. 

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Journalist murders silence the press

CPJ to launch 2014 Impunity Index New York, April 9, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists will release its 2014 Impunity Index, a global tally of countries with the highest number of unsolved press murders. The index, which calculates unsolved journalist murders as a percentage of each country’s population, shows that authorities are often unwilling or…

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Bahrain Racing in Circles

Press freedom campaign launch timed to Formula One race in Bahrain New York and Paris, April 3, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have launched a joint social media campaign calling on the Bahraini government to allow journalists to work freely during the Formula One Grand Prix race in Bahrain…

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Aboubakr Jamai, left, says the Spanish prosecutor's investigation will embold the Moroccan government in its case against Ali Anouzla. (AFP/Fadel Senna)

Morocco accuses Spain’s El País of inciting terrorism

Morocco’s inclination for wielding terrorism accusations against journalists and news outlets who report on extremist groups has extended to Spain, where authorities are investigating El País newspaper and one of its journalists at the behest of the Moroccan government.

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News from the Committee to Protect Journalists, March 2014

Pakistani PM pledges justice, journalist security to CPJ A CPJ delegation traveled to Pakistan this month and met with high-level Pakistani officials including Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who pledged to continue to expand Pakistan’s media freedoms and address the insecurity plaguing the country’s journalists.

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Two Spanish journalists freed from captivity in Syria

Two Spanish journalists were freed after being held captive in Syria for more than six months, according to news reports. The journalists–Javier Espinosa and Ricardo Garcia Vilanova–are back in Spain, according to news sources. 

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Journalist shot dead covering clashes in Egypt

New York, March 28, 2014–An Egyptian journalist was shot dead in Cairo today while covering deadly clashes, according to news reports. Mayada Ashraf was a reporter for the daily Al-Dustour. She had covered previous protests for the paper, the reports said.

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A Bahraini boy holds a sign protesting the December 2012 arrest of freelance photographer Ahmed Humaidan. (AFP/Mohammed al-Shaikh)

Freelance Bahraini photographer given 10-year prison term

New York, March 26, 2014–Today’s conviction of freelance photographer Ahmed Humaidan is an attempt by Bahraini authorities to censor independent and dissident voices in the lead-up to the Formula One race in April, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Humaidan, who has been imprisoned since December 2012, was sentenced to 10 years in jail,…

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Journalists under fire in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory

Multiple journalists have been assaulted, threatened, and censored in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory in recent months. 

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