Iranian Kurdish journalist Fardin Mostafaei detained in undisclosed location
Washington D.C., September 24, 2024—Islamic Republic of Iran authorities must free Iranian Kurdish journalist Fardin Mostafaei, who was arrested on September 18 in a cafe in the northwestern Kurdistan province and detained in an undisclosed location on unspecified charges, according to news reports. “Iranian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Fardin Mostafaei and…
CPJ, 28 others urge UN to prioritize human rights in Bahrain
On September 23, the Committee to Protect Journalists joined 28 human rights organizations during the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in urging all member states to address human rights concerns in Bahrain, including the ongoing arbitrary detention of journalists, human rights defenders, scholars, bloggers, and opposition leaders. The letter included the case…
Egypt violates own law by adding 2 years to Alaa Abdelfattah’s prison term
Washington, D.C., September 24, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Egyptian authorities to release Alaa Abdelfattah, a prominent Egyptian-British blogger and writer, upon completion of his five-year prison sentence this Sunday, September 29. Abdelfattah was arrested on September 28, 2019, and in December 2021, he was sentenced to five years in prison, starting from…
Israeli forces raid Al Jazeera’s West Bank office, issue 45 day ban on its journalism
Editor’s note: On April 4, 2025, Israeli forces raided Al Jazeera’s West Bank office and renewed its closure for a further 60 days. Beirut, September 22, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Israeli authorities to stop harassing and obstructing Al Jazeera after armed Israeli forces raided the Qatari broadcaster’s office in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah…
Tunisia appeals court upholds Sonia Dahmani’s conviction amid election coverage crackdown
New York, September 13, 2024—Tunisian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release commentator Sonia Dahmani, following an appeals court decision Tuesday to uphold her conviction for spreading false news with a reduced eight-month sentence, and allow all journalists and news outlets to cover the upcoming presidential elections freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. “The…
CPJ joins call for UN commission to investigate Israel murder of journalist Issam Abdallah
The Committee to Protect Journalists joined 10 press freedom and human rights organizations in a letter to the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel to investigate and help provide accountability for the murder of Reuters video journalist Issam Abdallah, who was killed by Israeli…
CPJ and 34 other organizations condemn spate of Egyptian journalist arrests
On September 9, the Committee to Protect Journalists and 34 human rights and press freedom organizations released a joint statement condemning the recent arrests and enforced disappearance of four Egyptian journalists — Ashraf Omar, Khaled Mamdouh, Ramadan Gouida, and Yasser Abu Al-Ela — and called for their immediate release. The statement also urged Egyptian authorities…
Paramilitary group kidnaps, demands ransom for Sudanese journalist
New York, August 29, 2024—Armed men affiliated with the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces (RSF) took freelance journalist Aladdin Abu Harba from his home in the East Nile region of Khartoum, an area under RSF control, on Friday, August 23, and detained him in an unknown location, according to news reports and a local journalist…
CPJ submits report on Iraq to UN’s human rights review
The Committee to Protect Journalists has submitted a report on the state of press freedom and journalist safety in Iraq and semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan to the United Nations Human Rights Council ahead of its January to February 2025 Universal Periodic Review (UPR) session. The U.N. mechanism is a peer review of each member state’s human…
Syrian journalist detained without explanation, held by Turkish intelligence
Editor’s note: Bakr al-Kassem was released without charge on September 2, according to media reports. Beirut, August 27, 2024—The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by Monday’s detention of freelance journalist Bakr al-Kassem in northern Syria and his transfer to Turkish intelligence custody, and calls for his immediate release. “We are deeply concerned that Syrian opposition…