Omani authorities suspend radio journalist following guest’s on-air critical comments
Omani authorities suspended Kholoud al-Alawi, a journalist at privately owned Hala FM, from her work for at least a month in December 2021, according to BBC Arabic and Beirut-based regional human rights organization the Gulf Center for Human Rights. The Ministry of Information informed the radio station by phone of the suspension on December 1,…
Yemeni journalist Hala Fuad Badhawi detained in Hadramout
New York, January 5, 2022 – Authorities in Hadramout, Yemen, should immediately and unconditionally release freelance journalist Hala Fuad Badhawi, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 30, 2021, military intelligence forces in Hadramout province detained Badhawi in the provincial capital, Mokalla, according to reports by the privately owned Yemeni newspapers Al-Masdar and…
Algerian journalist Merzoug Touati sentenced to 1 year in prison
New York, January 4, 2022 – Algerian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release journalist Merzoug Touati and drop all charges against him, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 28, 2021, police arrested Touati, editor of the independent news website Al-Hogra, after he appeared at a police station in the northern city of…
Multi-year prison terms for Egyptian journalists Alaa Abdelfattah and Mohamed Oxygen ‘unacceptable’
New York, December 20, 2021 – In response to a Cairo court’s sentencing today of journalists Alaa Abdelfattah and Mohamed Oxygen to multi-year prison terms, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement of condemnation: “Egypt’s sentencing of journalists Alaa Abdelfattah and Mohamed Oxygen to years in prison is unacceptable, and demonstrates the lengths…
In Middle East and North Africa, a drop in attacks on journalists belies dire state of press freedom
The Middle East and North Africa region has long been especially dangerous for journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists’ research has found that one out of every three reporters killed worldwide in retaliation for their work since 1992 — 477 out of 1,422, or 33.5% – were located in the region. That proportion rose to…
Number of journalists behind bars reaches global high
Editor’s note: Numbers for each prison census are adjusted yearly as CPJ learns of arrests, releases, or deaths in prison. The numbers for CPJ’s 2021 census have been revised from 293 to 302 in accordance with this policy. For the most recent data, see cpj.org/data/imprisoned/ The number of journalists jailed around the world set another record…
For families of Al-Jazeera journalists jailed in Egypt, an agonizing choice
When Al-Jazeera journalists Mohamed Said Fahmy, Hisham Abdelaziz, and Bahaa Eldin Ibrahim Neamatalla were arrested on terrorism charges in Egypt between 2018 and 2020, their families decided to keep quiet about their detention. They feared that public attention would backfire, leading Egyptian authorities to prolong their relatives’ time in custody or worsen their prison conditions. …
Yemen’s non-state judicial systems spell death, torture for journalists
On December 1, four journalists were on death row in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, for the crime of spreading false news. Before they were detained in 2015, Abdulkhaleq Amran, Akram al-Waleedi, Hareth Hameed, and Tawfiq al-Mansouri worked for various outlets, including the independent Al-Masdar newspaper and outlets associated with al-Islah, one of the parties in…
Iraqi police arrest Al-Ahd TV reporter Hamid Majed after luring him to police station
New York, December 2, 2021 — Iraqi authorities must immediately release Al-Ahd TV reporter Hamid Majed and allow journalists to work freely and without fear of reprisal, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 1, Colonel Tareq Imad, director of the Anbar Crime Directorate in the central Iraqi city of Habbaniyah, phoned Majed,…
Lebanese journalist Radwan Mortada sentenced to 13 months in prison
New York, November 29, 2021 – Lebanese authorities should drop their prosecution of journalist Radwan Mortada and refrain from imprisoning members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On November 26, the Permanent Military Court in Beirut sentenced Mortada, a reporter for the local daily Al-Akhbar and the news website The Cradle, to…