Iraqi Kurdistan

The Committee to Protect Journalists is monitoring press freedom violations related to the ongoing military escalation between Israel, the U.S and Iran and its spillover across the Middle East, including its regional and global impact on journalists and media workers. Since the Iran war broke out on February 28, when the U.S and Israel launched…

Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, August 20, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Kurdish authorities to immediately release freelance Iraqi Kurdish journalist Sherwan Sherwani after an Erbil court handed him an additional four years and five months in prison.  “Sentencing Sherwani for a third time on dubious charges and imposing the maximum penalty shows the authorities’ determination to silence his critical voice and keep him behind…

Correction: Based on new information, the number of journalist and media worker casualties in 2024 has changed. The number of Palestinians killed by Israel in 2024 is now 60% of the total killed worldwide. In keeping with CPJ’s methodology, data is updated as new information becomes available. See CPJ’s database for the most current data…

China, Israel, and Myanmar emerged as the world’s three worst offenders in another record-setting year for journalists jailed because of their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ 2024 prison census has found. Belarus and Russia rounded out the top five, with CPJ documenting its second-highest number of journalists behind bars – a global total of…

Sulaymaniyah, December 20, 2024 —The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by the killing of journalists Jihan Belkin and Nazim Dashdan in northern Syria in a suspected Turkish drone attack on their vehicle and calls for an investigation into whether they were targeted for their work. “Journalists are civilians and must be protected at all…

Correction: Based on new information, the number of worldwide journalist and media worker casualties has changed. In 2023, the percentage of the worldwide total who were killed in the Israel-Gaza war was changed from “more than three quarters” to almost three quarters. In keeping with CPJ’s methodology, data is updated as new information becomes available….

As 2023 begins to wind down, journalists around the world continue to face multilayered challenges to do their jobs. Yet some press freedom developments inspire us, strengthen us, and make us grateful. Here is a short list: CPJ is grateful to the journalists covering the Israel-Gaza war who continue to bring us vital news despite…

Press freedom advocates note landmark year at annual gala New York, November 17, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and press freedom supporters celebrated journalists from Georgia, India, Mexico, and Togo last night at the 33rd annual International Press Freedom Awards (IPFA) in New York, which raised a record-breaking nearly $2.8 million to protect journalists…

Washington, D.C., February 13, 2023 – Iranian authorities must drop any charges against freelance Kurdish journalist Siamand Mohtadi and release him immediately, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday.  On Saturday, February 11, authorities arrested Mohtadi after raiding his home in the Kurdish city of Bukan, in West Azerbaijan province, and took him to an…

On the night of October 4, 2022, protesters stormed the headquarters of privately owned Al Rabiaa TV in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, damaged the broadcaster’s equipment, and forced it to  go off air for a day, according to statements and multiple videos by the broadcaster, news reports, the Iraqi Communications and Media Commission, and local press freedom groups.  In a statement, Al Rabiaa TV said the perpetrators were “groups belonging…