From Syria to Spain: The story of Madrid’s first refugee-led news site
Today marks the 30th anniversary of the Windhoek Declaration, which came out of a conference attended by independent journalists and was supported by a dozen international organizations. Two years after that gathering in Namibia, the United Nations declared May 3 World Press Freedom Day. As UNESCO notes, “The ideas exchanged by African journalists and media…
Kurdish Syrian journalist Fanar Mahmoud Tami abducted
New York, January 29, 2021 – The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed alarm over the abduction of Syrian journalist Fanar Mahmoud Tami, and called on all parties in northeast Syria to ensure his safety. In the evening of January 23, masked assailants driving a white jeep abducted Tami, a freelance journalist who publishes news…
Syrian journalist Hussein Khattab shot and killed while reporting in Aleppo governorate
New York, December 14, 2020 – Authorities in the northwestern Syrian city of Al-Bab should conduct a thorough investigation into the killing of journalist Hussein Khattab, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On December 12, two unidentified masked men on a motorcycle fired at least 10 shots at…
Syrian journalist Rasheed Bakr killed in an airstrike in northern Idlib
New York, October 28, 2020 — The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the killing of Syrian reporter and cameraman Rasheed Bakr and urged all parties in the Syrian conflict to guarantee the safety of civilians, including journalists. Bakr, who worked for the pro-opposition news website Al-Mohrar Media Network and the Syria 1 News Agency,…
Hayat Tahrir al-Sham militants abduct US journalist Bilal Abdul-Kareem and driver in Syria
New York, August 17, 2020 — The militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham should immediately release reporter Bilal Abdul-Kareem and his driver and stop detaining journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On August 13, in the northern Syrian town of Atmeh, masked militants with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an Al-Qaeda offshoot formerly known as Al-Nusra…
Militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham assaults at least 12 Syrian journalists covering joint Russian-Turkish military patrol in Idlib
On June 10, 2020, several members of the militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an Al-Qaeda offshoot previously known as Al-Nusra Front, hit and kicked at least 12 Syrian journalists while they were covering a joint Turkish-Russian military patrol on the M4 Highway, which links Latakia and Aleppo, according to four of the journalists who…
The last journalists in Syria: Taking reporters to safety in Spain
On Monday, a Philippine court convicted Maria Ressa, founder and editor of the news website Rappler, and Reynaldo Santos, a former researcher at the outlet, on charges of cyber libel. The conviction is the latest episode in a longstanding campaign by President Rodrigo Duterte’s government to silence Ressa and the critical news outlet. CPJ called…
Journalists in Syria tell CPJ of fear of humanitarian catastrophe if COVID-19 spreads
Syria hasn’t been greatly impacted by the global COVID-19 pandemic. The Syrian Health Ministry has counted 123 cases, and six deaths as of June 1, according to a report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The country has begun to relax restrictions it imposed in mid-March, including curfews and…
Regional authorities in northeast Syria suspend Rudaw TV reporter’s credentials for 2 months
New York, May 11, 2020 — Authorities in northeastern Syria should reverse their suspension of reporter Vivian Fatah’s press credentials and allow all journalists to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.
Syrian photographer Abdul Nasser Haj Hamdan killed in Russian airstrike
Beirut, February 26, 2020 — Russian and Syrian military forces must ensure the safety of journalists and other civilians and hold those responsible for journalists’ deaths to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.