CPJ calls on Egypt’s prosecutor general to support request to free Shawkan
Dear Prosecutor General Nabil Sadiq. The Committee to Protect Journalists is writing to you because of our deep concern for photojournalist Mahmoud Abou Zeid, known as Shawkan, who is due to stand trial in Cairo Criminal Court on December 12, 2015. Shawkan’s lawyers told CPJ they will ask the court to release him from custody We request that you support this request. Shawkan was at Rabaa Al-Adawiya in August 2013 not as a protester or a criminal, but as a journalist.
Egypt should release Shawkan, photographer detained for two years
New York, August 13, 2015–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Egyptian authorities to release freelance photographer Mahmoud Abou Zeid, also known as Shawkan, from prison immediately and drop the baseless allegations against him. By the time of his hearing on Monday, Shawkan will have exceeded the two-year legal limit on pretrial detention, according to…
2023 prison census: Jailed journalist numbers near record high; Israel imprisonments spike
By Arlene Getz/CPJ Editorial Director Worst Jailers | New Developments | Regional Repression | Census Methodology Israel emerged as one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists following the October 7 start of the Israel-Gaza war, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ 2023 prison census has found. Israel ranked sixth – tied with Iran – behind…
President Biden must tackle press freedom during Middle East trip
New York, July 12, 2022 – As President Joe Biden departs for a visit to the Middle East from July 13 to 16, the Committee to Protect Journalists urges Biden to mount a robust defense of press freedom with the leaders of Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, where journalists’ ability to report freely and safely…
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…
Ten years after the Arab Spring, the region’s media faces grave threats. Here are the top press freedom trends
In early February 2011, Alaa Abdelfattah was in Egypt’s Tahrir Square, documenting and participating in the nascent pro-democracy uprising that would topple the government and transform the country and the region. Today, he is in prison on anti-state and false news charges, which his family believes are partly retaliatory for his work. Abdelfattah is one of…
Islam Gomaa
Islam Gomaa, a freelance photojournalist who contributed to the Veto news website, has been in custody since June 2018 on charges of joining a banned group and spreading false news charges. A court in 2019 ordered his release from prison but the journalist remains behind bars. Police arrested Gomaa at his home in Giza on June 29,…
Alaa Abdelfattah
Alaa Abdelfattah, a prominent blogger and activist, was arrested in September 2019, a few months after his conditional release from prison, where he had served a five-year sentence. Abdelfattah, who has written about politics and human rights violations for numerous outlets, including the independent Al-Shorouk newspaper and the progressive Mada Masr news website, was sentenced…
Year in review: The state of press freedom in 2019
This year, journalists worldwide faced attacks, arrests, and censorship. In September, we released our annual 10 Most Censored list, highlighting the range of online and offline techniques used to censor journalism and restrict press freedom. Meanwhile, protests in over two dozen countries posed risks to members of the press. Journalists faced threats while covering civil…