CPJ, human rights organizations urge Jordanian authorities to reverse decision to block websites
In a joint statement, the Committee to Protect Journalists and 23 other human rights organizations called on the Jordanian government to immediately reverse the May 14 decision to block 12 websites and lift the ban on all affected platforms unconditionally. The statement urges the government to publicly disclose the legal basis for the actions against…
Jordan bans 12 news sites for ‘spreading media poison’ following corruption report
Beirut, May 16, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists urges Jordanian authorities to lift Wednesday’s ban on a dozen online news outlets for “spreading media poison and attacking Jordan,” following the publication of allegations that the government unfairly profited from aid to Gaza. “The Jordanian Media Commission’s decision to block 12 media websites is deeply alarming,”…
CPJ alarmed by disappearance of Yemeni journalist Naseh Shaker
New York, December 1, 2023—The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply alarmed by the disappearance of Yemeni journalist Naseh Shaker and calls on the Southern Transitional Council (STC), the de facto authority in southern Yemen, to disclose his whereabouts. Shaker was last heard from on November 19, when he spoke to his mother at around…
Two French journalists flee Yemeni island of Socotra after questioning, house arrest
On May 28, 2023, five armed soldiers and three police chiefs on the Yemeni island of Socotra arrested freelance journalist Quentin Müller and Sylvain Mercadier, co-founder and director of the independent Iraqi news website The Red Line, at their apartment, according to tweets by Müller and Mercadier, who communicated with CPJ via email. The authorities…
Inspired by Shireen Abu Akleh, journalist Shatha Hanaysha was an eyewitness to her killing
Al-Jazeera correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh, whose body was laid to rest in Jerusalem Friday, was an inspiration to a generation of female Palestinian reporters – including one who witnessed Abu Akleh’s killing on May 11. Shatha Hanaysha, a 29-year-old correspondent for news website Ultra Palestine and contributor to regional news website Middle East Eye, was next to Abu Akleh in the Israeli-occupied West…
Israel bombs additional building housing media office in Gaza; Israeli security forces assault Palestinian journalist in East Jerusalem
New York, May 18, 2021 – Israeli forces must immediately stop bombing the offices of media outlets in Gaza and do their utmost to protect all members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, Israeli warplanes bombed and damaged a Gaza City office building housing the office of the Nawa Online…
French journalist Sylvain Mercadier barred from entering Turkey, deported
On March 19, 2021, police in Turkey’s Istanbul Airport barred French freelance journalist Sylvain Mercadier from entering the country, detained him overnight, and deported him back to France, according to news reports, tweets by the journalist, and Mercadier, who spoke to CPJ in a phone interview. Officers took Mercadier into custody soon after his flight…
Iraqi judge issues arrest warrant for journalist Suadad al-Salhy
New York, October 23, 2020 – Iraqi authorities should drop the arrest warrant issued for journalist Suadad al-Salhy and allow the press to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Yesterday, a judge at the Al-Karrada Investigative Court in Baghdad issued an arrest warrant for al-Salhy, a reporter for the Middle East Eye…
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…
For third week, Palestinian journalists injured by gunfire covering Gaza protests
At least two Palestinian journalists were injured while covering mass protests on the Gaza border on April 13, 2018, according to the Palestinian Journalist Syndicate (PJS), the journalists’ employers, and news reports.