At last night's UNESCO's 2011 World Press Freedom Day event, a distinguished panel examined the freedom to report in light of the Arab Spring. One...
CATEGORY: Middle East and North Africa
Iran’s silenced workers make fresh May Day demands
Iranian workers are denied the basic right of assembly but each year they valiantly mark May Day. Iran’s labour movement has a long and courageous...
Al-Jazeera suspends Syrian bureau in response to attacks
Al-Jazeera suspended its Arabic services in Syria yesterday (27 April) in response to attacks on its staff and government restrictions. The...
Bahrain: Four protestors sentenced to death
Yesterday (27 April) a Bahraini military court has sentenced four protestors to death and a further three to life in prison. The seven people were...
Al-Wasat columnist detained in Bahrain
A columnist for the independent Al-Wasat newspaper was arrested on Monday (25 April) after 30 uniformed and plainclothes police officials raided his...
Syria: Government crackdown results in mass casualties
The Syrian regime has launched a massive crackdown against protestors demanding political reform in the country. The killing of protestors in 14...
Jailed lawyer awarded PEN prize
Nasrin Sotoudeh, 47, writer, lawyer, and women and children’s rights activist, has been awarded PEN’s Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award. The...
Security forces target journalists in Yemen
Yemeni authorities detained the editor of Al-Shahid at a checkpoint on 25 April. Abdel Aziz al-Majidi was prevented from entering the Taiz province...
Iranian journalist given six-year jail term
Iranian journalist Nazanin Khosravani was sentenced to six years in jail on 19 April after being convicted of impinging on national security and...
Swiss television crew detained in Qatar
ASwiss television channel claimed on 18 April that two of its reporters were detained without charge in Qatar for 13 days. The RTS network alleges...