Iraq / Middle East & North Africa

The release of Iraqi journalist Adel Hussein, who had been jailed in Iraqi Kurdistan, is making news today. The Associated Press has coverage of his pardon from President Masoud Barzani, as does Canada’s CBC News. Both articles cite our coverage of the case and quote CPJ Deputy Director Robert Mahoney, who called on the authorities…

Our annual census of imprisoned journalists, which lists 125 journalists in jail, has gotten more coverage today and over the weekend. Geek has a story that focuses on our finding that the majority of those in prison are online journalists. The Web site ArsTechnica also examines this angle in its coverage, and Democracy Now! ran a similarly…

Editor & Publisher has coverage of our annual census of imprisoned journalists, which was released earlier today. The report lists 125 journalists in jail as of December 1, 56 of whom are online journalists.

Another radio journalist has been killed in the Philippines today according to reports from The Associated Press. Leo Mila, a radio broadcaster in the north of the country, was gunned down in front of his radio station earlier today. Mila’s program focused on discussing citizen’s complaints. According to reports, he had been working on a…

Shwan Dawdi, editor-in-chief of the Kirkuk-based newspaper Hawal, sent a letter thanking CPJ for its help in overturning his conviction and one-month prison term. “I would like to express … my thanks and gratitude for your noble and courageous position to defend the freedom of the press and journalists,” Dawdi wrote.

Nearly three years after gunman affiliated with al-Qaeda left him for dead on a Baghdad street, Iraqi state television cameraman Jehad Ali arrived in the United States for medical treatment to help rebuild his bullet-shattered right leg.

We announced the 2008 International Press Freedom Award recipients on Tuesday, and the news has been well-received worldwide. Bilal Hussein of Iraq, Danish Karokhel and Farida Nekzad of Afghanistan, Andrew Mwenda of Uganda, and Héctor Maseda Gutiérrez of Cuba will all be honored by CPJ on November 25 for their courageous work. Beatrice Mtetewa, of Zimbabwe will…

Reuters has an in-depth story today on the increasingly dangerous reporting environment in Iraqi Kurdistan. Part of the problem, the article reports a local editor as saying, is that “the government thinks that journalists are the opposition.” Killings, threats, and attacks against journalists are on the rise, with about 60 occurrences reported to CPJ in…