Algeria / Middle East & North Africa

  
Police officers wearing face masks stand guard during an anti-government protest, following the coronavirus outbreak, in Algiers, Algeria on March 6, 2020. News websites covering both the unrest and the impact of the disease have recently been blocked in the country. (Reuters/Ramzi Boudina)

Algerian media websites newly censored after “false news” ban

Three additional local news websites have been blocked on Algerian networks since April 22, 2020, bringing the number of outlets affected in April and May to at least six, according to online statements by the websites affected. The intervention came in the wake of a new law against “false news.”

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Security forces are seen in Algiers, Algeria, on April 8, 2020. Algerian authorities recently blocked three news websites in the country and passed legislation criminalizing "fake news." (AP/Toufik Doudou)

Algeria blocks 3 news websites and criminalizes false news

New York, April 22, 2020 — Algerian authorities must immediately unblock the news websites Interlignes, Maghreb Emergent, and Radiom, and ensure that all media outlets can publish online freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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CPJ, 80 media and rights groups urge African heads of state to release jailed journalists

CPJ and 80 media, press freedom, and human rights organizations write to African heads of state to call on their respective governments to release all jailed journalists amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Police officers are seen in Algiers, Algeria, on March 6, 2020. Three newspaper staffers were recently arrested over a report on the coronavirus pandemic in Algeria. (Reuters/Ramzi Boudina)

Three newspaper staffers charged with ‘attack on national unity’ over COVID-19 report in Algeria

On April 1, 2020, officers of Algeria’s National Gendarmerie arrested three employees of the privately owned Essawt El-Akhar daily newspaper and interrogated them about a story the paper published that day about the COVID-19 pandemic, according to news reports and Abdelrahman Saleh, the employees’ lawyer, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app.

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A police officer is seen in Algiers, Algeria, on March 19, 2020. Algerian authorities recently imprisoned journalist and RSF correspondent Khaled Drareni. (AP/Toufik Doudou)

Journalist and RSF correspondent Khaled Drareni imprisoned in Algeria

New York, March 27, 2020 — Algerian authorities should drop all charges against journalist Khaled Drareni and release him from prison immediately, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Police officers confront protesters in Algiers, Algeria, on February 22, 2020. Journalist and RSF correspondent Khaled Drareni was arrested while covering protests on March 7. (Reuters/Ramzi Boudina)

CPJ demands Algeria release journalist and RSF correspondent Khaled Drareni

Washington, D.C., March 9, 2020 — Algerian authorities should immediately release journalist and press freedom advocate Khaled Drareni, a correspondent for global press freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) who has been in custody since March 7, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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Algerian security forces are seen in Algiers on December 4, 2019. Authorities recently sentenced cartoonist Benabdelhamid Amine to three months in prison. (AP/Toufik Doudou)

Algeria sentences cartoonist Benabdelhamid Amine to 3 months in prison

Washington, D.C., December 19, 2019 — A court in Oran, in northwest Algeria, sentenced cartoonist Benabdelhamid Amine to one year in prison on December 11 after finding him guilty of insulting the president, “violating territorial integrity,” and “disseminating publications harmful to national security,” according to news reports. The Djamal City Criminal Court suspended nine months…

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Protesters wave national flags as they gather for a demonstration against the government and the ruling class in Algiers on November 29, 2019. Algerians are due to vote in a presidential election on December 12. (AFP/Ryad Kramdi)

CPJ Safety Advisory: Covering unrest and elections in Algeria

Protests are taking place across Algeria ahead of a presidential election that is scheduled to take place on December 12, according to reports. The December vote comes after the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who stepped down from power after 20 years of rule amid widespread protests at the start of the year, according to…

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Protesters chant slogans during anti-government demonstrations in Algiers, on October 18, 2019. Police have arrested at least five journalists in recent weeks. (AFP/Ryad Kramdi)

Algeria arrests fifth journalist amid anti-government protests

Washington, D.C., October 23, 2019—The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Algerian authorities to release Bendjama Mustapha, editor-in-chief of Le Provincial, and end the harassment of journalists covering anti-government protests.

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Algerian demonstrators chant and wave their country's national flag as they take part in an anti-government protest in the capital Algiers on October 15, 2019. Authorities have detained at least three more journalists in recent days. (AFP)

Algeria detains three journalists who covered protests, alleged corruption

Washington, D.C., October 17, 2019–Algerian authorities should immediately release journalists Said Boudour, Abdelmoundji Kheladi, and Adel Azeb Chikh from pretrial detention and drop all charges against them, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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