Lebanon / Middle East & North Africa

  

Beirut’s journalists report on the explosion that tore through their lives and city

Six minutes after the explosion at the Port of Beirut on the evening of August 4, 2020, Natalia Sancha, a correspondent for the Spanish newspaper El Pais, was on her motorcycle, heading to the scene of the blast. Like so many journalists in the city, she was documenting the catastrophe as she was living it.   The…

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Lebanese TV host to stand trial over remarks critical of Turkish President Erdoğan

On July 9, 2020, the Lebanese attorney general’s office filed criminal charges against Neshan Der Haroutiounian, a Lebanese-Armenian TV host, for his remarks about Turkish President Erdoğan, and set a date for his trial at Beirut’s Publications Court on October 8, according to news reports. The charges stemmed from a July 11 filing by Muhammad…

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Lebanese soldiers assault 5 journalists covering protest north of Beirut; judge bans outlets from interviewing U.S. ambassador

On June 28, 2020, Lebanese soldiers assaulted at least five journalists while they were reporting on protesters who were attempting to block a highway in Jal el-Dib, five and a half miles (nine kilometers) north of Beirut, according to news reports, the regional press freedom group SKeyes Center for Media and Cultural Freedom, reports in…

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Army bars journalists from reporting on Beirut’s Hamra Street, citing permit regulations

New York, July 10, 2020 – Lebanese authorities should allow journalists to report from Beirut’s Hamra street and other public areas in the country without seeking prior approval, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. On July 6, two men who identified themselves as army intelligence officers stopped Charbel Abboud, a reporter for French public…

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The office of Lebanese journalist Shuaib Zakaria is seen after being shot 30 times by unidentified attackers on March 19, 2020. (Shuaib Zakaria)

Unidentified attackers shoot at office of Lebanese journalist Shuaib Zakaria

In the evening of March 29, 2020, unidentified assailants fired dozens of bullets at the house and office of Shuaib Zakaria, a reporter for local broadcaster Radio Delta North and the news website Madinati, in the village of Fnaidek, in the northern Lebanese governorate of Akkar, according Zakaria, who spoke to CPJ via messaging app,…

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Police officers are seen Beirut, Lebanon, on November 1, 2019. Lebanese journalist Mohammed Zbib was recently assaulted in Beirut. (Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)

Lebanese journalist Mohammed Zbib assaulted in Beirut

In the evening of February 12, 2020, three unidentified individuals assaulted Mohammed Zbib, a reporter for the Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar, in the Beirut neighborhood of Hamra, according to news reports and a report by the journalist’s employer.

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Lebanese riot police guard a road leading to the parliament during clashes with anti-government protesters in downtown Beirut on January 22, 2020. Journalists covering the unrest are advised to take safety precautions. (AFP/Patrick Baz)

CPJ Safety Advisory: Covering protests in Lebanon

Protests in Lebanon have become more violent in recent weeks, with approximately 500 protesters and members of the security forces injured, according to reports. Lebanese authorities have used water cannon, batons, rubber bullets and, on occasion, fired teargas directly at protesters, according to reports. Protesters have thrown projectiles including molotov cocktails, stones and fireworks, directed…

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Riot police restrain a protester in Beirut, Lebanon, on January 18, 2020. Authorities arrested U.S. freelancer Nicholas Frakes and held him for two days. (Reuters/Mohamed Azakir)

Lebanese authorities detain US freelancer Nicholas Frakes for 2 days

At about 8:30 p.m. on January 19, 2020, Lebanese security forces arrested Nicholas Frakes, a U.S. national and freelance reporter, while he was covering protests in downtown Beirut, according to news reports and a friend of the journalist, who spoke to CPJ.

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Protesters and police officers are seen in Beirut, Lebanon, on January 15, 2020. Police attacked and detained journalists covering the recent protests in Beirut. (AP/Hussein Malla)

Journalists assaulted, detained while covering protests in Beirut

Beirut, January 16, 2020 — Lebanese authorities should investigate recent attacks against journalists covering protests in Beirut by both police and demonstrators, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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A newspaper stand is seen in Beirut, Lebanon, on January 31, 2019. Judge Ziad Abu Haidar recently filed a criminal defamation suit against Lebanese newspaper Nida al-Watan. (Reuters/Mohamed Azakir)

Lebanese newspaper Nida al-Watan sued over alleged presidential criticism

On September 12, 2019, Lebanese judge Ziad Abu Haidar filed a criminal defamation suit against the Nida al-Watan newspaper as well as its editor-in-chief Beshara Charbel and managing director George Barbari, according to news reports and a report by regional press freedom group Skeyes Center for Media and Cultural Freedom.

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