21 May 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
A citizen journalist has been sentenced to death in Syria, after giving a series of interviews to Al-Jazeera TV station. Mohammed Abdelmawla al-Hariri has been charged with “high treason and contacts with foreign parties” after giving the broadcaster an interview on the situation in his home town of Deraa. Hariri, who was arrested on 16 April shortly after giving an interview, has reportedly been subject to horrific torture after his arrest, resulting in partial paralysis. The Syrian government has accused the station of being part of a global plot to cause chaos in the country.
18 May 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
A journalist critical of the proposed union between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia has been arrested in Manama. Freelance journalist Ahmed Radhi was arrested on Wednesday (16 May), after he appeared on an interview on BBC Arabic Radio, and suggested that the union would justify the presence of Saudi troops in Bahrain. Security forces raided Radhi’s house at 4am in the morning, after the journalist reposted his comments on social media networks. His whereabouts are currently unknown.
17 May 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
The editor of a Iraqi Kurdish magazine has been arrested for reprinting an allegedly blasphemous article. Hamin Ary, editor of Kurdish and Arabic monthly publication Chirpa (Al-Hamsah in Arabic) was arrested on 7 May after publishing an article by controversial writer Goran Halmat. Ary was arrested for “offences that violate religious sensibilities”, an offence which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison. The article, entitled “Me and God” was originally posted on Facebook in 2010, and was deemed “offensive to Islam”.
10 Apr 12 | Index Index, minipost
A Nigerian magistrate ordered the arrest and detention of around 10 journalists on 4 April. A group of reporters who were covering the verdict from a coroner’s inquest were arrested after a woman, believed to be a prosecutor or a social worker, ordered journalists to leave the premises. The journalists attempted to explain why they were there to the woman, but arguments ensued. During the arguments, Magistrate Oshoniyi ordered the immediate arrests of the journalists. Following their arrest, the journalists were assaulted, beaten and harassed by police.
