A US military board last week ordered that Ahmed Raziak, a 38-year-old cameraman, be held for at least six more months for ‘imperative reasons of security’, but declined to disclose any specific allegations against him or provide any evidence as to...
CATEGORY: Middle East and North Africa
TV station closed in West Bank
Afaq TV, a Palestinian commercial TV station based in Nablus, was closed by Israeli soldiers yesterday for one year on the grounds that it was ‘terrorist’ media. 'We are an independent media and, regardless of what the Israeli military says, we...
Iran: bill proposed to extend death penalty to online crimes
A draft has been passed on its first reading by the Iranian parliament which proposes to apply the death penalty to bloggers and website editors who ‘promote corruption, prostitution or apostasy’. According to article 3 of the bill, judges will be...
Yemeni editor jailed
Abdul Karim al Khaiwani, former editor of now blocked website al-Shora.net, has been sentenced to six years in jail for distributing publications allegedly calling for solidarity with Houthi rebels in the south of the country. Mr al Khaiwani had...

Al Dura controversy continues
A recent French court decision leaves us no closer to the truth about footage that shook the Middle East, writes Natasha Lehrer A seven-year debate over the authenticity of the footage of the death of Mohammed al Dura in the arms of his father...

Finkelstein 1 – Israel 0
The decision to bar Norman Finkelstein from entering the country is a spectacular own goal for Israel, writes Daphna Baram American Jewish academic Norman Finkelstein is a persona non grata in Israel. He found out about it when he attempted a visit...

Lebanese media at centre of battle
Recent factional fighting in Beirut saw journalists come under attack, writes Charles Chuman On 7 May 2008, Hezbollah and its allies in the Lebanese opposition began dismantling the authority of the Lebanese government. The army and police force...

Sarwa Abdul Wahab Al Darwish, 1972—2008
Eugenie Dolberg and Maysoon Pachachi remember a brave activist and journalist killed in Iraq earlier this month Sarwa Abdul Wahab Al Darwish was a 36-year-old Iraqi journalist from Mosul. On 4 May, Sarwa was in a taxi, returning from the market...
Mohamed Al-Daradji interview
Mohamed Al-Daradji’s film Ahlaam (Dreams) won the Index on Censorship Film Award last Monday. He was interviewed by the BBC World Service's World Today about the award and the film. Click below to listen. Mohamed Al-Daradji interview
British journalist freed in Iraq
Richard Butler, a British journalist working with American network CBS, has been freed after being held hostage for two months. Read more here