Yesterday, Bahraini authorities denied visas to a number foreign journalists ahead of the anniversary of Bahrain's 14 February uprising. Journalists from the New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, the Wall Street Journal, the BBC, Associated...
CATEGORY: Middle East and North Africa
Blocking porn marks key test of net freedom in Tunisia
The fall of the regime of Zine el Abidine Ben Ali has allowed internet users in Tunisia to enjoy a period of unfettered web access after the Tunisian Internet Agency (ATI) turned off its censorship machines. Now the internet censorship debate has...
Egypt: journalists attacked by security services
Two journalists were shot by security services, and another detained whilst covering the political unrest in Egypt over the weekend. Mahmoud al-Ghazali, Nile TV correspondent, was shot with pellets early on Saturday morning, whilst reporting on...
Iran: Press crackdown continues as elections approach
Ten Iranian journalists were arrested in January as the government continued its crackdown on dissent ahead of March's parliamentary elections. Recent reports identified three previously undisclosed arrests. Critical blogger Mehdi Khazali was...
Iran: BBC Persian staff face intimidation
BBC's Persian TV service has faced further intimidation in Iran. It has been reported that relatives of BBC staff in London have been detained and threatened by Iranian intelligence agents; top presenters have been targeted by rumours; and one...

“The internet is freedom”: Index speaks to Tunisian Internet Agency chief
The Tunisian Internet Agency was the Ben Ali regime’s instrument for censoring the web. Now, as it attempts to break ties with the past,
Afef Abrougui talks to its CEO about the online challenges facing Tunisia
“The internet is freedom”: Index speaks to Tunisian Internet Agency chief
The regime of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was an enemy to internet freedom. Significant resources were spent on censorship of the web. The Tunisian Internet Agency (established in 1996, and known as the ATI by its French acronym), was the regime’s...
Egypt: Comic sentenced in “insulting Islam” case
Comic actor Adel Imam has been sentenced to three months in jail for "insulting Islam" after a case was brought against him by Islamist lawyer Asran Mansour. Imam, an actor for more than 40 years, is well-known throughout the Arab word. It is...
Canadian citizen tortured in prison rearrested by Bahrain authorities
Canadian Naser Al Raas was arrested and detained today after he attended a court due to hear his appeal against his five-year prison sentence. The 29 year-old IT-specialist had been in hiding since being sentenced on 25 October 2011, he feared...
Bahrain’s Information Affairs Authority responds to Index
Last week, Bahrain's Information Affairs Authority wrote to Index, to address our criticisms of media censorship in Bahrain. Let's go through their clarifications: Bahrain continues to work closely with the media and to provide them with greater...