Middle East & North Africa
2014
In Mauritania, blogger sentenced to death for apostasy
New York, December 26, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists today condemned the death sentence handed down Wednesday to Mauritanian blogger Mohamed Cheikh Ould Mohamed on apostasy charges in connection to an article he published a year ago.
Slideshow: Journalists killed in 2014
In 2014, at least 60 journalists and 11 media workers were killed in relation to their work, according to CPJ research. Local and international journalists died covering conflicts, including in Syria, Iraq, and Ukraine, while many others were murdered reporting on corruption and organized crime in their own countries. Here, CPJ remembers some of the…
In Syria, fewer journalist deaths but danger has never been greater
For the third year in a row, Syria ranks as the deadliest country in the world for the press, research by the Committee to Protect Journalists shows. At first glance, the research offers good news: less journalists were killed, imprisoned and kidnapped this year in Syria than in 2013. A deeper look at the numbers…
China is world’s worst jailer of the press; global tally second worst on record
More than 200 journalists are imprisoned for their work for the third consecutive year, reflecting a global surge in authoritarianism. China is the world’s worst jailer of journalists in 2014. A CPJ special report by Shazdeh Omari
Fourth journalist killed in Syria in three days
New York, December 11, 2014–A correspondent working for Al-Jazeera’s Arabic website, Aljazeera.net, was killed Wednesday night while covering clashes between rebel and government forces in Syria’s Daraa province, the outlet reported today. Mahran al-Deeri is the fourth journalist to die covering fighting in and around the village of Sheikh Miskeen in the past three days.
Three Orient News journalists killed in Syria
New York, December 9, 2014–Three journalists from the Syrian opposition TV station Orient News were killed on Monday while headed to cover the aftermath of clashes in the village of Sheikh Miskeen in Daraa Province, according to their station and other news reports. The station said it believed the journalists were directly targeted by the…
Freelancer Luke Somers killed in hostage rescue attempt in Yemen
New York, December 6, 2014–Luke Somers, an American freelance journalist held hostage by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, was killed along with fellow hostage Pierre Korkie, a South African teacher, during a failed rescue attempt by U.S. special forces on Saturday morning in Yemen, according to U.S. officials and news reports.
CPJ calls for release of U.S. journalist held in Yemen
New York, December 4, 2014–The Committee to Protect Journalists calls for the immediate release of U.S. freelance journalist Luke Somers, who has been held hostage in Yemen for more than a year. Following a video released on Wednesday that showed the journalist pleading for his life, U.S. government officials issued press releases today publicly acknowledging…