New York, April 6, 2011-
On Tuesday, authorities in Bahrain deported Al-Wasat’s managing editor, Ali al-Sharifi, and columnist Rahim al-Kaabi, both Iraqi nationals, according to news reports and CPJ interviews. Maryam al-Shrooqi, a columnist at the daily, told CPJ that to her knowledge the government gave no reason for its decision. She added that al-Sharifi was only appointed managing editor on Monday, after his predecessor and two other senior employees < href="http://cpj.org/2011/04/bahrain-manipulates-critical-daily-attacks-in-liby.php">stepped down in an effort to save the paper. Obeidli al-Obeidli, who was appointed editor of Al-Wasat by its board this week, declined to comment on the deportations.
New York, April 6, 2011-
On Tuesday, authorities in Bahrain deported Al-Wasat’s managing editor, Ali al-Sharifi, and columnist Rahim al-Kaabi, both Iraqi nationals, according to news reports and CPJ interviews. Maryam al-Shrooqi, a columnist at the daily, told CPJ that to her knowledge the government gave no reason for its decision. She added that al-Sharifi was only appointed managing editor on Monday, after his predecessor and two other senior employees < href="http://cpj.org/2011/04/bahrain-manipulates-critical-daily-attacks-in-liby.php">stepped down in an effort to save the paper. Obeidli al-Obeidli, who was appointed editor of Al-Wasat by its board this week, declined to comment on the deportations.
CPJ report on April 6
New York, April 4, 2011–The Bahraini government continued its attempts at muzzling critical media with the Ministry of Information ordering the country’s premier independent daily temporarily shut down on Sunday. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Bahraini government’s strong-arm tactics, which effectively forced a change in a prominent paper’s editorial management. In Libya, Iraq, and Yemen, independent and critical media continue to be targets for government intimidation and harassment, CPJ research found.
Al-Wasat did not appear on newsstands on Sunday and its online edition was disabled, according to local and international news reports. The Information Ministry accused Al-Wasat of “deliberate news fabrication and falsification during the recent unrest that gripped the Kingdom of Bahrain,” the official Bahrain News Agency reported. On Monday, president of the Information Affairs Authority, Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed al-Khalifa, lifted the ban after the paper’s editor-in-chief, Mansoor al-Jamri, Managing Editor Walid Nouwaihidh, and Local News Director Aqeel Mirza stepped down.
“Resigning was a difficult decision but it is what was needed to safeguard the newspaper and the livelihood of its staff,” al-Jamri told CPJ. “The paper has been subjected to a relentless campaign of intimidation by the authorities.”
Bahrain has intensified its crackdown on media since imposing a state of emergency last month, CPJ research shows.
“Alleging bias in Al-Wasat’s coverage without providing credible evidence to support such a claim is laughable,” said Mohamed Abdel Dayem, CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. “Bahrain has previously hurled unsubstantiated accusations of bias in order to silence critical media, most prominently against Al-Jazeera last year when the government wanted to shut the channel’s local bureau.
CPJ report on April 4
