New York, May 24, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists called on the governments of Yemen and Bahrain to end all intimidation and harassment of and physical violence against journalists. In Yemen, on Saturday, a journalist was attacked and repeatedly stabbed by unidentified assailants. In Bahrain, the authorities continue to detain and abuse journalists.
“Yemen and Bahrain have for months been among the most consistent violators of the rights of journalists in the Middle East,”
New York, May 24, 2011–The Committee to Protect Journalists called on the governments of Yemen and Bahrain to end all intimidation and harassment of and physical violence against journalists. In Yemen, on Saturday, a journalist was attacked and repeatedly stabbed by unidentified assailants. In Bahrain, the authorities continue to detain and abuse journalists.
“Yemen and Bahrain have for months been among the most consistent violators of the rights of journalists in the Middle East,” said CPJ Middle East and North Africa Program Coordinator Mohamed Abdel Dayem. “These two governments continue to use violence to intimidate and target journalists, in an effort to control the narrative.”
In Bahrain, attacks on media also continue unabated. Photographer Mazen Mahdi, who works for Deutsche Presse Agentur and Defense News, was detained on Sunday,
reported the U.K.-based Financial Times. Mahdi told the Financial Times that he was blindfolded, cuffed, and beaten. “They were claiming I ‘published lies’ that harmed the country’s image,” Mahdi told the FT. Nazeeha Saeed, a reporter for Radio Monte Carlo and France24, was also detained and roughly interrogated on Sunday, but apparently not beaten, according to the FT. Both journalists were released in the early morning hours on Monday.
Bahraini photographers Ali al-Kufi, Saeed Dhahi, and Hassan al-Nasheet, who were
detained on May 15, were released, local journalists and human rights activists told CPJ. Another photographer, Mohamed al-Sheikh, who was detained around the same time, remains in custody, however, according to the same sources. Photographers Mohammad Ali al-Aradi of the daily Al-Bilad, Abdullah Hassan of the daily Al-Ayyam, and freelancer Nidal Nuh were detained on May 8, 14, and 18, respectively, local journalists and human rights activists told CPJ.
cpj.org
