Committee to Protect Journalists: Number of journalists imprisoned in Iran reaches 11
The Committee to Protect Journalists says the number of journalists imprisoned in Iran has reached 11 in 2019.
As the final days of 2019 approach, this international organization has prepared a report on the state of the press worldwide, part of which is dedicated to Iran, stating that the conditions for journalism in the country have worsened this year.
According to the report, which was published on Thursday, December 11, Eritrea, Vietnam, and Iran are the countries with the largest prisons of journalists, after China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt.
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported on the November protests in Iran, which saw internet access cut off for about a week. The arrest of journalist Mohammad Mosaed during the same period is another case that the report addressed.
Mr. Musaed, who was arrested for posting a tweet, was released after a few weeks. In the tweet, he wrote, “Hello, free world!” and went on to say that he used “42 different proxies” to post the tweet, but none of them worked.
The Committee to Protect Journalists report says that at least 250 journalists are imprisoned around the world at the end of this year, with China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt having the worst conditions.
The report says that "authoritarian regimes such as those of Xi Jinping (China), Recep Tayyip Erdogan (Turkey), Mohammed bin Salman (Saudi Arabia) and Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (Egypt) show no signs of easing pressure on critical media."
According to the report, Saudi Arabia also "had at least 26 journalists imprisoned in 2019, making it the third largest prison for journalists, along with Egypt."
The Committee to Protect Journalists stated that "Saudi authorities do not even pretend to follow legal procedures, and in 18 ongoing cases in the country, the charges against individuals have not been disclosed, and those who have been tried have had their sentences issued in secret and hastily."
Source: Radio Farda
