Caselist - PEN International

88Imprisoned: investigation*Nizar ADLEH, Miraal BROUDA and Amer MATAR: Journalist forvarious news websites; writer and poet; and journalist for the daily Al-Hayat, respectively. Reportedly arrested by the Syrian authorities inSeptember 2011. They continue to be held but there is no information onthe circumstances of their arrest or the charges against them.*Omar Al-ASA’AD: Writer, blogger and journalist with several newspapersincluding Al-Hayat, Aljazeera.net and Assafir. Reportedly arrested on15 September 2011 after writing an article in a newspaper about the killingof a protester in Damascus. Thought to remain detained in Adra prison inthe outskirts of Damascus. He was also previously arrested on 3 July 2011where he was held for more than two months. WiPC seeking an update.Muheeb Al-NAWATHY: a Palestinian journalist, arrested in Syria on5 January 2011, nine days after arriving in Damascus to do research fora book he is writing about Hamas (the Palestinian Islamic group). On 9January 2011 Al-Nawathy had been due to return to Norway, where hehas resided as a political refugee since 2007. He is a former Gaza residentand is said to be a supporter of Fatah (a rival Palestinian group). He usedto work as a correspondent to Al-Arabiya.net, a Dubai based website.WiPC checking whether still detained.*Jihad JAMAL (AKA Milan): a freelance journalist arrested on 14October 2011. The reason behind his arrest and his whereabouts are stillunknown. This is his third arrest since the Syrian protests started in March2011. He was previously arrested in Damascus on 4 August 2011 wherehe spent 60 days in detention without any charge. He was also arrested inMarch 2011 where he was held for one month in a solitary confinementat the Military Intelligence security centre in Damascus. Jamal writesabout the recent events in Syria. WiPC seeking an update.*Alaa Al-KHUDUR: Journalist and director of Syrian News Agency(SANA). Reportedly arrested on 17 November 2011 after writing anarticle in which he criticised the role of the Syrian media. He is believedto be held at a Military Intelligence security centre in city but his familywere not able to visit him. WiPC seeking an update.*Amir MATAR: Journalist with several Arabic newspapers, and a writer.Reportedly arrested on 4 September 2011 and thought to remain detainedwithout charge in Adra prison in the outskirt of Damascus. Matar wasalso arrested in July 2011 for his writing and was held for more than twomonths. It is reported that Matar has started a hunger strike in protestagainst his arrest. WiPC seeking an update.*Rody OTHMAN: Journalist and blogger. Reportedly arrested on 3August 2011 after giving an interview to a French newspaper. Rody wasthe editor of a blog known for its writings on the Syrian uprising. Rody isthought to remain detained without charge in Adra prison in the outskirtof Damascus. WiPC seeking an update.Najati TAYARA: Writer and editor. Reportedly arrested on 12 May 2011for covering the Syrian protests. He was held incommunicado for twoweeks before being transferred to Homs city prison. His arrest stemmedfrom an interview with Aljazeera on the crackdown by Syrian forces onpeaceful protesters in Homs. On 9 August 2011 the judge refused to releaseTayara on bail. Reports said that Tayara has been under continuous threatinside prison and he was repeatedly beaten up by prisoners who weresupported by the prison administration. In September 2011 there werereports of the journalist being beaten by prison guards. He is thought toremain detained as of 31 December 2011.*Hanadi ZAHLOUT (f): Writer and journalist. Reportedly arrested on4 August 2011 and transferred to the Al Fayha’a detention center inDamascus. She was subjected to physical and psychological mistreatment,and confessed under duress to involvement in the demonstrations.Hanadi has neither been taken before a judge nor she has granted anylegal assistance. She is thought to be held in Adra prison on the outskirtsof Damascus.Brief detention*Lina Al-EBRAHIM (f): Journalist for the Tishreen newspaper.Reportedly arrested on 25 October 2011 by State Security secret serviceswhile she was walking on a street in Damascus, and held at the Al-Khateeb interrogation centre in Damascus. Released without charge on17 November 2011.*Myriam HADDAD (f): reporter for the magazine Mouqarabat waskidnapped from Havan Café on 11 August 2011 by the Syrian secretServices and held incommunicado until her release on 23 August 2011without charge.*Sami AL-HALABI: freelance journalist. Reportedly arrested on11 August 2011 in the city of Suwayda after he was beaten up by theIntelligence Services. He was released on 20 August 2011 without anycharge.*Fadi ZEIDAN: Freelance journalist. Reportedly arrested on 4 August2011 after covering a demonstration in the central Damascus district ofShaalan. He was held for two days before being released without charge.Attacked*Iman HAMAD (f): freelance journalist. Reportedly attacked on 2October 2011 by Baath Party Militias after publishing articles inLebanese newspapers in which she criticised the Syrian army. On thesame day Air Forces Secret Services raided her house in Damascus andshe has gone into hiding.*Rosa HASSAN (f): a well-known novelist and journalist. Reportedlyattacked on 10 October 2011 by members of Baath party militias inDamascus. She was called a traitor for her weekly articles she publisheson the website Syrian Pages. She has also suffered a campaign of defamationon the Facebook and in the Syrian state-owned media as a resultof her writings which supported the protests currently taking place inSyria.*Alaa MAHMOUD: freelance journalist and writer. Reportedly attackedon 27 September 2011 by supporters of the Syrian President in the cityof Homs. He was left with arm injury and bruises on his body. Air Forcessecret services raided his home two days later to arrest him. Alaa went intohiding to avoid arrest. Mahmoud was previously arrested on 23 June 2011and held for one month, during which he was tortured and ill- treated.*Nassir WANNOUS: journalist, writer, cinema critic and a translator wasattacked on 15 October 2011 by the Baath party militia in the city ofTartous. The attackers called him a traitor and threatened him that theywould kill him if he did not live the village. The attackers broke his carswindows while his daughter, aged 7, was sitting inside the car. After theincident, the state security services interrogated Wannous in relation tohis position on the Syrian uprising.TUNISIAConditional ReleaseSamir FERIANI: senior police commissioner. Arrest and detention:Feriani was arrested on 29 May 2011 after a vehicle crashed into hiscar, forcing him to stop. He was then reportedly kidnapped by the “antiterroristbrigade” and beaten. Feriani’s arrest stemmed from a letterhe wrote to the Interior Minister in which he criticised the Tunisianintelligence agency and Ministry of Interior, blaming current officialsfor allowing protesters to be killed during the January 2011 revolutionand stating that “notorious torturers” are still at large. In his letter healso alleged corruption within the Ministry and claimed that he had beenintimidated after he sent a petition to the Minister about the destructionof official records, including some taken from the residence of the latePalestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO) leader Yasser Arafat. Ferianilater contacted the Prime Minister and the Police High Commissioner withthe same concerns and also wrote two articles for Al-Khabir newspaper.Charges: A military judge investigated Feriani on charges “harming theexternal security of the state”, distributing information likely to harmpublic order” and “accusing without proof, a public agent of violatinglaw”. He faced a prison sentence if convicted of any of the charges. Hewas held in Aouina military barracks until his release on 29 September,without access tohis family and his lawyer had limited access to his casefile. Feriani was freed and acquitted of charges of “harming the externalsecurity of the state.” The charges of distributing information “likelyto harm public order,” and “accusing, without proof, a public agent ofviolating the law,” will be heard in a civilian court.*Nabil Al-HAJLAOUI: blogger and journalist, was arrested by theTunisian army in Sidi Bouzid on 25 October 2011, shortly after theannouncement of results of the elections for writing an article entitledSidi Bouzid is burning and the army is looking as a spectator in which hecriticised the Tunisian army for not trying to stop the riot took place inthe city during and after the elections. He was charged with calling for apublic disturbance. He is being held in Qafsa prison. He appeared beforea military court on 9 November 2011 which sentenced him to two monthsin prison. Al-Hajlaoui is a former political prisoner and PEN main case.Attacked*Reza AL-TAMTAM (freelancer), Marwan FARHANI (freelancer),Hajar AL-MUTAIRI (Al Sa’a website) and Bassam AL-BARQAWI(Al Sa’a website): journalists, were attacked on 15 July 2011 by policewhile covering protests in front of the Prime Minister’s palace. The journalistswere targeted directly by police who hit them. The journalistswere clearly identified as they were carrying press marks.Harassed*Sami Ben ABDALLAH: blogger, resident in France, was banned fromleaving Tunisia at Tunis-Carthage international airport on 6 September2011. As he was about to board a flight to Paris at 6:45 p.m., airport officialstold him that they could not let him leave without clearance from the interiorministry. The ministry then said he could not leave and, at 9:30 p.m.,sent him a summons to report “as soon as possible” to the judicial policein response to a complaint filed against him on 3 September. Abdallah wasinterrogated for eight hours the next day without being allowed access tohis lawyer. Officially, he was questioned for allegedly sending insultingSMS messages. The messages were in fact his replies to threats and insultswhich he had received, and which were the subject of a complaint that hehad himself just filed. His family said the real reason for his arrest was theacerbic criticism of the country’s current rulers that he had posted in hisblog. He has also posted a serious of investigative reports about Kamel El-Taief, a businessman close to former President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali.UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE)Released*Ahmed MANSOOR and Nasser Bin GHEITH: Blogger and humanrights activist, and Internet writer and economic analyst, respectivelywere arrested from their homes between 8 and 10 April 2011, aftersigning a petition calling for democratic and economic reforms in theUnited Arab Emirates. Sentenced to three and two years respectively forcalling for political reform on 27 November 2011 on charges including‘insulting the country’s leadership’ and ‘undermining national security’.On 28 November 2011, the UAE President commuted the sentences andthe men were immediately released, although according to the men’sdefense lawyer commutation of the sentences may still leave the activistswith a criminal record, which will make it difficult for them to find workand travel. (RAN 44/11, Update #1 – 2 December 2011)YEMENImprisoned: Main CaseAbdulelah SHAEAProfession: Journalist at the Saba Yemeni news agency. Date of arrest:16 August 2010 Sentence: 5 years in prison Expires: 15 August 2015Details of arrest: Shaea was arrested at his home on 16 August 2010by anti-terror police who reportedly beat him in front of his family andneighbours. Police also searched his home and confiscated his personalcomputer and note book. Details of trial: He appeared before court on16 September 2010 where no official charges or sentence were given.However, his lawyer reports that Shaea is targeted for his coverage ofIslamist groups including al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Sentencedto five years in prison on 17 January 2011. He was found guilty of“belonging to an illegal armed organisation” and “recruiting youngpeople, including foreigners, to the organisation by communicating withthem via the Internet”. The court also ruled that after his release Shaeawould be banned from leaving Sana’a for two years. Health concerns:Reported to be in very bad health; he suffers from anaemia for whichhe is not currently receiving any medical treatment. Treatment inprison: Said to have been tortured and ill-treated during interrogationand reported that during his hearing extensive bruising was evidenton his body. It is also reported that he was subjected to long hours ofharsh interrogation during which he lost consciousness at times. He hasbeen kept in solitary confinement in an intelligence agency detentioncentre in Sana’a since his arrest. Previous political imprisonment/problems: On 11 July 2010 he was abducted by men who reportedlyidentified themselves as government agents. He was blindfolded and ledto a basement in an unknown location where he was interrogated for afew hours about his friends and on his reporting on Al-Qaeda. Anotherjournalist, Kamal Sharaf (see ‘brief detention’ below), who was arrestedalong side Shaea and released after 23 days, reports that Shaea could betargeted for interviews he gave to US-based media.Brief detention and attackMany journalists were arrested and attacked by security forces whilstattempting to report on the crackdown on the political unrest whichhas been ongoing since February 2011. All are believed to have beenreleased after a brief detention, although reports of ongoing harassmentand censorship of journalists are widespread and the security situation inthe country is deteriorating. Those recently targeted include:Attacked*Rashida Al-QIYALI and Mujib Al-HAMIDI: Journalists for the newspaperAl-Sahwa, had their homes fired on, on 23 September 2011.89