25/12/2020
Security officers at Sulaimania airport detained the director of Nalia media organization, Awat Ali.
Press Freedom Advocacy Association coordinator reported that Upon his arrival from Sweden at Sulaimania airport, the airport security officers detained Awat Ali , the Director of Nalia Foundation that includes the NRT media channels, on Friday morning, and he was not released until reporting.
Authorities in the region have launched a campaign to arrest and detain a number of journalists in the line of duty, coinciding with the start of demonstrations in Sulaimania, focusing on press and media cadres opposing the policy of the Kurdistan regional authorities, which documented the protests in many parts of the region.
At the time that Press Freedom Advocacy Association in Iraq expresses concern due to the region’s continuity to violate the constitution, it considers the arrest of journalists a dangerous precedent that threatens the freedom of journalistic work.
The association also calls on the region’s authorities to stop arresting, prosecuting and detaining journalists on malicious charges and speeding up their immediate release.
The association also calls on the federal government to carry out its duties to protect Iraqi journalists.
