31/5/2021
Al-Taghyir TV director Akram Zankana ordered the evacuation of the channel’s Baghdad office after receiving threatening letters to kill him and all his employees.
Press Freedom Advocacy Association in Iraq learned from colleagues working in the channel about the evacuation of the headquarters that is located on Al-Zaytoun Street in Mansour city, after social media circulated a fabricated video from the program of Najm al-Rubaie, in which he appears to criticize one of the armed factions.
The Colleagues added that the channel’s director Akram received direct threats to kill him, his son and the channel’s employees, through text messages and his number on his private mobile.
Press Freedom Association in Iraq, which wishes safety to all employees of Al-Taghyir Channel, considers the threat a flagrant violation of constitutionally guaranteed freedom of press and media work in the country.
The Association refuses repeated threats and assaults against journalists and attempts to stifle the freedom of journalistic and media work, under flimsy pretexts.
The assembly also calls on the prime minister as the country’s highest authority to provide the necessary protection to all media workers and to speed up his promises to stop all forms of threats and intimidations that undermine freedom of expression and press action.
The Association emphasizes that continued impunity is the main reason for the recurrence of such cases, and continues to create terror and fear among journalists.
The Association holds the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Mustafa al-Kadhimi responsible for the safety of presenter Najm al-Rubaie, and all the staff of the channel.
