News in brief



WAN-IFRA's Arabic Free Press Forum takes place in June in Lebanon
The fourth Arab Free Press Forum will take place in Lebanon in June 2010 in the lead up to the 63rd World Newspaper Congress and 17th World Editors Forum, organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).
Clampdown on militants used as excuse to stifle free expression
An independent newspaper critical of the Yemeni government's policies was under military siege last week and its editors were arrested, report IFEX members. Yemen's intense clampdown on militants is being used as an excuse to stifle media freedom, say the International Press Institute (IPI) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
Honored for their work, but threatened at home
CPJ introduces 2009 International Press Freedom Awardees
Arab women journalists in the first coordination conference in Sanaa
Under the slogan "Women’s right of Citizenship", Women's Forum for Research and Training, WFRT organizes in collaboration with the Global Fund for Women, " the First Coordination conference for Human Rights and Media Arab Women on the 4th and 5th of November 2009.
A Known Blogger Targeted for Blatant Violations , Now, A Victim of Impunity.
The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information, ANHRI, said today, that the general prosecutor decided to conclude the complaint filed by the known blogger Wael Abbas in April 2009, after being physically assaulted by a police officer and his brother. The investigation was closed allegedly due to lack of evidence, despite the presence of three medical reports including the forensic medical report documenting the injuries inflicted on Abbas and although one of his front teeth got broken.
Arab group accuses Israeli police of posing as journalists
Residents of the Ras al-Amud neighborhood told the Palestinian Center for Development and Media Freedoms that they witnessed Israeli agents carrying cameras and disguised as photojournalists arresting "several" young men who participated in demonstrations last Thursday and Friday.
Arab Luegue reforming Arab joint media cooperation
Cairo (UNN) Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa sent letters to Arab media officials to look into the reforming of Arab joint media cooperation, said an official here Friday.
Opposition leader who gave TV interview in Paris is beaten by police on his return
Hamma Hammami, the former editor of the banned newspaper Alternatives and spokesman of the Communist Party of Tunisian Workers (PCOT), was badly beaten by police on arriving at Tunis international airport yesterday from Paris, where he had criticised the government in an interview for Al Jazeera.
Freed From Prison, Shoe-Throwing Journalist
Promptly Flees Iraq Zeidi Reports Torture in Prison
Yahoo! buys Maktoob Arabic portal
Yahoo announced on Tuesday that it will buy Maktoob.com, the largest web portal in the Middle East, in an attempt to expand into "emerging markets," including South East Asia, India, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East.
Al-Akhbar and Le Monde Diplomatique
On Tuesday, on the third anniversary of al-Akhbar, the Lebanese daily signed a partnership with the Arabic version of Le Monde Diplomatique, a major international newspapers that has more than 70 foreign editions in 25 languages.
China launches Arab-language television channel
State-run China Central Television (CCTV) launched their Arabic-language TV channel on Saturday (July 25) to a potential 300 million people in 22 countries in a well-funded effort to promote the country's views abroad.
IFJ clarifies reason for expelling Israeli union
Contrary to what some media outlets claimed, the International Federation of Journalists has made it clear that it's decision to expel the National Federation of Israel Journalists (NFIJ) from membership was strictly financial, not political.
Web activists aim to expose racial hate crimes in Germany
Following the brutal killing of an Egyptian woman in a German court by a man convicted of insulting her religion, a group of activists in Germany are planning to set up the Internet-based so-called "Domains of Shame," for cities and regions in Germany where racial hate crimes take place.
Blogger Wael Abbas held by security at Cairo airport
Egyptian blogger and human rights activist Wael Abbas was stopped at Cairo airport by security officers early on Tuesday morning as he was returning home from a conference in Sweden, sources told MENASSAT.
Egyptian business tycoon sentenced to death for pop diva murder
A Cairo court upheld the death sentence of Egyptian businessman and an ex-police man for the murder of a Lebanese pop star.
Lebanese freed from Syrian jails, officials say
Lebanese officials revealed on Tuesday that 23 Lebanese detainees in Syria were supposed to have been set free last month, local media reported.
Two journalists convicted in Israel for reporting on war on Gaza
A Jerusalem court sentenced two journalists working for the Iranian satellite TV channel Al-Alam on Sunday to two months in jail plus a suspended six-month term for violating the military censorship legislation during Israel’s military offensive on the Gaza strip.
Four people killed in fresh clashes in southern Yemen
Anti-government protesters clashed with state police in Yemen over the weekend. Four Yemenis were killed, bringing the total of Yemenis killed to 16 since anti-government demonstrations began in late April.
YEMEN: Two journalists in detention, new media court established
In response to an ongoing media crackdown launched two weeks ago in Yemen, rights-groups are demanding the release of two detained bloggers, while journalists plan strike against recently established special media court.
UAE detains sheikh in torture video row
A member of the royal family in Abu Dhabi, who had been caught on tape torturing an Afghan grain dealer, has been detained pending investigation, according to news reports.
New study documents the world’s ten worst web oppressors
In a new report, US-based press freedom group Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) names the 10 worst countries in the world to be a blogger. Four of the countries on CPJ’s black list of “online oppressors” are Arab states.
Hariri tribunal orders release of detained four generals
A judge at the U.N.-backed tribunal established to prosecute ex Lebanese PM Rafik Hariri's assassins ordered on Wednesday the immediate release of four Lebanese generals who had been held as suspects for 4 years without a trial.
Activists detained at sit-in, in protest of Turkish Cultural week in Beirut
Around fourteen feminist activists were temporarily detained by the Lebanese police on Wednesday night for protesting the opening of the Turkish Cultural week at the UNESCO palace in Beirut four days after the commemoration of the Armenian genocide.
Clinton ends three day tour of Middle-East
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton completed a three-day tour of the Middle East with a surprise visit to Lebanon on Sunday.
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