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Winners of Reporters Without Borders 2012 Prize for Press Freedom announced.posted on: 2012/12/21

On 19 December Mazen Darwish, the head of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM), and the Afghan daily newspaper 8Sobh were announced as the recipients of the 2012 Prize for Press Freedom. The award is presented every year, by Reporters Without Borders, Le Monde and TV5 Monde, to a journalist and a news media source anywhere in the world felt to 'have made a significant contribution to the defence and promotion of press freedom'.

Syria: Arrest of prominent human rights defender Mr Khalil Matoukposted on: 2012/10/08

In the early morning of 2 October 2012, prominent Syrian human rights defender Mr Khalil Matouk was arrested on his way to work by security forces. His place of detention is currently unknown.

The international blame game on Syria looks different from Johannesburg

It was interesting to spend a few days in South Africa last week and to hear some different perspectives from the media and from those I met with about the resignation of Kofi Annan and the unfolding developments in Syria. The Western media has been lamenting how the protection of civilians in Syria has been cruelly thwarted by the pesky Russians who are determined to maintain a naval base on the Mediterranean. Those I spoke with in Johannesburg were not lacking in compassion for the innocent victims in Syria, but they were much more critical about what they perceived as the duplicity and double standards of Western Governments.

The West is perceived to be seeking to topple an authoritarian regime in Syria not because of any commitment to the human rights of people in Syria, but because of a desire to weaken Iran. Several people pointed out to me that alongside a public strategy of blaming Russia the West has been quietly supporting the efforts of Saudi Arabia and Qatar to arm opposition groups in Syria.

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Razan Ghazzawi, winner of the 2012 Front Line Defenders Award talks about the arrest of Sryian blogger Hussein Ghrer

Hussein Ghrer was detained on 16-2-2012 in a raid on Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression’s office in Damascus by Air Force Intelligence – Mazzah branch. This is Ghrer’s second arrest; he was detained on 24-10-2011 and released on 1-12-2011 on bail and is still on trial.

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Syrian Blogger Hussein Ghrer on Hunger Strike in Protest of His Fifth Month in Detentionposted on: 2012/07/11

Front Line Defenders has learned that Syrian blogger Hussein Ghrer began a hunger strike to protest his continued incarceration after spending more than five months in detention.

Front Line Defenders Joins NGOs in Call to Release Syrian Freedom of Expression Defendersposted on: 2012/06/21

Front Line Defenders has joined over 80 NGOs from around the world in calling for the Syrian authorities to free human rights defenders, journalists, bloggers and writers in Syria, some of whom are detained incommunicado.

Syria: Front Line Defenders signs joint statement regarding Syrian HRD Mr Mazen Darwish and his SCM colleaguesposted on: 2012/05/30

Front Line Defenders has signed a joint statement expressing concern for the safety of Syrian human rights defender Mr Mazen Darwish, Director of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression.

Adam Shapiro - Remembering the Late Anthony Shadid

Amidst the destruction and abuse going on in Syria, Anthony Shadid, a friend, died in an effort to tell the story of what is happening to people under fire. Anthony was in there without approval of the regime, and died tragically from an asthma attack when heading for the border with Turkey (this touches me personally on another level, as I suffer from asthma too).

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Syria: 14 human rights defenders arbitrarily arrested and taken to an unknown locationposted on: 2012/02/17

On 16 February 2012, 14 human rights defenders were arrested at the offices of the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM) in Damascus. SCM is a non-governmental organisation that monitors threats to freedom of expression in Syria. The human rights defenders arrested are Mr Mazen Darwish, SCM Director; his wife Ms Yara Badr; blogger Ms Razan Ghazzawi, as well as SCM staff members, journalists and human rights defenders Mr Hussayn Gharir, Mr Hani Zaytani, Ms Sanaa Zaytani, Ms Rita Dayoub, Mr Jaunne Farso, Ms Hanadi Zahlout, Mr Bassam Al Ahmad, Ms Mayyada Al Khalil, Ms Maha Al Seblani, Mr Abdelrahman Hamada and Mr Mansour Hamide. In November 2011 Mazen Darwish received the Roland Berger Human Dignity Award for 2011 as founder of the SCM.

Syria: Arrest and incommunicado detention of human rights defender and lawyer Mr Abdulla Al Khalilposted on: 2012/02/08

On 3 February 2012 human rights defender and lawyer Mr Abdulla Al Khalil was arrested in Al Riqqa and is currently being held in incommunicado detention.