Algerian Journalists Arrested Amid Repression: Reporters Without Borders Decries Media Crackdown

Algerian authorities detained journalists Sofiane Ghirous and Ferhat Omar for publishing a video showing businesswomen criticizing government treatment. This incident highlights increased media repression under President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. Press freedom group Reporters Without Borders has downranked Algeria's freedom of expression, citing numerous instances of journalist harassment and outlet closures.

Algerian authorities have arrested Sofiane Ghirous and Ferhat Omar, journalists of the news site “Algerie Scoop,” after they published a video where businesswomen protested their treatment at a government-sponsored event.

According to experts, this marks another instance of heightened repression against the press since President Abdelmadjid Tebboune took office four years ago. The detained journalists are accused of “constituting incitement and hate speech,” a claim made by the National Committee for the Liberation of Detainees.

Press freedom in Algeria has drastically declined, as demonstrated by the country’s drop to 139th place on Reporters Without Borders' freedom of expression index for 2024. This incident underscores the mounting legal and operational pressures faced by independent media, further evidenced by the closure of the popular news website Radio M and the five-year prison sentence handed to its editor, Ihsane El Kadi.