Remaining silent on Turkey’s recent ramped up military incursion into the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has actively targeted and harassed journalists critical of the occupation or attempting to report on it.
The Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî) Security Department, a branch of the KRG’s security forces known as the Asayish, on Monday obstructed a press conference intended to launch ‘Unity Front Against the Occupiers’, an organisation formed to address incursions of the Turkish state.
City security forces intervened and confiscated equipment belonging to Derin Rahim, a Roj News reporter. When participants attempted to move the press conference to another location, they were again stopped by security forces, leading to a confrontation in which two members of the group were injured.
“While we were recording footage and preparing to announce the press conference, security forces attacked us and detained me. They confiscated my phone and journalistic equipment, subjecting me to physical abuse and harassment. Although they eventually returned my phone and released me, my camera and other equipment have not been returned,” the journalist said.
In a separate development, the Erbil (Hewlêr) Branch of the Goran Movement has condemned the Asayish for the abduction and torture of human rights defender Seryas Ewnî. “The Hewlêr [Erbil] security administration [another Asayish branch] is responsible for the torture inflicted on activist Seryas Awnî,” a Goran spokesperson said.
Seryas Awnî, a Goran Movement activist and critic of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), released a video detailing the incident.
According to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), in 2022 Iraqi Kurdistan reported at least 73 violations against media and journalists, including arrests, physical attacks and equipment confiscation. These abuses, primarily occurring in Erbil, Sulaymaniyah and Duhok (Dihok), pose serious threats to press freedom and democracy. Additionally, women journalists face significant harassment and discrimination.
