Sulayman Ahmed, a Syrian Kurdish journalist, has been held in incommunicado detention in Duhok, Iraqi Kurdistan, for over 3 months. There are growing concerns for his welfare, as despite several requests for visits from lawyers and public appeals from journalists in the region, even his legal team has been denied access.
Ahmed was returning to Iraqi Kurdistan from his family home in Aleppo, northeast Syria, when he was detained at the border crossing between the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and North and East Syria on 25 October by security forces attached to the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), the ruling party in the Kurdistan Region.
Upon learning that Ahmed had been taken to Duhok, his lawyers approached the Asayish (internal security forces) in the city. Although the lawyers were given an unofficial acknowledgment that the journalist was in custody, they were still denied access.
The Duhok Asayish released a statement six days later in response to public outcry, in which they accused the journalist of engaging in intelligence activities, though they still did not confirm officially that they had him in their custody.
Ahmed’s lawyers had to apply for a court order to obtain official confirmation of his detention, but when they took the documentation to the Asayish to attempt to arrange a meeting with Ahmed they were met with physical violence and threats, according to Mezopotamya Agency.
On further investigation the lawyers discovered that Ahmed was being held in one of the unofficial detention centres operated by Parastin, the KDP’s intelligence agency.
In the only information they have provided so far in relation to the journalist’s detention the Asayish are reported to have accused Ahmed of being a Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) operative engaging in intelligence activities.
Iraq-based Kurdish news agency Rojnews vehemently disputes these allegations, asserting that Ahmed was working as the editor of their Arabic edition, and has held a legal residency permit in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq for the past five years.
The PKK is not officially designated a terrorist organisation in Iraq or the Kurdistan Region, and affiliation with the group is not considered a criminal offence, so the claim of the Asayish that Ahmed was arrested as a PKK operative raises questions about the legal basis of the detention.
Ahmed’s supporters are calling for transparency, proper legal representation and a fair trial in his case, which is adding to the growing concerns surrounding press freedom in the region.