Reporters Without Borders: Bashar al-Assad deserves the title of press freedom predator

In a report, Reporters Without Borders has published its 2021 blacklist, which sheds light on the most egregious international violators of press freedom.

In its report, the organization said, “Bashar al-Assad, after his succession to rule in Syria following the death of his father, did everything he could to deserve the title of “predator of press freedom.”

The organization indicated that the Assad regime has used systematic repressive methods to combat press freedom in Syria, noting that it has activated electronic monitoring systems to track and arrest anyone who engages in online activities that it sees as a threat to its interests.

The organization stated that Bashar al-Assad is now at the heart of a brutal regime of repression that relies not only on his intelligence services, but also on the shabiha who terrorize journalists and anyone who is supposed to be opposition supporters.

The report indicated that hundreds of journalists have been subjected to physical assault and arrest, and that all journalists, without discrimination, are the preferred targets of Bashar al-Assad.

According to the organization’s data, more than 700 professional and non-professional journalists have been killed since 2011, in campaigns of repression, bombing, or as a result of violent crimes committed by various armed groups operating in Syria, and about 100 who were arrested or kidnapped are still missing.

The report indicated that some of the victims decided to become video correspondents to cover the violations hidden by the Assad regime, which is why they were accused of supporting terrorism, and others worked as mentors for foreign correspondents working in the field, or became correspondents for international media.

In its report, the organization put together a list of the heads of the most authoritarian regimes hostile to press freedom for the year 2021, and the list for this year includes 37 leaders around the world.

The organization’s secretary-general, Christophe Deloires, said that each of the 37 leaders on the list had its own style, with some imposing a reign of terror by issuing “irrational and paranoid” orders, and others adopting a carefully built strategy based on strict laws.

The main challenge now, he added, “is for these predators to pay the highest possible price for their oppressive behavior, and we must not let their methods become the new normal.”

Syria ranks 173 out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index for 2021, according to Reporters Without Borders.