2 Algerian journalists arrested for publishing a video showing protesting businesswomen

Sofiane Ghirous and Ferhat Omar of the news website Algerie Scoop were arrested last week for sharing material that authorities deemed to constitute “incitement and hate speech,” according to a statement on Saturday from the National Committee for the Liberation of Prisoners, a local watchdog group.

In the video, female founders accused the government of “humiliating” them and treating them with “contempt” at an innovation event hosted by the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training.

Ghirous is editor-in-chief of Algerie Scoop – government accredited since 2021 – and Omar is the website’s director.

Press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders recently downgraded Algeria to 139th out of 180 on its Freedom of Expression Index in 2024, while denouncing the country’s “pressure on independent media and threats to arrest journalists.”

In June, the popular news website Radio M announced it would cease publication due to “impossible conditions” while its editor, Ihsane El Kadi, is serving a five-year prison sentence on charges that his media company accepted foreign funding for its often anti-government reporting.

Over the weekend, authorities also raided the Librairie Gouraya bookstore in the city of Bejaia, nearly 240 kilometers east of the capital, to prevent the sale of the book “Shared Kabylia.” A book signing for French author Dominique Martre was scheduled there. They briefly arrested Martre, the Algerian publisher and several other people, including journalists and activists.

In the book, Martre describes her experiences as a French teacher in the mountainous region of Kabylia in the 1970s.

Those arrested were released later that evening, lawyer Mokrane Ait Labri – whose brother, a journalist, was among those arrested – told the Associated Press.

The restriction of freedom of expression comes in the wake of elections in Algeria in September. Tebboune is likely to seek a second term as president.