The Syrian Center for Journalistic Freedoms of the Association of Syrian Journalists said it had recorded no fewer than 11 violations against media workers across Syria in August, pointing to increase in violations compared to the past month.
In a report issued on Sunday, the Center said that a journalist was killed by unknown gunmen in Dara’a province in August, bringing to 458 the number of media workers who have been killed across Syria since mid-March 2011.
The report indicated that Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham militant group was responsible for four violations in August, while the PYD militia committed three others. The Assad regime was responsible for two violations, while two other violations were committed by other groups.
The Center pointed out that six media workers were detained in the reporting period. It said that the violations were distributed in the Syrian provinces as follows: four in Idlib, three in al-Hasaka, and two in each of Aleppo and Dara’a.
The Center called for respecting freedom of the press, ensuring the safety of media workers, and holding those responsible for violations accountable. It also called for abiding by Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that “everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
