Women cheer in Tahrir Square after it is announced that President Hosni Mubarak was giving up power on Feburary 11, 2011 in Cairo, Egypt.
Women cheer in Tahrir Square after it is announced that President Hosni Mubarak was giving up power on Feburary 11, 2011 in Cairo, Egypt. © Chris Hondros/Getty Images

IWPR's Frontline Update – Freedom of Expression in the Middle East

11 February 2021

IWPR's Frontline Updates – unique insights from our network of local reporters and updates from our programmes.

Ten years ago, a wave of protest swept the Middle East and north Africa. Launched with an eyewitness account from Egypt’s Tahrir Square, IWPR’s Arab Spring reporting project featured voices from across the region; journalists, human rights defenders, activists and ordinary people caught up in a time of extraordinary change.

Ever since, IWPR has continued to work with local media, activists and minority communities on the ground, from documenting the ravages of the Syrian civil war to empowering women changemakers in Libya and supporting civil society in Tunisia.

A decade later, we look at the state of freedom of expression across the region, and how citizens continue to work for positive change and meet the challenges the crises created.

Candle light vigil to remember journalist Jamal Khashoggi outside the Saudi Arabia consulate on October 25, 2018 in Istanbul, Turkey.
Candle light vigil to remember journalist Jamal Khashoggi outside the Saudi Arabia consulate on October 25, 2018 in Istanbul, Turkey. © Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Why Local Voices Matter

The real heroes are those on the ground, fighting to bring truth to light.

Janine di Giovanni
SENIOR FELLOW AT YALE UNIVERSITY & IWPR BOARD MEMBER

"Always when I think of press freedom I think of my colleague Jamal Khashoggi... Jamal’s work is not over – it lives on in the spirit of every reporter working to bring truth to light."

Chris Hondros/Getty Images
SPOTLIGHT

Ten Years on from Tahrir Square: Freedom of Expression in the Middle East

go to page
Support local journalists