Iraq/KRI: Free Journalist Qahraman Shukri

Security forces in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KR-I) arrested journalist Qahraman Shukri on 27 January 2021. On 23 June 2021, the Duhok Criminal Court sentenced him to seven years in prison following a grossly unfair, secret trial. Before his arrest, Qahraman Shukri’s journalism work was critical of Kurdish authorities’ handling of Turkish air strikes in the KR-I. The Court of Cassation court upheld the seven-year sentence in October 2023. Qahraman Shukri’s arrest is in the context of a wider crackdown by Kurdish authorities on the right to freedom of expression. He must be immediately and unconditionally released.