Seven weeks after the arrest of Kuwaiti-American journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin by Kuwaiti authorities, the International Press Institute demands his immediate release and calls on authorities to cease the use of new national security laws to restrict the free flow of news and information.
Shihab-Eldin, an award-winning journalist who has contributed to the New York Times, PBS, Al Jazeera, and the BBC, is believed to have been arrested by Kuwaiti authorities on March 3 while in the country to visit family. He was reportedly last seen in public on March 2. The Kuwaiti government has not acknowledged his detention.
Shihab-Eldin is believed to be facing charges of spreading false information about the military and other violations of Kuwait’s new security laws, which were finalised around the time of the journalist’s arrest. The day prior to his arrest, Shihab-Eldin had shared a verified CNN video depicting the downing of a U.S. F-15E fighter jet by the Kuwaiti military during a March 2 friendly fire incident.
Shihab-Eldin’s detention has been condemned by several members of the U.S. Congress and U.N. officials. The U.S. State Department has said it is aware of Shihab-Eldin’s detention and that the Trump administration “has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans”.
“IPI demands Kuwaiti authorities immediately release Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, and cease its weaponisation of national security laws to target the press. We are deeply concerned by Kuwaiti authorities’ attempts to censor coverage of the war in Iran by arresting a journalist under the guise of national security,” said IPI Executive Director Scott Griffen.
Shihab-Eldin’s arrest comes as the Gulf governments have intensified crackdowns on free expression amid the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. While free speech and the work of journalists has long been highly restricted in the Gulf, authorities are using the latest regional conflict as a pretext to further tighten controls over information sharing on the basis of military security.
The day before Shihab-Eldin’s arrest, the Kuwaiti Minister of the Interior posted a social media video warning citizens against photographing or publishing “clips or information” related to military infrastructure.
Hundreds of people across the Gulf, including journalists, human rights defenders, and activists, have been arrested since the start of the war for sharing content of Iranian attacks in the region. Meanwhile Iran’s 90 million citizens remain in a near-total information blackout as the regime continues to impose a shutdown on all internet and mobile services.