Iraq faces ‘most perilous’ period for press freedom since 2003: watchdog

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq is facing one of its “most perilous” periods for press freedom since 2003, a human rights watchdog warned Sunday, citing growing legal and institutional pressure on journalists, activists, and critical voices.

“Iraq is undergoing one of the most perilous stages for freedom of the press and expression since 2003,” read a report by the Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights (IOHR), an independent organization that says it is “present in all Iraqi provinces.”

Journalists in Iraq face legal challenges, threats, violence, and imprisonment because of their reporting, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which has also said Iraq’s media landscape remains deeply polarized along political lines with limited independent journalism.

The group, on World Press Freedom Day, said Iraq is shifting from “random violence” against journalists toward the “institutionalization of repression through laws, administrative decrees, and organized judicial prosecutions.”

According to the report, Iraq is facing a "systematic closure of the public sphere” that “involves state institutions, influential parties, and armed groups through legal, security, and media tools aimed at silencing critical voices and forcing journalists into self-censorship or total silence.”

“The reality of freedoms after the events of October 7, 2023, has witnessed a sharp and unprecedented decline, amid escalating campaigns of intimidation and harassment against journalists, activists, and bloggers, coinciding with an atmosphere of political and sectarian polarization,” it added.

Iraqi and Kurdish authorities have repeatedly faced criticism from international organizations and foreign missions over their treatment of journalists and restrictive measures imposed on the press.

Speaking to Rudaw on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, Azad Hamadamin, head of the Kurdistan Journalists' Syndicate, said, "Parties, whether in power or in opposition, should not use press freedom to serve their political agendas."

"We have projects within the union related to press freedoms, but they are stalled due to the parliament being inactive in Kurdistan,” he said.

Despite holding elections in October 2024, the Kurdistan region has failed to form a new government.

Hamadamin also pointed to what he described as improvements in press freedom in the Kurdistan Region.

“According to the report of the press freedom defense committee of the Syndicate, the situation today, according to the numbers, is better compared to previous years, and this reflects the role of journalists and the level of understanding with the authorities,” he said.

However, according to RSF’s 2026 World Press Freedom Index, Iraq ranked 162nd out of 180 countries, down from 155th the previous year.

Saad Maan, head of Iraq's Security Media Cell, told Rudaw that "freedom of the press is one of the crucial indicators of the path of democratic transition and state-building."

He added that Iraq "has witnessed unprecedented media openness since 2003," while noting that "this openness has been accompanied by security, political and sometimes legislative challenges."


Faiza al-Azzi contributed to this report from Erbil, Kurdistan Region.