From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Gazan journalist appeals prison sentence, fine for probing corruption
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleGAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — A Gaza journalist is appealing a six-month prison term and fine over her reporting on alleged corruption within the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
Hajar Harb appears before a Hamas-run court today, where the judge postpones the hearing until March.
Fathi Sabah, a journalist campaigning on Harb’s behalf, says it’s the first time Hamas authorities have sued a journalist for their work since the group seized Gaza by force in 2007.
Harb reported in 2016 that healthy people were paying doctors to help them circumvent the Israeli-Egyptian blockade by issuing medical referrals to hospitals abroad. She was sentenced and fined later that year.
On Monday, Amnesty International called Harb’s prosecution “an outrageous assault on media freedom.”
— AP
The Times of Israel Community.