ALGIERS: Algeria cancelled the accreditation of France 24, the communications ministry said Sunday, a day after parliamentary elections in the former French colony.
The move was due to the satellite news channel's "clear and repeated hostility towards our country and its institutions", the ministry and government spokesman Ammar Belhimer said, in quotes carried by the APS news agency.
The outlet said authorities had given the channel a final warning on March 13, over its "coverage of Friday marches" of the long-running Hirak anti-government protest movement.
France 24 did not immediately respond to Sunday's announcement, but in March its director Marc Saikali had defended the outlet as "just doing our work as journalists, respecting the rules in place".
The French government, which has tense ties with Algiers, did not immediately comment on the withdrawal of France 24's accreditation.
Both foreign and local journalists in Algeria often face bureaucratic and unclear procedures to obtain permission to work.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked Algeria 146 out of 180 countries and territories in its 2020 World Press Freedom Index, a 27-place drop from 2015.
The withdrawal of France 24's accreditation came a day after the North African country held legislative elections, with almost 70 percent of voters abstaining according to official figures.
It also comes amid mounting official pressure against the Hirak and a string of arrests of journalists and opposition figures.
Although former Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika stepped down in 2019 in the face of anti-regime protests, demonstrations have continued, demanding an overhaul of the ruling system in place since independence from France in 1962.
The authorities say the movement's main demands have been met, and accuse the remaining protestors of working against Algeria's interests.
Algeria cancels France 24 accreditation: State media
https://arab.news/nmuxq
Algeria cancels France 24 accreditation: State media
- Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked Algeria 146 out of 180 countries and territories in its 2020 World Press Freedom Index
- The French government did not immediately comment on the withdrawal of France 24's accreditation
BBC slammed for ‘shameful’ cut to ‘free Palestine’ comment at BAFTA Awards
- Broadcaster removes from broadcast part of filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr.’s acceptance speech at the British Academy Film Awards
- Amnesty UK praises filmmaker for speaking up for those ‘facing and fleeing from persecution and mass atrocities’
LONDON: The BBC was accused on Monday of a “shameful” decision after it cut part of an acceptance speech at the previous night’s British Academy Film Awards in which a filmmaker uttered the phrase “free Palestine.”
British-Nigerian director and co-writer Akinola Davies Jr. and his brother, co-writer Wale Davies were collecting the award for outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer for their film “My Father’s Shadow” when the former made the comment.
The BBC chose not to include the final part of his speech when it broadcast the BAFTAs ceremony later in the evening. However, the corporation did broadcast an inadvertent racist slur shouted by a person with Tourette syndrome while Black actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting an award.
Akinola thanked industry figures and family for their support as he accepted the award, before dedicating it to “all those whose parents migrated to obtain a better life for their children.”
In the final part of his speech, cut by the BBC, he said: “To the economic migrant, the conflict migrant, those under occupation, dictatorship, persecution and those experiencing genocide, you matter and your stories matter more than ever.
“Your dreams are an act of resistance. To those watching at home, archive your loved ones, archive your stories yesterday, today and forever. For Nigeria, for London, Congo, Sudan, free Palestine. Thank you.”
The BBC, which broadcast the ceremony with a two-hour time delay, said the cut was made for timing reasons.
A spokesperson told Deadline: “The live event is three hours, and it has to be reduced to two hours for its on-air slot. The same happened to other speeches made during the night, and all edits were made to ensure the program was delivered to time. All winners’ speeches will be available to watch via BAFTA’s YouTube Channel.”
Human rights campaign group Amnesty UK described the decision by the BBC to cut part of the speech as “shameful.”
It added: “Thank you Akinola Davies Jr. for using your platform to speak out for the rights of migrants and people facing and fleeing from persecution and mass atrocities, from the Congo to Sudan to Palestine.”
In June last year, the BBC was at the center of a row after it broadcast a Glastonbury Festival performance by the duo Bob Vylan, during which the lead singer chanted “death to the IDF” in protest against the Israeli Defense Forces’ assault on Gaza.
