Palestinian charged with insulting leader online

[oberliner]

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — A Palestinian reporter tagged in a Facebook image that mocked the president says he's been accused of insulting a public figure.

Mamdouh Hamamreh of al-Quds TV said Saturday that his prosecutors have set his first court date for next month.

He was detained for a few weeks by security just hours after the image allegedly ridiculing President Mahmoud Abbas appeared on his Facebook page in September.

His TV station is sympathetic to the militant Islamic group Hamas, the chief rival to Abbas' Palestinian Authority.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hEs_5ka3O-m37GC3yI2Lnddk8uDA?docId=344e9129476e4171830ed4cb5cc487c8

[Ozymanithrax]

1. There is no freedom of speech or the Press under PA or Hamas

in the West Bank or the Gaza.

[azurnoir]

2. This seems more a question of Hamas incitement against Fatah

rather than freedom of the press, however Fatah leads both the PLO and PA who are pressuring Israel over the settlements
a case of any port in a storm? or support of Hamas freedoms?

eta note this is yet to be much reported in either the Israeli or Arab press yet a Google searh finds it much popular in the Western M$M

[oberliner]

3. It's covered extensively in the Israeli and Arab press

And it is just as popular on alternative media sites as it is in the Western "M$M" which I assume means mainstream media.

You don't think arresting a reporter for being critical of the President has anything to do with freedom of the press? Are you serious?

[azurnoir]

4. In this particular it is IMO more than freedom of the press

Fatah/PA/PLO are in a no-win position here, if they allow any freedoms to Hamas in the WB then they will be said to be 'supporting' Hamas if they do what they have done then they are 'right-wing supressionists', at the moment the latter may well be the safer position

in fact I remember a thread a while back about how Fatah or the PA in this case as it was domestic to West Bank was actively anti-human rights, yet when one read the article most of activity involved the arrest of Hamas members in the West Bank, I remember thinking at the time damned if they do but even more damned if they do not

[azurnoir]

5. On a Google search using your thread title I found much from Fox, Yahoo, TownHall

Newsvine, and this thread but not much from ME sources in the first 3 pages out

[oberliner]

6. Weird - I get Ha'aretz, JPost, and Huffington Post on the first page

Have you tweaked your Google News settings at all?

[azurnoir]

7. well I am quite sure you get them now.........4 1/2 hours and 2 hours after my first 2 searchs

my Google news settings are just fine

[oberliner]

8. No - I got them then as well

I only asked about your Google News settings because I've tweaked mine in order to favor my preferred news sources (all the liberal/left-wing sources plus all sources related to I/P) and filter out others (like some of those crazy RW ones you listed).

You might want to consider doing the same to avoid garbage like "TownHall" and similar tripe.

[oberliner]

9. FYI - links to this article in Ma'an News and Ha'aretz if interested

Ma'an:

Report: Journalist faces PA court for insulting Abbas

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=353283

Ha'aretz:

Palestinian reporter faces trial for insulting PA President Abbas on Facebook

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/palestinian-reporter-faces-trial-for-insulting-pa-president-abbas-on-facebook-1.338532

[azurnoir]

11. thanks n/t

[Boojatta]

10. Doesn't this news report transform the reporter into a public figure?

Thus, in detaining the reporter, they are detaining a public figure, and isn't that an insulting thing to do to a public figure?