The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is calling on the Kuwaiti government to immediately release Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, an award-winning journalist and former Al Jazeera television host who has been detained for nearly six weeks. Shihab-Eldin, a dual citizen of the United States and Kuwait, was arrested on March 3 while visiting family in his home country.
According to reports from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the journalist is believed to have been charged with spreading false information, harming national security, and the misuse of his mobile phone. The detention has sparked international concern over the shrinking space for press freedom in the Gulf region, particularly as governments tighten controls over information during periods of regional conflict.
The catalyst for Shihab-Eldin’s arrest appears to be his digital reporting on a military incident. He published footage of a U.S. Air Force F-15 E Strike Eagle crash and shared details via his Substack, noting that available video showed local residents providing assistance to the survivors of the crash.
A Tightening Grip on Information
The arrest occurred on the same day Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior issued a stern warning to the public regarding the documentation of military activities. The government’s move signals a shift toward more aggressive censorship of reporting that could be perceived as damaging to the state’s image.
This directive specifically warned citizens and residents “not to photograph or publish any clips or information related to missiles or relevant locations.” The timing of the warning, coinciding exactly with Shihab-Eldin’s arrest, suggests a coordinated effort to suppress the circulation of military-related imagery and reports.
The crackdown is further supported by a new legal framework. Earlier this month, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) highlighted a new decree in Kuwait. This decree prohibits the circulation of any reports that seek to “undermine the prestige of the military” or erode public trust in the armed forces.
Legal Penalties for ‘Undermining’ the Military
The legal stakes for journalists and social media users in Kuwait have risen sharply under this new decree. Local media reports indicate that the penalties are severe, targeting both the content of the reports and the intent of the publisher.
| Offense | Potential Prison Term | Financial Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Publishing false reports/rumors weakening military trust | 3 to 10 years | KD 5,000 to 10,000 |
| Authorized personnel causing financial loss to military | 7 years to Life | Not specified |
The decree specifically targets those who “intentionally publish statements or news or circulate false reports and rumors about military authorities resulting in weakening the trust in them and their morale.”
The Erosion of Kuwait’s Relative Press Freedom
For years, Kuwait was viewed as an outlier among its neighbors in the Gulf, often allowing a higher degree of press freedom and public debate. This reputation was bolstered in 2020 when the country introduced a law protecting the right to access information, aimed at increasing government transparency.
However, human rights organizations argue that this openness has always been conditional. In practice, the government maintains significant control over media outlets. The 2016 cybercrime legislation has long been used as a tool to stifle freedom of expression by criminalizing online speech that the state deems offensive or subversive.
The current situation involving Ahmed Shihab-Eldin represents a convergence of these restrictive laws and new, wartime-pretext decrees. By charging a dual citizen and veteran journalist with “misusing his mobile phone” and “harming national security” for reporting a plane crash, Kuwait is sending a clear message to both local and international reporters: the “prestige” of the military outweighs the public’s right to realize.
What This Means for Digital Rights
As a former software engineer, I’ve seen how “misuse of a mobile phone” is often used as a catch-all charge in authoritarian regimes to justify the seizure of devices and the surveillance of a journalist’s contacts. When a journalist is disappeared for six weeks without contact, the concern isn’t just about the physical detention, but the potential compromise of their sources and the digital footprints of their reporting.
The EFF’s call for the release of Ahmed Shihab-Eldin highlights a growing trend across several Gulf states where reporting on regional wars is being treated as an act of espionage or treason. The transition from a relatively open media environment to one governed by “military prestige” decrees marks a dangerous regression for human rights in the region.
The international community, including the U.S. Government given Shihab-Eldin’s citizenship, is now being urged to pressure the Kuwaiti government to provide transparency regarding his location, his legal status, and his immediate release.
The next critical checkpoint will be the formal processing of the charges mentioned by the CPJ and whether the Kuwaiti government will allow independent legal counsel to access Shihab-Eldin. Updates on his status are expected as international human rights bodies continue to monitor the implementation of the new military decree.
We invite readers to share this story and comment on the intersection of national security and press freedom in the digital age.
Disclaimer: This article provides information on legal decrees and human rights reports and does not constitute legal advice.
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