Journalist freed in Syria after brief detention as press fears grow

A Lebanese news outlet says its correspondent, detained in southern Syria on Tuesday, has been released, while another journalist remains in custody amid growing concern over media repression in the country.

Almodon, a ​​​​​​Beirut-based outlet owned by Fadaat Media, reported that its reporter, Abdallah al-Hassan, also known as Nour al-Hassan, was arrested in Quneitra governorate under "vague accusations". Initially, authorities cited his media work, before later accusing him of collaborating with Israel. Syrian government sources denied those claims, dismissing suggestions of links to Israel as "rumours".

Hassan, who has covered Israeli military activity in Quneitra, was arrested despite holding a media permit allowing him to film in the area. Almodon reported that he had been working as a fixer for visiting French and German media teams when complaints were lodged with local authorities.

The outlet said the foreign journalists were filming military installations on both the Syrian and Israeli sides of the border using Hassan's permit, but without their own authorisation. Syrian General Security summoned Hassan for questioning before detaining him.

Almodon said it contacted Syrian officials, including Information Minister Hamza Mustafa, who reportedly expressed willingness to assist. The minister promised that Hassan would be released once procedures were completed, a commitment that was fulfilled hours later.

The arrest followed an incident at the Water Resources Directorate in Quneitra, where Hassan was filming with the permission of its head, Bassam al-Shamali. A Syrian intelligence officer questioned him about his work, then claimed Hassan's permit did not authorise filming at government sites, despite it stating otherwise.

Later that evening, a security patrol reportedly visited Hassan's home, instructing him to report to the Political Affairs Directorate. He complied the following morning, whereupon his phone was confiscated and he was detained.

Almodon had publicly called for his immediate release.

The New York-based NGO Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) told The New Arab that Hassan's arrest "appears to have stemmed from confusion over his role supporting foreign media crews in Al Quneitra, rather than from his own reporting activities."

The arrest sparked concern that post-Assad authorities may be continuing repressive tactics used by the previous regime, including arbitrary detention, disappearances and torture. Thousands of Syrians are believed to have died in detention under Bashar al-Assad's decades-long rule.

Security incidents, including sectarian violence, have plagued Syria since Assad's ouster, complicating efforts by the country's new Islamist leadership to restore order after over 14 years of war.

Hassan’s case came just days after another journalist, Hassan Zaza, was detained in Damascus. Zaza, a Kurdish journalist and editor of the Noos Social news site, was arrested on Friday, and his whereabouts remain unknown.

Zaza had returned to Damascus from Kurdish-held northeast Syria after Assad’s fall nearly seven months ago. Despite a March agreement between the new Damascus leadership and the Kurdish-led administration, tensions persist over Syria’s political future. While the Kurds favour federalism, the central government has rejected it.

CPJ said it was "closely following the case of Kurdish journalist Hassan Zaza, who remains in detention, with his whereabouts still unknown," adding that it was publicly calling for his release and for full transparency from Syrian authorities.

"Mohammad Al-Saleh, Director of Press Relations at Syria’s Ministry of Information, confirmed to CPJ that Zaza was arrested in Damascus due to "security concerns unrelated to his journalistic work," but declined to provide further details, citing an ongoing investigation," the NGO told The New Arab.

Responding to a question about whether it knew of other journalists who had been detained, CPJ said it has not documented any other systematic or widespread campaign of arrests targeting journalists by the new Syrian government.

"However, there have been a few isolated incidents involving assaults or detentions by security personnel, which, in most cases, Syrian authorities have responded to and resolved promptly," it said.