May 07
Mauritania: Two MPs Jailed for Four Years Over Social Media Posts Criticising President
A court in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott sentenced two members of parliament to four years in prison without parole on May 4, 2026, following charges arising from content they… Read more »
March 26
West Africa: Journalist Sentenced to Two Years' Imprisonment for 'Insulting' Niger's President
Youssouf Sissoko, editor-in-chief of the newspaper L'Alternance in Mali, was sentenced on March 23, 2026, by the National Cybercrime Court to two years' imprisonment and ordered to… Read more »
February 03
West Africa: Retired Lecturer Arrested Following Criticisms of Government
Sosthène Yaméogo, a 62-year-old former lecturer and orchestra conductor at Joseph Ki-Zerbo University in Ouagadougou, was arrested at his home on January 31, 2026, by… Read more »
December 10, 2025
Togo: Media Watchdog Calls for the Immediate Release of Togolese Poet Detained for 11 Months
On January 10, 2025, a father, an entrepreneur and a poet, Honoré Sitsopé Sokpor, poured his heart out in a poem he published on his Facebook account. Two days later,… Read more »
September 10, 2025
West Africa: Niger - Investigative Journalist Imprisoned Following Complaint By Prime Minister
Investigative journalist Ali Soumana, founder and editor-in-chief of the weekly newspaper Le Courrier, was arrested on September 7, 2025, by Niger's judicial police. He was taken… Read more »
September 09, 2025
Mauritania: Reporters Detained, Forced to Delete Protest Footage
Two journalists from the independent news outlet Al Akhbar.info were arrested by gendarmes while covering a peaceful protest in Mauritania's capital, Nouakchott, on September 2,… Read more »
August 29, 2025
Togo: Authorities Arrest Two Activists Amid Repression Campaign
On August 22, 2025, Armand Agblézé and Oséi Agbagno, activists from the Togolese citizens' movement organisation Tournons la Page, were arrested and detained… Read more »
Sierra Leone: Sierra Leone - Journalist Detained Over Cyberbullying Allegations
Shar Maturi, a senior reporter with the Standard Times Newspaper, was briefly detained on August 27, 2025, at the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) in Freetown over… Read more »
June 16, 2025
Mauritania: Activist Convicted Under Controversial Protection of National Symbols Law
On April 26, 2025, activist Abdoulaye Bâ was arrested for a social media video he posted. In the video he called the Minister of the Interior to end arrests of irregular… Read more »
