Kurdistan Region media unions condemn Arab outlets for ‘discord and lies’

ERBIL – The Kurdistan Journalists Syndicate has condemned several Arab satellite channels, accusing them of spreading misinformation and inciting hatred against the Kurdish population in Rojava, northeastern Syria.

The channels named are Al Jazeera Arabic, Al Arabiya and Al Hadath.

In a joint statement with the Union for Free Media, the two organizations said several Arab media channels broadcast “discord and lies and incite massacres.”

They said the channels contribute to systematic campaigns targeting Syria’s diverse communities and have intensified biased coverage in support of the Syrian regime since the beginning of assaults against Kurdish-led forces earlier this month.

“We strongly condemn the coverage and distortion by the channels, official institutions, and the figures connected to the Syrian interim regime, who spread discord and lies and directly promote war and mass killings. They deliberately distort Syria’s diversity,” the statement said.

The journalism organizations accused the media outlets of abandoning basic professional standards, violating journalistic ethics codes and serving political agendas by fueling unrest.

They called for an immediate halt to “hate speech and incitement,” urging Arab media to adhere to press standards and stop promoting narratives that justify violence against Syrian Kurds.

Separately, the General Directorate of Media and Publishing in the Kurdistan Region, under the Ministry of Culture and Youth, sent formal notices to companies operating satellite receivers, requesting they stop broadcasting Arabic-language channels that promote hate speech against Kurds.

The directorate warned that broadcasting foreign channels that incite hatred and disrespect Kurds is contrary to the region’s media regulations and licensing guidelines.

In parallel, legal steps have been taken. A legal team in Erbil submitted official complaints demanding the closure of the Erbil offices of both Al Jazeera and Al Hadath.

Lawyer Aso Hashim told 964media, “Al Jazeera and Al Hadath act against Kurds. They are working against the Kurdish people in Rojava.”

He said the media outlets have played a role in enabling attacks against Kurdish civilians in Syria, describing their coverage as lacking neutrality and professional integrity. “These two channels have lost all sense of balance and act far from journalistic ethics. It is clear they are acting against our nation,” he added.

Al Jazeera is based in Qatar, while Al Hadath is part of Saudi Arabia’s media network. Observers often link the editorial stance of such outlets to the foreign policies of their respective governments.

In early January 2026, forces of Syria’s transitional government and allied militias launched a military offensive against predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods in Aleppo, including Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh, following the collapse of a ceasefire with Kurdish authorities.

By mid-January, Syrian government forces advanced into broader Kurdish-administered areas of northeastern Syria, including territory that had been under Kurdish control for more than a decade. Under a subsequent ceasefire arrangement, Damascus assumed military and administrative control over towns such as Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor that had previously been held by Kurdish forces.

Rights organizations and local reports have documented abuses and violations targeting civilians based on their Kurdish identity. In a recent report, Community Peacemaker Teams said six members of a single Kurdish family were killed and six others injured by Syrian government forces because they were Kurdish.

Kurdish leaders have warned that the offensive displaced large numbers of civilians and raised fears of demographic change and ethnic targeting in Kurdish-majority areas.