Writers at Risk Database
PEN America champions the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. The bedrock work of the global PEN network is advocacy and assistance on behalf of individuals persecuted for their use of the written word or other forms of expression. PEN America’s Writers at Risk Database is a searchable catalog of the writers, journalists, academics, public intellectuals and others under threat around the world. The database includes historical cases PEN America has worked on from 1987 onwards; non-active cases are color-coded black. PEN America is grateful to the John Templeton Foundation for support that enabled the establishment of the Writers at Risk Database and to PEN International for their collaboration in assembling this database.
Filters
-
Status
DetainedKeyvan Mohtadi
Activist, Literary writer, TranslatorIranMiddle East and North AfricaMohtadi is a writer, translator, and labor activist. In recent years, his membership in the Iranian Writers’ Association and support of workers’ rights have made him a target. On May 9, 2022, Iranian authorities raided his home, arresting him along with his wife. He was sentenced to six years in…
-
Status
Conditional ReleaseKhadija Al-Harbi
Literary writerSaudi ArabiaMiddle East and North AfricaFeminist writer Khadija Al-Harbi was detained, alongside her husband, following a raid on their home on April 4, 2019. Their arrests were part of a larger crackdown on dissidents in April 2019, commonly referred to as the “April Campaign” in Saudi Arabia. She was reportedly in the late stages of…
-
Status
Conditional ReleaseKhadija Ismayilova
Journalist, TranslatorAzerbaijanEurope and Central AsiaIsmayilova has long been targeted for her investigative reporting on government corruption. She was detained in December 2014 and later convicted of retaliatory charges, including tax evasion. In May 2016, she was released on probation for five years. In 2020 the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the actions…
-
Status
ImprisonedKhado Tsetan
Creative artist, Singer/SongwriterChina/Tibet Autonomous RegionAsia-PacificTibetan lyricist Khado Tsetan was detained in 2019 due to a song he wrote that praised the Dalai Lama along with singer Tsegao, after it circulated on social media. In July 2020, the Chinese government sentenced him to seven years in prison on charges of “subversion of state power” for…
-
Status
ConvictedKhaled Al-Natour
Activist, Online CommentatorJordanMiddle East and North AfricaActivist Khaled al-Natour was arrested on February 8, 2024 after publishing a tweet criticizing a Jordanian government proposal to establish a land export bridge with Israel. The Preventive Security Department initially contacted his brother under the pretense of discussing Al-Natour’s car, but he was arrested upon arrival. Despite being initially…
-
Status
ReleasedKhaled Daoud
Journalist, Online CommentatorEgyptMiddle East and North AfricaThe former leader of the Egyptian Constitution Party, Daoud was arrested during the September 2019 protests against the Sisi regime after he made a video calling for investigations into the president’s corruption. He faced accusations of membership in a banned group, spreading false news, and misusing social media platforms. After…
-
Status
ReleasedKhaled Lofty
PublisherEgyptMiddle East and North AfricaLofty was arrested and imprisoned on charges of false news and divulging military secrets for translating and distributing The Angel: The Egyptian Spy Who Saved Israel, a book by an Israeli author. He was sentenced to five years in prison in 2018, and his appeal was rejected. He was released…
-
Status
DetainedKhaled Mamdouh
JournalistEgyptMiddle East and North AfricaOn July 16, 2024, Khaled Mamdouh was arrested following a raid on his home. He was considered forcibly disappeared for six days until he appeared before the Supreme State Security Prosecution on July 21, 2024. The Prosecution seized his phone and laptop and ruled to detain him for 15 days…
-
Status
ReleasedKhalid Al-Alkami
Online CommentatorSaudi ArabiaMiddle East and North AfricaKahlid Al-Alkami is an online commentator and blogger who posted negative tweets about austerity in Saudi Arabia. He was arrested on September 12, 2017, right after the launch of a McKinsey report that measured Saudis’ public opinion on economic policies. Al-Alkami’s tweets were cited in the report and described as…
Writers at Risk Database Key:
STATUS box that is red: Active case
STATUS box that is black: Inactive case
Funder
PEN America is deeply grateful to the John Templeton Foundation for its generous support of the Freedom to Write Index and Writers at Risk Database.
Partner
PEN America thanks the PEN International Secretariat and the Writers in Prison Committee for their extensive contributions to and collaboration on compiling the cases included in this database.