Lebanon: Comedian Arrested for Critical Jokes

By Human Rights Watch

Stand-up comedian Nour Hajjar performs onstage at the KED Beirut on December 15, 2020. © 2020 JOSEPH EID/AFP via Getty Images (Beirut) – Lebanese authorities’ arrest and investigation of prominent comedian Nour Hajjar, solely in retaliation for his jokes, represents a new escalation in Lebanon’s crackdown on public criticism, the Coalition to Defend Freedom of Expression in Lebanon said today. Lebanese judicial authorities should refrain from bringing charges against Hajjar, and others, prosecuted merely for peacefully expressing their opinions, and stop using insult and defamation laws to limit…

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