Syrian journalist, Turkish paper win French media freedom prizes

A Syrian journalist who lives and works in the war-scarred city of Aleppo was awarded the Reporters without Borders Prize in France on Tuesday for her defence of press freedom.

The Paris-based media rights group singled out Zaina Erhaim for her “determination and courage” in covering the conflict in Syria, which is deemed the most dangerous country in the world for journalists.

Over the past two years Erhaim has trained around a hundred print and television journalists, a third of them women. Her efforts have led to the emergence of a number of independent newspapers and magazines.

Reporters without Borders (RSF) also honoured centre-left Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet, which won the watchdog’s Media of the Year prize for its “independent and courageous journalism”.