Akram Raslan, Al-Fedaa
Medium:Internet, Print
Charge:Anti-state
Imprisoned:October 2, 2012

Raslan, a cartoonist who worked for the Hama-based newspaper Al-Fedaa and contributed to several other news websites, was arrested by intelligence officials at his workplace in Hama, according to news reports. Raslan's cartoons, which criticized the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, had been published on his own blog and a number of websites, including that of Al-Jazeera.

Conflicting reports emerged about Raslan's status. Cartoon Rights Network International (CRNI), which has closely tracked Raslan's case, reported that he might have been executed by the Syrian regime after being sentenced to life imprisonment on July 26, 2013. But after reports emerged in October 2013 that Raslan was still alive and the family said it could not confirm his death, CRNI amended its statement and said it was working to verify those claims.

In June 2014, CRNI reported that the Syrian permanent mission to the United Nations admitted that Raslan had been arrested for publishing cartoons that "offended the state's prestige" and that he was under investigation. The Syrian government had not released any more information on Raslan's health, whereabouts, or legal status by late 2014.

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