Qatar-based Al Jazeera commentators go dark on social media: What to know
Saeed Ziad, who offered a pro-Iran perspective on the war, has not posted on X in days, and the account of Fatima al-Smadi was deleted, though their exact status is not known.
Two prominent Al Jazeera personalities went silent on X last week, leading to social media speculation on their whereabouts, though one later reappeared on the site. The news comes as Qatar seeks to crack down on alleged Iranian subversion amid a growing number of attacks from Iran that have targeted Doha.
What happened: Saeed Ziad, a Palestinian pundit who frequently appears on Al Jazeera Arabic, has not posted on X since March 15, while the account of researcher Fatima al-Smadi had been deleted as of Friday. Smadi is described by the news site as a “researcher at Al Jazeera Center for Studies specializing in Iranian affairs.” Smadi's account resurfaced on Saturday and before that she had not posted since March 18.
The Cradle, often described as a pro-Iran news outlet, reported Thursday that Ziad had been detained by Qatari authorities on charges of “glorifying the enemy” due to posts in which he expressed “support for Iran.”
Iran’s state-run Press TV said Friday that Ziad and Smadi had been arrested, citing unspecified reports. A number of Arabic-language X accounts amplified unconfirmed reports that the two had disappeared or been detained.
