Peregraf
The Metro Center for the Protection of Journalists’ Rights has condemned the armed seizure of Zoom TV’s office in Sulaymaniyah, following the violent clashes in Lalazar on August 22. The organization said the force that confiscated the channel’s building and broadcasting equipment belongs to the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader, and called on him to order an immediate evacuation of the premises.
“The fate of Zoom TV is unknown and 200 employees are worried,” Metro said in a statement, urging the return of the channel’s equipment and the protection of media freedoms.
According to Metro, the armed force entered the Zoom office shortly after clashes in Sulaymaniyah, during which the headquarters of the People’s Front and the home of Lahur Sheikh Jangi came under security control. Zoom employees evacuated the building after being informed of the raid.
“We ask the security forces to evacuate the channel and return its equipment,” Hemn Mahmood, director of Zoom TV, told Metro.
The future of Zoom TV remains uncertain, with observers suggesting the situation could mirror the 2021 takeover of iPLUS, another channel linked to Lahur Sheikh Jangi. At the time, PUK forces seized iPLUS’s office and equipment. Days later, the building was rebranded as part of the PUK’s media network, and in December 2024, a new channel—Channel 8—began broadcasting from the same location.
Zoom TV, licensed in February 2022 by both the Iraqi Media and Communications Authority and the Kurdistan Regional Government, officially launched its broadcasts on June 25, 2024, from offices in Baghdad, Erbil, and Sulaymaniyah. Until its interruption on August 22, the station employed around 200 staff.
Metro, which was founded in 2009 by journalists and human rights defenders in collaboration with the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR), stressed that the seizure represents a grave violation of press freedom. The organization called on the PUK leadership to refrain from turning media outlets into political spoils in internal disputes.