The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today welcomed the release of imprisoned Yemeni journalist Abdulkarim Al Khaiwani and congratulated its affiliate, the Yemeni Journalists' Syndicate (YJS), on securing his release.

"This is wonderful news for Abdulkarim and for the Yemeni media community," said IFJ General Secretary Aidan White. "It is thanks to the tireless work of the YJS that our colleague is free."

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh granted Al Khaiwani amnesty from his six-year sentence and a special security court convened today approved the decision. Al Khaiwani was released this afternoon.

The IFJ had supported the YJS campaign to free Al Khaiwani and credits the union with securing his release from prison. The IFJ believes that the sentence against Al Khaiwani was completely unjustified and the case against him without merit and that there was no proof that the journalist had done anything illegal.

In June Al Khaiwani received a six-year jail sentence based on the general charges of "terrorism." The prosecution failed to make any direct link between Al Khaiwani and armed groups active in the Yemen beyond his possession of photos that he received through an intermediary and that he required for his journalistic reports on the security threat to Yemen.

While in prison, Al Khaiwani's was named the 2008 Winner of Amnesty International's "Sepcial Award for Human Rights Journalism Under Threat."

The IFJ hopes that Khaiwani's release will mark a new phase of improved respect for journalists' rights and press freedom in Yemen.

For more information contact the IFJ at +32 2 235 2207

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries worldwide