Safa Al Ahmad

Topics of Interest: Political Uprisings in the Middle East, Protests, Activism

Countries/Regions of Interest: Saudi Arabia, Yemen

Twitter: ​@ghariba33

List of Publications
Saudi's Secret Uprising - BBC
​http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-31915367

The Fight for Yemen - Frontline
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/fight-for-yemen/

Safa Al Ahmad is a Saudi Arabian freelance journalist and documentary filmmaker who has produced documentaries on uprisings in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

Safa’s 2014 documentary "Saudi's Secret Uprising," produced for the BBC, documented the largely unreported mass uprising in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province and was influential in bringing international attention to the violence against peaceful demonstrators. 

While working on her most recent documentary on Yemen, “The Fight for Yemen,” which was produced for PBS's Frontline, Safa was one of the few journalists reporting to international news organizations from the ground during the crisis between Houthi rebels, militant groups, and the government. 

In reporting on the Middle East, Safa offers an important perspective that counters the typical narrative produced by news outlets -- one that is based on her status as an Arab woman and her commitment to accessing powerful individuals who drive the struggles in the Middle East. She explains, “It has become nearly impossible to do a story without talking about Sunnis and Shia. But sectarianism is used as a tool, as a weapon, to further confuse and tangle an already complicated political landscape. It has become acceptable reductive language in the media…to explain our world.” 
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Safa is the joint winner of the 2015 Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Award for Journalism and was a finalist for the 2014 Sony Impact Award.

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