“I was arrested at Heathrow Airport under the Terrorism Act, Section 12 because of my reporting.
“Six police officers were waiting for me at the entrance of the aircraft. I was held for almost 24 hours and questioned.
“I believe I’m the first journalist to be arrested under this provision of the Terrorism Act. I feel that this is a political persecution and hampers my ability to work as a journalist.”
Richard Thomas Medhurst (1992) is an independent journalist, political commentator and analyst from the UK with a focus on international affairs, US politics, and the Middle East.
Medhurst is known for his coverage of the Julian Assange extradition case in London, as one of the few journalists to report on the trial of the WikiLeaks founder from inside court. He has also covered the Iran nuclear deal talks on the ground in Vienna.
Medhurst was born in Damascus, Syria. His father is English and mother is Syrian. Both his parents served in UN peacekeeping and observer missions and were among the UN peacekeepers awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988.
Owing to his parents’ professional mobility, he has lived in Syria, Pakistan, Switzerland and Austria. He speaks four languages fluently: English, Arabic, French and German.
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As an independent journalist, Medhurst regularly hosts live broadcasts and video reports on his YouTube channel. Previous guests include the foreign minister of Venezuela, the deputy foreign minister of Iran; the Palestinian, Russian and Cuban ambassadors to the UN in Vienna; the former British ambassador to Syria; and various UN officials, journalists and more.
Medhurst’s reports and analysis on Yemen, Ukraine, Syria, Niger, Lebanon, Iran, the Israeli occupation in Palestine and its genocide in Gaza have gone viral countless times, racking up millions of views.
Richard Medhurst has a combined following of roughly one million people online, and appears regularly on international news outlets including Al Jazeera, WikiLeaks, Black Agenda Report, Al Mayadeen, The Times and LBC.
Produced by: Richard Medhurst
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